Tips for Effective Partner Management

This is the most underrated problem I've seen when trying to build or expand partnership GTM: Leadership is initially fully behind a new partnership, excited about its potential, but that enthusiasm never makes its way down to the sales teams who are expected to execute. Without alignment, even the best partnership can stall before it has a chance to succeed. Why does this happen? Sales teams are often focused on their core products, and if a partnership doesn’t clearly benefit them or fit into their day-to-day operations, it becomes an afterthought. To turn things around, you need to make sure your partnership incentives, compensation, and training are in lockstep with the teams that will be selling your product. Here’s how to align incentives and drive results: 1. Ensure your incentives are compelling enough for frontline teams. It’s not enough to excite leadership—sales teams need a clear, tangible reason to sell your product. - Introduce a financial incentive or bonus structure that’s competitive with what reps earn on their core products. This could be a one-time bonus for the first sale, or an ongoing commission that rewards consistent effort. -Tie the incentive to their existing sales goals. If your product helps them hit their targets more easily, they’ll naturally prioritize it. 2. Structure partner compensation to motivate co-selling. If your partner compensation doesn’t align with their core goals, they won’t push your product. - Design a compensation plan that aligns with both the partner’s and your business objectives. For instance, if your partner’s core offering is hardware, incentivize bundling your software as part of the sale to create a win-win situation. - Offer performance-based incentives that reward partners for hitting key milestones—whether that’s a certain number of units sold, a specific revenue target, or even customer engagement metrics. Keep it simple and measurable. 3. Provide consistent training and engagement so your product isn’t just another checkbox. Sales teams won’t advocate for your product if they don’t fully understand its value or how to sell it. - Develop ongoing, bite-sized training sessions that fit into their schedules. Instead of overwhelming them with lengthy sessions, focus on 15-minute, high-impact trainings that teach them how to identify the right opportunities. -Pair training with real-time support. Join sales calls, offer one-pagers, and provide direct assistance during key customer engagements. When they feel supported, they’re more likely to feel confident pushing your product. This kind of alignment can make the difference between a stalled partnership and a thriving one. When sales teams are motivated, equipped, and incentivized to sell your product, the partnership stops being just another checkbox—it becomes a key driver of growth.

Your partners don't work for you. Stop treating them like they do. Yesterday I spoke with a CEO who was confused why all his new "partnerships" fizzled after signing agreements with "excited" partners. I asked him one question: "Did you set and align on goals and expectations with these partners?" The answer was no. Lightbulb moment… I hear this all the time. Teams are so focused on getting partners "over the line" they skip critical alignment conversations. Then three months later, they wonder why their hot new partnership became a nothing burger. Here are the things you need to discuss with new partners: - What does success look like for this partnership? - What are each side's expectations and goals? - What does the partner need from you to win? - How many customers could this be a fit for? - What resources can each side commit? - How does your partner program work? - How quickly can this be rolled out? - What do you need from them? - What’s the plan for success? - How will you track progress? If your partner isn't willing to have this conversation, they're not bought in. They're just being polite. They signed your agreement because it was easier than saying no. But they're never going to do the work. Things end how they begin. Stop celebrating signed agreements and skipping alignment. No launches. No deals. No results. Just another logo on your "partner page" that does nothing. The signature means nothing if the work doesn't follow. Make sure you align early and often. Set real expectations. Commit real resources. Define real success metrics. Track progress and force accountability. This will make all the difference in how your partnerships track.

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad. Learning takes time and humility. The fastest way to grow is to listen to the people who’ve already taken the hits, learned the lessons, and earned the wisdom. If you’re starting your journey as a Channel Manager, here are the lessons I wish I’d learned sooner: 1. IT’S NOT SALES You can’t push, charm, or buy your way into true partner loyalty. Real relationships are built on value and trust. Partners can spot a salesperson from a mile away because they are sales professionals. 2. REAL RELATIONSHIPS TAKE REAL TIME I burned bridges early by chasing my own quota instead of understanding what partners actually wanted. Learn what drives them. When they win, you win. 3. PARTNER ENABLEMENT IS NOT SALES ENABLEMENT Partners don’t care about your internal decks. They run their own businesses with their own priorities. If you want your enablement to stick, simplify it massively and tailor it to their world. 4. QUALITY OVER QUANTITY Sales taught me to play the numbers. Partnerships taught me that fit matters more. Prioritize mutual value and a strong “better together” story over volume. 5. DATA IS YOUR BEST FRIEND I used to be too busy doing to track what mattered. My VP taught me that you optimize the road ahead by studying the one behind. Leading indicators beat lagging indicators every time. 6. TRUST THE PROCESS There are no shortcuts. If you skip foundational steps, it will catch up to you. Start at step one and build deliberately. 7. INVEST IN INTERNAL PARTNERSHIPS I assumed internal alignment happened automatically. It doesn’t. Build relationships across your org early. You will need them to remove blockers, delegate busywork, and stay proactive instead of reactive. 8. PARTNER EXPERIENCE MATTERS Every touchpoint shapes how partners feel about working with you from the first interaction to the handoff to support. Make your value and ease of partnership obvious. 9. ALWAYS ASK “WHAT’S IN IT FOR THEM?” Partners don’t owe you anything. My relationships transformed when I stopped thinking about what I wanted and started asking what mattered to them. 10. IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT YOUR PRODUCT Partners are not buying your features. They are betting on your company. Make sure they understand who you are, not just what you sell. Ruben Pina Jr. Tim Hammer Elan Crane Chance Crane

What if your top-performing seller doesn’t even work for you?... Partner-led growth is one of the highest-leverage GTM plays (if you know when and how to use it). Brian Weinberger is the CRO at Sisense and has 30+ years of GTM leadership. He’s built partner motions across every model – from VARs to SIs to global cloud marketplaces. In this episode, he shares the playbook for building a partner ecosystem. Key takeaways:   1️⃣ Don’t start with distribution. Start with delivery. Most founders want partner-led pipeline. But first, ask: who delivers your product best? If it’s complex, lean on experts. Great delivery builds stickiness and drives long-term retention. 2️⃣ Enablement speed is the best predictor of partner success. Enablement is your early signal. How quickly can someone become fluent in your product and category? Invest in onboarding to compress time-to-value for every partner. 3️⃣ Partner ecosystems are not shortcuts, they’re systems. You won’t see ROI in 6 months. But by year 3, compounding kicks in. A mature ecosystem drives pipeline, retention, and expansion (often outperforming internal teams). 4️⃣ Use both direct and partner models Microsoft scaled through partners; Salesforce went direct. Today’s best SaaS companies use both: AEs for speed, partners for scale. Direct is your wedge and partners are your engine. 5️⃣ Sell on your own paper, even if you don’t do the work. Early on, own the contract. Let partners deliver, but keep buying simple for customers. This gives you control while subcontracting trusted experts behind the scenes. 6️⃣ Use partners to extend coverage where you can’t hire. New regions, verticals, or languages? Start with partners. The right one can be your seller, marketer, CSM, and architect - all in one. 7️⃣ The best partners hunt, not wait. Most partner programs wait for inbound or expect the reseller to “bring leads.” Flip the script. Feed your partners a pipeline, offer meaningful margins, and give them a reason to care. Partners who market and close independently are the ones who scale with you. 8️⃣ Use integrations to gain leverage with giants. Want attention from a cloud hyperscaler or dominant ecosystem? Don’t just build an integration, resell their product. Sisense white-labeled Snowflake, creating shared customers and shared incentives. Ecosystem selling builds political capital. 9️⃣ Want loyalty? Invest in in-person. Remote is efficient, but in-person builds bonds. Whether it’s team offsites, co-selling sessions, or just dinners, the cultural glue that holds your partner network together is forged face-to-face. The ROI shows up in loyalty, learning speed, and long-term deal flow. -- 🎧 Tune in and subscribe on YouTube, Apple, Spotify or wherever you like to listen by searching "The GTMnow Podcast." 💡 GTMnow by GTMfund: Build, scale and invest with the best minds in tech.

The Partnership role is evolving fast. We are moving away from the era of the "Relationship Manager" and entering the era of the "Ecosystem General Manager." It is less about who you know, and more about how you operate. Here is the framework I use to navigate this shift: 1. The Operational Pillar (RevOps) Partnerships need to move from "good vibes" to data-driven attribution. If you can't trace a partner's impact through the CRM with the same rigor as a direct sales rep, it is hard to prove value. Practical Tip: Stop using spreadsheets for tracking. Ensure your CRM has a specific field for "Partner Influence and co-sell" separate from "Partner Source" so you can track assist value, not just sourced revenue. 2. The Financial Pillar (Portfolio Management) We need to treat the partner ecosystem like a VC fund. You have limited capital (time and resources), so you cannot be "fair" to everyone. You have to bet big on the winners and pull back from the others. Practical Tip: Audit your partner list this week. Apply the 80/20 rule. Who are the top 20% driving results? Shift 50% more of your time to them immediately. 3. The Product Pillar (The Mindset) Stop thinking about "recruiting" partners and start thinking about building a product for them. The partner is your user. If your portal or enablement process is clunky, they will churn just like a software user would. Practical Tip: Conduct a "User Interview" with your top 3 partners. Ask them: "What is the hardest part about doing business with us?" Then fix that one thing. 4. The Ecosystem Pillar (The Value Chain) Partners are often pigeonholed as just a sales channel (resellers). But in a modern ecosystem, they are a value multiplier across the entire business - from product innovation to marketing trust to customer success. Practical Tip: Set up a meeting between your best Service Partner and your VP of Customer Success. Find one account where the partner can help reduce churn. I am curious to hear your take on this evolution. Which of these four pillars is the biggest priority for your team right now?

I've recruited and onboarded 1,578 partners in the B2B space over the last 20 years. One of the hardest things to assess? Their level of commitment. And yet - this is one of the most important factors in a successful partnership. Here are 4 signals you can look for to know how committed your partner is: #1: They lean into high stakes situations to ensure successful customer outcomes. 🤝 You can tell a lot about a partner when the pressure is on. Tight timeline? They work on weekends to ensure the customer launch hits the deadline. Customer escalations? They communicate immediately, figure out a remediation plan and update on progress. These moments define the relationship. Because a partner who leans in when things are messy is a partner you can count on when it really matters. #2: They work collaboratively with you to improve 📈 The best and most committed partners have a growth mindset. Why? Because no partner does everything perfectly. There's always room for improvement and it's the constant striving for that that leads to greatness. You want to find the partners that put in the energy to rapidly improve. Are your partners working with you to improve: -The quality and speed of their sales proposals? -How they present themselves in trainings? -The way they run discovery calls and scoping? -How they build joint case studies with you? -How they do co-marketing with your team? The list goes far beyond these few examples. Keep qualifying. #3: They embed best practices in their operating systems. ⚙️ An example: Certifications Most partners will take your certifications and meet the bare minimum. But the most committed partners? They'll embed your certifications into their enablement systems and process to drive scale. #4: They'll have both a partner champion as your point of contact AND an executive sponsor. You need both. The executive ensures: 🚦 Strategic alignment 🧩 Cross-functional buy-in 💰 Budget + resourcing ⏫ Air cover when things stall The partner champion POC ensures: 📆 The operating cadence is driven ✅ Action items + deliverables are completed 🤝 Co-selling happens effectively 📢 The partnership gets evangelized internally The next time you want to dive further into a partnership - ask yourself: How committed is the partner?

Logos don’t close deals. Activated partners do. Too many partner programs look impressive on the slide deck… until you look under the hood. Signing partners is easy. Activating them is the hard part. • We’ve all seen this: • Partner manager hired • Logo target set • Celebration when the list grows And then… nothing changes. Dormant partnerships don’t drive pipeline, they just take up space. Without a plan to: • Integrate partners into your GTM • Enable them to sell • Measure their contribution • …that “partnership” stays dormant. Here's a better approach: 1️⃣ Start with fit, not volume – Does the partner align with your ICP, growth stage, and GTM motion? 2️⃣ Co‑create the plan – Build mutual success plans with clear objectives, responsibilities, and timelines. 3️⃣ Enable relentlessly – Give them the tools, training, and in‑workflow support they need. 4️⃣ Measure and adjust – Track performance, learn what’s working, and iterate together. Partnerships are living systems. If you don’t feed them, they fade. How are you measuring activated partners vs. signed ones in your program right now? #partnermarketing #ecosystemgrowth #gtmstrategy

7️⃣ things that all partner managers need to know.👇 _____________________ 1️⃣ A partner management system should be your best friend, or at the very least a CRM that allows for appropriate partner data tracking. Good data around partnerships is often lacking, which can make it hard to validate success internally, don’t fall into this trap. 2️⃣ Educate internal teams on what you are looking to achieve from your partner programme. Other departments won’t automatically support your goals if they have no idea what they are. Build strong relationships inside your company early to ensure success. Your partners and their customers might have a fantastic experience working with you as an initial touch point, but this can fall down in other parts of your business if you haven’t developed those internal relationships and uplifted wider company knowledge around how your partner programme operates. 3️⃣ Good partnerships aren’t built on pressure, they’re built on trust and mutual value. Partners can spot a sales pitch a mile away. Focus on being their trusted ally, not a pushy salesperson. Feel free to push back when you hear that old classic “when are they sending us all of their customers” as well! 4️⃣ Be patient. Pushing partners too hard too early on will frustrate them. The best success comes from understanding what drives your partners and showing them how you’ll help them achieve it over a long period of time. Rome wasn’t built in a day. 5️⃣ There is such a thing as too many partners. It’s not about sheer numbers. Prioritise quality partnerships where the value is mutual, and your success stories align. Don’t be afraid to say goodbye to those partnerships that haven’t worked out. 6️⃣ Make it easy and valuable for your partners, and just as importantly their customers, to work with you. Your partners will see your business as an extension of theirs in many ways, so they will expect you to mirror their own standards with their end customers. 7️⃣ Your partners don’t owe you anything and you likely operate in a competitive market where they could quickly jump ship. Focus on incentives that will enable you to create lasting, successful collaborations. _____________________ Great partnerships take effort. Let’s raise the bar and give partnerships the spotlight they deserve.

Building a strong #partnerships #ecosystem takes a lot of work, testing and iterating - especially with limited time and often resources. So what have I seen working quite well in one of the most incredible partnership ecosystem I've ever worked in? ✨ Clarity on 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲: listen to your partners find a way to keep enriching that exchange. Some will value commercial rewards, some will value exposure more. Find what works and create processes that support that and are attached to business outcomes. 👯♀️ Sales x partners collab: joint selling is key to increase the close rate. 📊 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: identify key operational friction points and work with partner ops to address them. Developing sophistication with data/tracking is going to be a must for a long-term ride. 🏔 Setting clear 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: there's no point in overpromising or hiding business goals. Develop a joint plan with your partners and make sure you're clear on which segment of the market they can add value to customers + resource accordingly. 🤝 Partnerships between "apparently 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴" 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀: I lost count of how many times I've seen service partners operating in a similar TAM ending up shaking hands to cooperate, rather than compete. This might be unique to the Shopify ecosystem (it is a special place, not gonna lie), but I believe with the right framework, mindset and coaching other industries could benefit from this collaboration too. 🚀 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 & 𝗜𝗦𝗩 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀: one can't survive without the other. Developing a strong joint GTM strategy between these two types of partners is essential to keep nurturing both pipelines. 🎉 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆: in a world where ROI has to be measured on every activity, you have to find ways to measure the impact on community events too (traditionally harder to evaluate). However, I'm a strong believer that a strong partnership community needs to be supported (be it through event sponsorship, funding, talk participation, event space lending etc) for it to keep thriving. After all, partnerships is all about relationships. And when things get hard, you need to have strong and trusted relationships that can take a tough conversation and define a way forward together. 📈 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: without data, tracking and attribution it's hard to justify recurring investment. Make sure you have clear metrics in mind (and communicate them clearly) + strategies to ensure these are measured from the get go. Iterating in time is totally fine as the business develops. After all, "companies with mature partnership programmes grow revenue nearly 2X faster than others and see up to 28% revenue increase. Partnership channel revenue growth rates for high-maturity companies outpace low-maturity companies by more than double" [Forrester research] - so if you're not investing in partnerships yet, it might be time to understand why and take action to rectify this!