To Partner or Not to Partner. That is the Question!
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Darrin Dickey on Monday, 4 of February , 2008 at 11:08 am
I recently found a cool website called PartnerUp.com. It’s a sort of social networking site for wantrepreneurs and entrepreneurs. You can create a profile with your abilities and experience. You can post business opportunities or browse opportunities from other members. If you’re willing to pony up a subscription fee, you can search other member’s profiles to help you find potential partners who match your specific needs.
But this really brings up the question of partnerships. Two of my mentors really, really don’t like them. They’ve both seen some very ugly business break ups in the past when one or more partners don’t or can’t keep up their part of the workload. It really puts a strain on a partnership when you rake in $5 million in revenue and having to split it 50/50 when one of the partners did 90% of the work. Or if the business struggles when one of you is working your heart out and the other is completely absent. There’s also the challenge of making sure all of the partners share a passion and vision for where the business is going.
On the other hand, there have been some successful partnerships: Hewlett-Packard, Sergei & Larry, Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Peanut Butter & Jelly! In all seriousness though, there have been many successful partnerships. And having more than one person to work on a startup would sure be helpful. The amount of work it takes, no matter if you fail or succeed, is rough and sometimes overwhelming. I think the key to success is to set up a well-defined partnership. One that defines who is responsible for what jobs, what is the definition of successful performance, what happens when someone doesn’t perform, how much everyone owns and a hierarchy of leadership. It’s also important to define how disagreements will be
handled. And all of this needs to be decided before anything else is done in the business.
I think a partnership can work out if it is well structured. That having been said, I haven’t decided yet if I will take on partners for one or more of my endevors. I’ll keep it in mind as an option.
Have you had partnership experience? I’d like to hear about it! Comment on this posting or shoot me an e-mail at darrin-at-brandingfire.com.
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Category: Personal Observations
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