Many discover too late that the development and management of a cross-sector partnership is quite subtle and complex.  We believe that any partnership for sustainable development will be most effective when those involved have a good understanding of the procedures needed to maximise its potential, together with the skills required to build and maintain robust and productive cross-sector relationships.

With knowledge and skills partnering can achieve ambitious goals, without knowledge and skills in at least some of the key players it is likely that partnerships will fall far short of their potential and may even fail completely. This wastes precious resources, brings disappointment and possibly causes real damage to an already challenging situation. For this reason, we have invested considerable time and effort in building a range of learning and training programmes aimed at both individuals (those developing or contributing to a partnership as strategic planners, brokers, managers, advisors or donors) and whole organisations. In each case (and in our many forms of tailored training, see below) we aim to take the following approach:

• Wherever possible, we train cross-sectorally (at least for a part of the programme even if not for the whole) in the belief that learning is richer and more real if participants work and learn together across traditional sector boundaries
• We build on many years of our own leading edge partnering work (IBLF has led the field in this area since 1990), seek to build on frameworks, case studies and practical tools all based on action research and a wide range of partnering experience
• We aim at a balance between ‘art’ and ‘science’ in the way we teach / train in the belief that both aspects are necessary and that, if possible, each individual will cultivate both. This is being able to be intuitive and imaginative on the one hand as well as rigorous and output oriented on the other
• Our training team (including trainers, tutors, mentors and specialists) use a wide range of training methods to create learning opportunities; including experiential learning, serious games, role play and mapping - many have said that our training has been ‘seminal’ and ‘the best training experience they have had’.

There are now three well-established programmes (see below) developed and run in collaboration with three mainstream institutions; University of Cambridge, Overseas Development Institute and United Nations System Staff College, respectively.  It has been invaluable to offer these programmes as a partnership since we are able to apply our own learning into the design and development of the courses.

Post-Graduate Certificate in Cross-Sector Partnership
Established in 2002, this is an academic qualification at Masters level designed to deepen knowledge, strategic thinking and intellectual rigour in partnering as a sustainable development paradigm. Click here for more information

Partnership Brokers Accreditation Scheme
Established in 2003, this is a professional qualification (the only one of its kind) for those involved in scoping, designing, developing and managing partnerships. Click here for more information

Partners in Action
Established in 2004, this is a specialist skills training programme for those involved in cross-sector partnership building within the UN system. Click here for more information

Tailored training

The Partnering Initiative has developed a portfolio of training and partnering skills-building activities that we adapt on request to the different requirements of a particular location, sector or organisation.

This is probably the aspect of our work that has the biggest up-take and we are delighted to work with an extraordinary, and growing, number of individual associates around the world, many of whom have qualified on one or other of the courses listed above at a distinction level.  With their help, we are able to develop and deliver tailored training to a wide range of organisations and institutions at both strategic and grass roots levels.  Click here for more information


The Partnership Forum

In addition to our formal training programmes, we are also committed to building active learning networks between ‘partnership practitioners’ (a term we have created to include anyone from any sector and operating at any level who is engaged in a cross-sector partnership anywhere in the world).

Many of those in the course of completing their learning or training programme themselves produce work of the highest calibre – taking the partnership paradigm much further in theory and / or practice.  Many of these pieces of work are currently available on our website and we expect our Partnership Forum to be a highly interactive facility where practitioners can exchange experiences and practical ideas as well as co-creating new materials and tools online.

Click here for more information about The Partnership Forum