Educational resources for Partnerships teams and leaders. Explore our free resources that help you to level up your Partnerships career.
Educational resources for Partnerships teams and leaders. Explore our free resources that help you to level up your Partnerships career.
Educational resources for Partnerships teams and leaders. Explore our free resources that help you to level up your Partnerships career.
Educational resources for Partnerships teams and leaders. Explore our free resources that help you to level up your Partnerships career.
Educational resources for Partnerships teams and leaders. Explore our free resources that help you to level up your Partnerships career.
Compress 10 years of partnerships learning into 8 weeks
Learn the playbook of the world’s best partnership leaders as a Certified Partnerships Professional
Partnerships isn't rocket science - it's harder
The challenge is: You didn’t learn this stuff in school. Unlike traditional roles, like Accounting or Finance - it’s not a single discipline that you can learn in a textbook.
There’s a complex web of skills that you need to weave together in order to be successful in this job.
- Your point of contact stopped responding to your emails.
- The VP of Product won't prioritize your integration on the roadmap.
- The deal you closed last quarter isn't generating the traction you expected.
- And your CEO just sent another email asking for a progress report from the Partnerships team.
Now what do you do?
Build your skills, confidence, and experience as a Certified Partnerships Professional
In our immersive 8-week cohort experience, you’ll learn the playbook for becoming a transformational partnerships leader
As a Certified Partnerships Professional, you will know how to:
Here's how it works:
If you're looking to hone your BD and partnership skills, this is an amazing program.
In-Depth Curriculum
Get the playbook for building better partnerships
Go deep on 50+ topics that cover every aspect of the partnering process, from getting internal buy-in to scaling partner ecosystems
Expert-Led Discussions
Join interactive live sessions led by seasoned mentors
Participate in weekly live sessions to compare notes with peers in group discussions led by a highly-experienced partnerships leader
This program was a game changer for me
Grow your professional Network
Build an incredible network for feedback and support
Foster strong relationships with a tight-knit cohort of partnership leaders that’ll last your whole career
Practice your skills
Get hands-on practice in the “Partnership Simulator”
Challenge yourself in interactive simulations to practice skills like negotiating deals, writing better emails, creating business cases, and overcoming roadblocks & conflicts with partners.
Wow wow wow. I cannot say enough about the value of this program.
Learn from Seasoned pros
Learn to avoid common partnerships mistakes
Put yourself into the shoes of experts as you hear their stories of partnerships gone awry - and work out “how would I handle that?”
Templates & Tools
Move faster with tools and templates
Get a headstart on every deal by leveraging templates, swipe files, and tools designed & used by seasoned partnerships professionals.
You’ll learn directly from experienced mentors who’ve done deals for the top companies in the world
Your instructor
The program was designed by and is led by Firneo CEO Scott Pollack, a 20-year partnerships veteran from American Express, WeWork, and Dow Chemical, and best-selling author of What, Exactly, Is Business Development?: A Primer on How Deals Get Done
Hear the stories & lessons of partnership leaders from:
Course Curriculum
What you'll learn
Over 8 weeks, you’ll learn the Value Alignment Framework™ - a blueprint for building a high-performance partnerships engine
Understanding Value
Week One
In week 1, we’ll explore what "partnerships" really means to you -- and to everyone else at your company. You’ll build a strong foundation for the rest of the program, meet your fellow students, and start applying what you learn to your own company.
- The Opportunity for Partnerships
- The Many Faces of Value
- Determining what is Long-Term
- Exploring Sources of Value
- Understanding stakeholders within your own organization and what they care about
Getting Buy-In
Week Two
In week 2, we’ll start the process of identifying and prioritizing partnership opportunities that not only get results, but get buy-in.
- Identifying what matters to your company
- The #1 Killer of Deals (and Careers)
- How partnerships looks across different companies and organizations
- The Value Alignment Framework
- How Companies Think
- Net Perceived Value
- The Having Value Phase
- Identifying Opportunities
- Reactive vs. Proactive Opportunities
- Reporting Lines and the impact on opportunities
Building Business Cases
Week Three
In week 3, you’ll start building a business case to size opportunities, align with stakeholders, and get resources
- Assessing Opportunities
- Finding Best-Fit Opportunities
- Building a Business Case
- Identifying your organization’s power centers
- Stakeholder management
- Sizing Opportunities
- Financial modeling for partnerships
- Assessing Resource Constraints
- Securing Resources and Internal Alignment
Prioritizing Pipelines
Week Four
In week 4, we’ll explore how partnerships compare to other go-to-market strategies so that you can do deals with the full support of internal stakeholders.
- Go-to-market Strategy
- Evaluating Build vs. Buy vs. Partner
- The Pros and Cons of Partnership
- Types of Partnerships
- Storytelling & Business Cases
- Driving Internal Decisions
- KPIs and setting expectations
- Leading without positional authority
- Short-term wins vs Long-term wins
Getting In the Door
Week Five
In week 5, you’ll start identifying prospective partners and building a killer deal pipeline. You’ll learn how to craft a winning pitch that can help open doors and set you up to quickly win deals.
- The Communicating Value Phase
- Recognizing Vanity Partnerships
- What Prospective Partners Are Thinking About You
- Defining your ideal partner profile
- Crafting a Value Hypothesis
- Identifying Prospective Partners
- Validating Partner Interest
- Building and Prioritizing a Partner Pipeline
Negotiations & Deal Structuring
Week Six
In week 6, you’ll “get in the door” with prospective partners, and learn how to leverage different types of champions within their companies to drive deals to close.
- Prospecting Ideal Contacts
- Deciphering Org Structures
- How Org Structures Impact Perceived Value
- Understanding Organizations from the Outside
- Deciding on Seniority Levels for Ideal Contacts
- Nurturing Champions
- The Psychology of Motivating Champions
- The 5 Types of Champions
- Tactics for Getting in the Door
- Finding Connectors
- When to Use Warm vs. Cold Intros
- Leveraging Navigators
- Writing Effective Intro Emails
Partner Enablement
Week Seven
In week 7, you’ll learn how to structure and negotiate partnerships. You’ll learn how to overcome roadblocks that can sink your deals, and bring a deal past the finish line
- The First Partner Meeting
- Testing Value Hypotheses
- Interest-Building Meetings
- Deal Structures
- Key Deal Terms
- Incentives and Deal Performance
- A Tale of Two Sales Forces
- Drafting a Term Sheet
- Overcoming Roadblocks to Closing
- The Impact of Company Culture and Processes on Closing
- Fundamentals of Negotiation
- When and How to Work with Lawyers
- Legal Risk vs. Business Risk
- Closing Deals
Scaling Partner Programs
Week Eight
In week 8, you’ll bring your partnership to market. You’ll create a plan to launch, manage, and scale your partnerships so that you can create the maximum impact.
- The Delivering Value Phase
- Preparing for Partner Launch
- Engaging Key Teams
- Creating a Launch Plan
- Aligning on KPIs
- Building a Partner KPI Dashboard
- Partner Management
- Establishing Feedback Loops
- Expanding Partner Relationships
- The Evolution of Partnerships
- Detecting Issues in Partnerships
- Terminating Partnerships
- Building Partner Programs
- Ecosystems and Platforms
- What Comes Next
Transform Your Career
Boost your capabilities, your confidence, and your career
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Testimonials
Check out more of what our students & expert mentors have to say about their experience
Get Started
Get started today so you can get promoted tomorrow
Next Cohort
October 7th -
December 1st. 2023
Commitment
3-5 hours
per week total
Live Sessions + Self-Paced Learning
On-demand learning modules + weekly live sessions on Wednesdays 6-8 PM ET
Class Size
Small groups to help you learn & build relationships
Bonuses
Tools, templates, and a private community
Payment Options:
Flexible payment options that work for you
Start your application
Enrollment Includes
- 8-week cohort program
- Lifetime access to the 50+ learning modules
- Project-based learning to apply what you learn to real-world challenges
- Weekly group discussions to get feedback, and support
- Designation as a Certified Partnerships Professional (upon successful completion of the program)
- Bonus materials including tools, templates, and resources
- Ongoing membership in the Firneo community
- Interactive role-play games to help cement what you learn
- Access to an incredible network of Partnerships leaders
Tell us about yourself and our Admissions team will reach out
100% Risk Free
Kick-Ass Guarantee
If you don’t start kicking ass in your career during the first 2 weeks of the program, you’ll get a full refund.
Average Salary by Seniority
Source: Crossbeam State of the Partner Ecosystem Report
Level up your career
What would you do with an extra $30k, $50k — even $70k per year?
Average Salary by Seniority
Source: Crossbeam State of the Partner Ecosystem Report
As a Certified Partnerships Professional, you’ll be able to have a greater impact at your company and be a shoe-in for promotion.
Did you know that the average jump in salary from Partnerships Manager to Director is an additional $70K, and the average salary jump from Director to VP is an additional $50K?
Every minute that you’re not focused on leveling up your career is time you’re wasting and money you’re leaving on the table.
FAQ
Who is this program for?
This program is ideal for:
1. Current partnerships professionals who want to accelerate their on-the-job learning, operate with more confidence, and create more impact in their companies.
2. Experienced professionals from adjacent fields (such as sales, consulting, lawyer, customer success, product management) who are looking to transition into partnerships and want to build a strong foundation in the role.
Do I need to attend classes live?
The course materials are pre-recorded and will be released each week on Saturday so that you’ll be able to review it on your own schedule (plus, you’ll get lifetime access so that you can always refresh yourself).
In addition, throughout each week there’ll be opportunities to engage in live cohort discussions, peer 1:1s, and other events with your fellow students. It is strongly recommended that you attend each cohort discussion in order to maximize your learning, though other events are optional.
What will this cost?
The 8-week program costs $3,497. We have monthly payment plans available.
Can I still participate if I’m not working in Partnerships?
Absolutely. While the program is designed to help partnerships professionals create an immediate impact at work, you will gain knowledge and skills that you will carry into your next job and for your whole career.
What is the time commitment?
This program is designed for busy working professionals. You should expect to spend 3 to 5 hours per week in total, between reviewing course materials, applying your knowledge to assignments, and participating in group discussions & events.
It’s an intense program, but consider it as an 8-week investment that compounds over the next several decades of your career.
Is this in-person or virtual?
The entire program is virtual. You can review the materials, engage with the community, use the templates and tools, and participate in the cohort experiences from anywhere in the world.
Will my company pay for it?
Quite possibly. Many companies designated “Professional Development” or “Learning & Development” (L&D) budgets for these types of programs.
If you are accepted into the program, we can help you talk to your manager or HR team.
Why is there an application process?
We limit the number of participants in each cohort so you can get personalized attention and build relationships with a tight-knit group of peers. This requires us to have an application process so that we can ensure the right mix of participants in each cohort.
