Advisory
Senior partnerships leadership on a fractional basis, for teams not ready for a full-time hire — with focused project work and advisor-to-hire support alongside it. The diagnostic rigor of a strategy firm and the operating instincts of a senior BD leader, from mapping the landscape to landing the deals to framing the permanent hire.
Who we work with
Founders or BU leaders standing up a partnerships motion for the first time. The thesis is real; the playbook isn't yet written.
Companies with early partnerships traction needing to systematize, scale operating cadence, and avoid the plateau that follows the first wins.
Teams without the right partnerships leader in seat. Whether the first hire is still ahead or the previous one has moved on, we hold the line, keep deals moving, and frame the next hire.
How we work
Three areas of work, mapped to a single arc. Each phase is independently valuable and earns the right to the next. Clients commit one phase at a time.
Map the landscape of potential partners, assess where the company plays in the value chain, and identify where to concentrate effort.
Market map · Archetypes · Shortlist
Define what partnership looks like in practice. Deal structures, partner archetypes, value exchange models, and operating rhythms that hold up at scale.
Partner motions · Deal structures · Org model
Run point on the earliest partnerships while the company builds internal capability. Shape the role, then support the hire.
Pipeline · Live deals · First hire
Operating cadence
A simple operating cadence designed for senior teams. Synchronous time stays focused on decisions; the rest is async, visible, and continuous.
Mon
Working session
Tue
Async research
Wed
Async synthesis
Thu
Artifacts develop
Fri
Document refresh
Principles of the engagement
A focused working session each week with the executive sponsor. Designed as a working meeting, not a status update. Pressure-test findings, surface blockers, agree on next steps.
Every deliverable develops as a running document, accessible throughout the engagement. No big reveal at the end. The work compounds in the open and you can react to it as it forms.
Slack or email for quick questions and clarifications. Involvement of other team members happens at your direction; the engagement does not impose meeting load on the broader team.
A scheduled review of the emerging work before committing to final shape. Calibration when it still matters, not after the deck is locked.
A single live session walking through the deliverables. Materials handed off in a form your team can use directly, not consulting artifacts that gather dust.
Trade-offs surfaced, not hidden. Where the analysis points to a clear answer, we say so. Where it doesn't, we make the uncertainty visible and the options legible.
Engagements
One flagship retainer, with focused project and advisor-to-hire options alongside it.
Flagship offering
Ongoing · monthly retainer
Embedded senior BD leadership for teams not yet ready for a full-time hire. Deal leadership, pipeline development, and stakeholder management, with a clear exit criterion to a permanent hire.
What's included
Also available
4–10 weeks · fixed fee
A fixed-fee project that maps the partner landscape, defines archetypes and value exchange, and translates it into an operating strategy: deal structures, commercial templates, org design, and a first-90-days plan. Scoped to stop at the diagnosis or continue through to design.
3–6 months · monthly retainer
Run the role in the interim, define it from the work, and help assess and onboard the permanent hire.
Exploratory call
A scoping conversation to understand the work, assess fit, and decide how to proceed together.
Fixed-fee engagements
Phase-based pricing with defined deliverables and timelines. No hourly invoices, no scope drift.
Retainer models
Fractional leadership and advisor-to-hire engagements on monthly retainer. Clear exit criteria from day one.
What changes when partnerships work
You know which partners matter, and in what order to engage them. Attention concentrates instead of dispersing.
For each partner, you know what they bring, what they need, and the specific levers that close the deal. Partnerships get engaged on terms that hold up at scale.
Operating cadence, deal templates, and a path to the right permanent hire, so the function endures past any single person.
Most engagements start with a short exploratory call. We talk through the work, assess fit, and decide how to proceed together.
Start a conversation →