managing partner and the loot’s all mine” (“and I’ve recruited people who won’t stand up to me until we’re almost bust”).

The truth is that all of us are individuals and most can be outrageously bloody selfish whilst denying it. The true sense of collective or partnership responsibility in the majority of humans is thinner than you think. It’s better to recognise each other’s differences than to pretend we’re all the same.

This is no excuse for a partnership not to work, they can be brilliant. But partnerships do need understanding, just like any business model. And as a business, they can't be expected to be calm oases of complete harmony. Perpetual harmony is not the environment in which necessity becomes the driver of innovation. We should celebrate its absence.

But what works in its place? Well, not the opposite, of seething private animosity - which is where some partnerships end up. As an alternative, here are the five things that make up a great, growing partnership. They aren’t all pretty, but they are all that you need for success.

1. A common cause – and the success of the business is enough. We don’t need to go to each others’ weddings and family parties (though don’t knock it if it’s not political), but the cause - the business - must be recognised as bigger than the individual.

2. A solution when there’s trouble. It’s called a partnership deed, and it should be left to gather dust until there’s a problem you can’t solve by normal human discussions. A partnership deed done well is only ever one thing – fairness in advance of a disagreement. Is yours?

3. Someone who believes in this. "Too many managing and senior partners are given the job because they have nothing else to do" - discuss? But it needs you to be driven, personally, and to have power of real leadership skills. You must believe above all else that no individual, not even you, should ever be allowed to stand in the way of what is right for the business.

4. Tolerance. My old senior partner would say, when I was making a stain on his rug, complaining about someone – “Andy.....we’re all different”. And we are. Make allowances, see the other person’s point of view. Disagree by all means, but don’t do it ritually, and don’t do it just because it doesn’t suit you.

5. Priorities. Figure out what is really important, and bin the rest. Very, very few problems are really big ones. Little niggles are not worth snowballing into major trauma. Don’t waste the energy on things that don’t really matter.

You know what this is about, of course. It’s about a group of people being led to be a bit more focussed on the business, less selfish, a bit more communicative, an inch more positive, a fraction more interested in the future than the past.

Not only will you do more.....this is a much nicer life as well.

Tell me what you think at andy@andypraynor.com

And see what's been said before by looking in the archive:

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© Andy Raynor 2013

	Andy Raynor - Beyond the Brief

	Andy Raynor's blog *Partnership?* I have heard, over the years, more unmitigated tosh on this subject than almost any other. I have listened to moist-eyed senior partners extolling the virtues of the culture they have encouraged, the benevolent fellowships bonded by common values, the blood-mingling ceremonies on admission to equity, the band of brothers..... ....I could go on, but it’s starting to sound deeply unhygienic. What’s for sure, though, is that not everyone sees it that way, and that in every firm with over 10 partners (and some with less), partnership is a political system varying wildly in effectiveness. Take profit shares, for example. Distributions span the two extremes from... “We divide it by the number of equity partners” (aka “we can’t make a decision and some of us are getting on a bit”) ...all the way to... “I’m the founder/senior partner/managing partner and the loot’s all mine” (“and I’ve recruited people who won’t stand up to me until we’re almost bust”). The truth is that all of us are individuals and most can be outrageously bloody selfish whilst denying it. The true sense of collective or partnership responsibility in the majority of humans is thinner than you think. It’s better to recognise each other’s differences than to pretend we’re all the same. This is no excuse for a partnership not to work, they can be brilliant. But partnerships do need understanding, just like any business model. And as a business, they can't be expected to be calm oases of complete harmony. Perpetual harmony is not the environment in which necessity becomes the driver of innovation. We should celebrate its absence. But what works in its place? Well, not the opposite, of seething private animosity - which is where some partnerships end up. As an alternative, here are the five things that make up a great, growing partnership. They aren’t all pretty, but they are all that you need for success. 1. A common cause – and the success of the business is enough. We don’t need to go to each others’ weddings and family parties (though don’t knock it if it’s not political), but the cause - the business - must be recognised as bigger than the individual. 2. A solution when there’s trouble. It’s called a partnership deed, and it should be left to gather dust until there’s a problem you can’t solve by normal human discussions. A partnership deed done well is only ever one thing – fairness in advance of a disagreement. Is yours? 3. Someone who believes in this. "Too many managing and senior partners are given the job because they have nothing else to do" - discuss? But it needs you to be driven, personally, and to have power of real leadership skills. You must believe above all else that no individual, not even you, should ever be allowed to stand in the way of what is right for the business. 4. Tolerance. My old senior partner would say, when I was making a stain on his rug, complaining about someone – “Andy.....we’re all different”. And we are. Make allowances, see the other person’s point of view. Disagree by all means, but don’t do it ritually, and don’t do it just because it doesn’t suit you. 5. Priorities. Figure out what is really important, and bin the rest. Very, very few problems are really big ones. Little niggles are not worth snowballing into major trauma. Don’t waste the energy on things that don’t really matter. You know what this is about, of course. It’s about a group of people being led to be a bit more focussed on the business, less selfish, a bit more communicative, an inch more positive, a fraction more interested in the future than the past. Not only will you do more.....this is a much nicer life as well. Tell me what you think at andy@andypraynor.com And see what's been said before by looking in the archive:
	Home \| Why? \| Me \| You \| Advisers \| Blog \| Links \| Contact	© Andy Raynor 2013