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Dialogue · Partnerships & enterprise
Partnerships that open
larger opportunities
How can local firms assemble the capability to undertake more consequential work?
After losing bids for complex assignments, Nelson Ashitiva reexamined what his firm needed. This conversation follows the work of building complementary partners, building credibility and approaching opportunities beyond traditional professional boundaries.
Three ideas explored
-
1.
Let the assignment define the capability required.
Ashitiva describes identifying the expertise needed to complete for complex work, then seeking partners who could contribute it. The starting question becomes what the work requires, rather than who happens to be nearby.
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2.
Grow value as well as access.
Early partnerships can bring experience and credibility alongside revenue. His account emphasises learning through delivery and growing the firm's own contribution, which can strengthen its position in later collaborations.
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3.
Treat partnership design as real work.
A difficult partnership illustrates the importance of governance, alignment, goodwill and ways of working. Technical fit does not remove the need to establish how partners communicate, make decisions and resolve friction.
In this conversation
Nelson Ashitiva
Partnerships, Law and commercial enterprise
Contributor profile available. Background, questions and further reading.
The source conversation
Watch, or enter at a question.
15:00
Starting with a larger ambition
↗
29:00
Learning fast and recognizing a capability gap
↗
38:00
Finding complementary global partners
↗
51:00
Moving beyond traditional professional boundaries
↗
59:00
A partnership that proved difficult
↗
1:06:00
Building awareness and credibility
↗
1:17:00
Bringing power groups into collaboration
↗
1:28:00
Preparing for substantive opportunities
↗
Chapter names are approximate navigation cues based on the recording.
What this means for your leadership
Take the question into your own work.
- What opportunity is larger than your current ability to deliver alone?
- What complementary capability would make your proposal credible?
- What must be agreed on in the partnership before value for everyone involved?
Still open
How can a smaller firm learn and grow through partnership while protecting its contribution and avoiding lasting dependence?
Editorial summary of the third conversation. These interpretations are provisional, not definitive of claims made by any speaker. For the primary source, watch the recording above. Recording approximate chapters were added by the editorial team for ease of navigation.
Your next leadership stretch
When individual success is no longer enough.
Taking greater responsibility or reconsidering your direction? Crossroads helps you clarify your next chapter and strengthen the judgment to lead people, priorities and work beyond your own contribution through structured reflection, practical learning and peers.
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