Understanding government is only one part of charting a path to impactful policymaking. A policymaker must frequently understand and engage with leaders from business, philanthropy, and civil society.

Often government can act alone to address people’s problems in meaningful ways, just as business innovation and the markets frequently can, and the same goes for philanthropy, civic dialogue, as community leadership. But increasingly, policy leaders are finding ways to bring all of these sectors together, in order to enhance the impact of their policy initiatives and to better serve and empower people.

In the pre-Internet era, power (and the ability to execute initiatives), tended to reside in centralized structures. This frequently resulted in top-down, and one-size-fits-all, policy design and implementation. It also encouraged the development of institutional silos and single-sector problem-solving. 

But we now live in a networked world. Our lives are connected by global supply chains that link anywhere to everywhere.  Whether we’re solving problems in business, government, or civil society, we will often have to work together, nimbly and effectively moving across the public, private, and civic sectors.  The good news is there’s already a plan in place for policymakers.  They can rely on existing, helpful guidance that also serves as a strategic, useful playbook.

Partnerships are a response to a world that began to move faster than the institutions that governed it.

In the early 2010’s, the U.S. Department of State developed its first-ever codified partnerships guidebook for diplomats, on which I contributed to and edited. This was certainly not the first time the State Department had taken a partnerships-focused approach.   In fact, diplomacy is often built on cross-sector partnerships.  The strength of American corporations and entrepreneurs, the generosity of our philanthropies and charities, and the hard work and genius of “ordinary” people working together – these great American qualities give us an edge around the world. The lives and values of the American people are, in that sense, the most fundamental components of the Department’s work. 

This is why, for any partnership-powered policy initiative, it makes sense to understand (and incorporate) the building blocks outlined by the State Department.  Again, these principles were finalized and distributed at the first-ever Global Chiefs of Mission Conference on February 2, 2011, but the foundations of this guidance came from expertise and initiatives by the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Global Development Alliance Office, which was launched in 2001, as well as experiences and insights that go back much further, from a long history of cross-sector efforts in American diplomacy and international development.

The following steps and definitions are informed by the original guidance, but they have evolved over the years as many have put the original principles into practice (including myself and my former colleagues in the Office of Global Partnerships, on the State Department Policy Planning Staff, and at American Embassies and Consulates around the globe).  

They are designed to help you, in whatever policymaking role you hold, to quickly and efficiently design, develop, and implement your partnerships in the most impactful ways possible. 

What is a partnership?

A partnership is a collaborative working relationship between entities in different sectors, where the goals, roles, and responsibilities are clearly defined, mutually agreed upon, and designed to deliver mutual benefit.

Why establish a partnership?

As a goal, a partnership should aim to align the mutual interests of the public and private sectors in order to achieve a specific goal. The path toward achieving that goal, via a partnership, should be drawn to incorporate what each partner does best. This approach will maximize the effectiveness of the resources, relationships, and experience each brings to the endeavor.

The State Department established four basic types of partnerships with specific objectives, which we have adapted for a focus on domestic policy areas:

And One Specific Best Practice (To Get Started):

Before we go any further, we should pause for a word of warning. 

There’s almost always a tendency to get excited about the possibilities of any new potential partnership. This sometimes causes a “rush forward” phenomenon, where “action” precedes “documentation.”

In other words: The parties in the partnership start running before clearly defining roles, responsibilities, and other key aspects of the partnership itself.  This can cause you to stumble (unintentionally, even unknowingly) as you propel off the starting blocks or soon thereafter.

The simplest way to avoid this, and set the partnership up successfully as you run the full marathon together, is to create a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Letter of Intent (LOI) that is designed to mutually define, clarify, and reduce to written agreement:

• A common definition of success

• Any special administrative requirements of the partnership

• Decision-making and conflict-resolution structure

• Internal and external communications, as well as use of trademarked or copyrighted materials (such as logos)

• Specific metrics to be used in measuring progress towards goals

• Agreement extension, sunset, modification, and termination provisions

 This guidance offers you, the policymaker, with the tools and structure in your efforts to address many pressing problems of our time. These frameworks are predicated on the concept that we are often stronger together than apart, and they are built on the knowledge that common goals can be easier to achieve than uncoordinated initiatives in isolation. 

Partnerships between organizations, like any relationships, can become complicated and they often take considerable work.  But they are almost always worth it.  

We hope this guidance will be helpful, but here is perhaps the most important lesson of all: You are not alone as you endeavor to solve problems in creative and lasting ways, and to serve and empower your constituencies as well as people all across America.

As you pursue the greater good, you’ll find willing partners from all walks of life to support your endeavors.  They work at corporations, non-profits, universities, civil sector organizations, and all manner of others.  They live in big cities and small towns, and they care about their communities in both urban and rural areas, as well as America’s greatness, a global leader, and its good name around the world.  

As you seek impact through your public service, there are private citizens and public leaders, all across American and all potential partners, who are just waiting to be asked to support your efforts.