When in alliance management, you are in one of the best jobs in the world. In alliance management you are a versatile person with a broad skill set. You need that, as you will see almost all aspects of the business, just like your CEO does. You are part of a select group of special people!
Being in alliance management can also be a solitary job. Often you will be one of the few people in your profession in your company. That certainly applies when you are the head of alliance management. It gets lonely at the top. Where do you turn to for sound boarding and to discuss challenging, perhaps confidential, topics?
Your ideal alliance sparring partner is someone you trust, someone who understands your role and its challenges. He is there for you to bounce off ideas and to gain new insights. It is someone who can help you look into the mirror of your own performance. Like you, an alliance sparring partner will need to have a broad profile and will probably be an alliance specialist, a coach and a mentor all in one.
A sparring partner can sometimes be found inside the organization, and more often it will be an external person. An external alliance sparring partner will bring an unbiased perspective to help you improve your performance. It can be a peer from another company, or it can be an external specialist or coach hired to be your independent alliance sounding board.
Who is your alliance sparring partner?