Quick reality check: the partnership you want us to assess

• Tell me the single partnership you want us to assess in this pilot and why it matters to your targets this year
• How many named executive sponsors and field leads are currently assigned to that partnership Options: 0, 1, 2-3, 4 or more, Unsure
• Walk me through the last three joint sales activities you ran with this partner and the concrete outcome of each
• Who on your team owns partner-sourced pipeline reporting today Options: VP of Alliances, Head of Partnerships, Director of BD, Revenue Ops, No clear owner, Other
• Estimate the partner-sourced pipeline value you currently attribute to this partnership and your confidence in that number Options: <$100k, Low confidence, $100k–$1M, Medium confidence, $1M–$5M, High confidence, >$5M, Very high confidence, Unknown / not tracked
• In the absence of a named executive sponsor, will you proceed with the pilot as a scaled assessment or pause the project Options: Proceed with scaled assessment, Pause until sponsor identified, Depends on scope reduction, Unsure

Where the current setup breaks down

• If your field sales treated the partner as a competitor, how often would pipeline opportunities be lost Options: Almost every opportunity, Often, Occasionally, Rarely, Never / not applicable
• Describe a recent instance where a product update by either side disrupted the joint solution, what broke, and how long recovery took
• When executive sponsors disengage, where does the downstream accountability collapse first Options: Go-to-market planning, Field enablement, Integration support, Joint pipeline tracking, Governance cadence, Other
• Who on your side raises roadmap divergence concerns today and do they have authority to pause joint scope Options: Product lead, yes, Product lead, no, Engineering lead, yes, Engineering lead, no, Partnership director, yes, No one with pause authority, Other
• Which single risk, if unresolved before the pilot, would make you stop the engagement immediately Options: No named sponsor, Data access blocked, Legal/compliance veto, Field refuses to co-sell, Integration unavailable, Other

The alternatives you are seriously considering

• Tell me which external vendors, incumbent approaches, or internal teams you are still considering, and which you are leaning on because they feel safer than effective Options: External alliance consultant, System integrator, Platform provider consulting, Do it internally via alliances team, Do it internally via product team, Other
• How many of those alternatives have you evaluated or had active conversations with in the last 90 days Options: None, 1, 2–3, 4 or more, Unsure
• If you stayed with your current approach, what specific evidence at 90 days would convince leadership not to change course
• Name the person or role who would sign off on continuing with the incumbent instead of starting a pilot, and what single criterion would they demand
• Has anyone internally proposed solving this by building the capability in-house, and if so what timeline did they commit to Options: No internal build proposed, Yes, 3–6 months, Yes, 6–12 months, Yes, 12–24 months, Unsure

What success would force you to act

• Imagine the pilot proves joint pipeline targets, what immediate decisions would that unlock for your team
• List the three metrics your CFO or head of alliances will use to judge pilot success Options: Partner-sourced pipeline value, Conversion rate of partner-sourced leads, Joint pipeline velocity, Net new accounts from partner, Customer retention / churn impact, Other
• Assuming the pilot shows a 20% increase in partner-sourced pipeline within 60 days, what would stop you from moving to a full program the same quarter
• Choose which types of evidence will convince your field teams to co-sell Options: Shared pipeline entries logged in CRM, Joint-win case studies with metrics, Compensated co-selling activities, Working product integration tests, Named sponsor endorsement
• How quickly do you expect named sponsors to commit dedicated time each week during the pilot Options: <1 hour, 1–2 hours, 3–5 hours, 5+ hours, No regular commitment
• Describe the escalation path you expect if executive sponsorship falters during the pilot

Technical and operational readiness that will gate scope

• Suppose your key integration endpoints are not accessible, how would that change the pilot scope or timeline Options: Pause until endpoints accessible, Run a reduced scope without integration, Emulate integration with manual steps, Use partner-supplied sandbox
• Which third-party systems must we connect to for the pilot and which of them provide documented APIs Options: Your CRM, Billing/CPQ, Product telemetry or usage, Identity provider, Custom customer systems, Unsure
• Do you have a named data owner who can grant access and validate partner-sourced pipeline records within two weeks Options: Yes, No, Need approval from compliance, Unsure
• When a legal or compliance review threatens to delay data access beyond 30 days, would you pause the pilot or proceed with a reduced scope Options: Pause until approval, Proceed with reduced scope, Proceed with anonymized data, Unsure
• Estimate the number of engineering or integration FTEs your team can commit to the pilot during an active 8-week run Options: 0, 0.5–1, 1–2, 3 or more, Unsure
• List the CRM fields your team will use to tag partner-originated opportunities

The practical obstacles no one likes to admit

• Name the political or commercial forces inside your company that could quietly block joint sales
• Share an example of a recent internal discussion that raised doubts about the partnership and the outcome of that discussion
• On a scale of 1 to 5, how willing are your field reps to adopt partner-led plays Options: 1 - Not willing, 2, 3, 4, 5 - Very willing
• Would a partner refusal to commit to co-investment stop this pilot Options: Yes, No, we would proceed, Maybe, depends on scope, Unsure
• Identify any commercial terms or incentives that previously caused friction between your sales reps and partners

Timing, approvals, and the decision path

• Assuming your pilot shows early pipeline, what is the shortest internal path to receive funding for scaling
• Provide the titles of the approvers who must sign an SOW or budget increase to scale beyond the pilot
• Give the typical procurement timeline for vendor agreement and data access in calendar days Options: 0–15 days, 16–30 days, 31–60 days, 61–90 days, 90+ days, Unsure
• Would a procurement timeline of 60 days prevent you from running a meaningful pilot Options: Yes, we would pause, No, we can scope around it, Depends on what is delayed, Unsure
• Propose a target start date for the pilot within the next quarter, given current constraints

Commitment signals and near-term next steps

• Imagine the pilot hits its targets, what is the first concrete commitment you want from the partner
• Specify the single internal metric that would trigger a decision to scale to a full program Options: Partner-sourced pipeline threshold, Conversion rate uplift, Number of joint opportunities, First closed joint deal, Other
• Do you require a fixed price for the follow-on program before signing or is a cardinal scope and budget range acceptable Options: Require fixed price, Accept scope and budget range, Prefer a milestone contract, Unsure
• What single contractual clause must appear in the SOW for you to proceed to a full program
• Choose the governance cadence you prefer after launch Options: Weekly tactical, Biweekly operational, Monthly executive, Quarterly review, Combination
• Share any constraints on budget windows or fiscal quarter rules that would make a go or no-go decision immovable

• Deliver Joint Business Plan Document
• Implement Shared Pipeline CRM Fields
• Configure Joint Revenue Tracking Dashboard
• Deploy Executive Sponsorship Cadence and Meeting Packs
• Create Partner Playbook for Field Sales
• Design Co-Investment Agreement Template
• Implement Account Co-coverage and Territory Rules
• Build Alliance Health Scorecard and Reporting
• Develop Joint Value Proposition and Messaging Kit
• Establish Integration Change-Management Protocol
• Deliver Joint Sales Training Workshop
• Qualify and Load First Joint Opportunities

Deliver Joint Business Plan Document

• Which elements should the joint business plan include (select all that apply)? Examples: named target accounts, 12-month pipeline targets, co-investment schedule, executive escalation plan. Options: Named target accounts, 12-month pipeline targets, Co-investment schedule, Executive escalation plan, Account coverage model, Marketing and demand gen commitments, Other
• How many named target accounts do you expect to include in the initial plan (this will drive coverage and co-investment sizing)? Options: Less than 10, 10-25, 26-75, 76-200, More than 200
• Who on your team will be the day-to-day owner of the joint business plan (title or role) and who is the executive sponsor for plan approvals? Options: VP of Alliances / Equivalent, Head of Business Development / Equivalent, Partnership Operations Director / Equivalent, Other
• When do you want the first executive read of the joint business plan scheduled relative to pilot kickoff (example: within 30 days)? Options: Within 2 weeks, Within 30 days, Within 60 days, After pilot close
• Describe the measurable targets you want defined in the plan (examples: joint pipeline $ by quarter, partner-sourced closed-won count, average deal size change).
• Specify any items that must be explicitly out of scope for the deliverable (examples: full CRM automation implementation, legal execution of SOW, partner onboarding engineering tasks).

Implement Shared Pipeline CRM Fields

• Identify the minimum custom opportunity fields you require on your current CRM to track joint deals (examples: joint_opportunity_flag, partner_account_id, named_executive_sponsor).
• Do you have a preferred canonical field naming convention we should use to avoid collisions with existing triggers and reports? Options: Yes, we have naming convention docs, No, we need a recommended convention, Partial — some conventions exist
• Confirm the system that will act as the source of truth for opportunity stage and forecast values for joint deals (for example: your current CRM instance, a shared pipeline tool). Options: Your current CRM, Partner CRM, A neutral pipeline tool, Hybrid - specify in notes
• Provide any integration constraints for custom fields such as API webhook payload shapes, allowed field types, or rate limit windows from the integration endpoint.
• Indicate which opportunity attributes must be available for forecasting by quarter (select all that apply). Options: Annual contract value (ACV), Probability to close, Expected close date, Primary opportunity owner, Partner contribution %, Other
• Confirm the acceptance criteria that will validate the CRM fields are implemented and syncing (examples: field exists in production, sample webhook updates reflected within 15 minutes, two-way mapping tested with a sample opportunity). Options: Field existence in production, Sample updates reflected within expected SLA, Two-way mapping verified on sample records, Field available in reporting views, Other

Configure Joint Revenue Tracking Dashboard

• Select the primary revenue metrics you want surfaced on the joint dashboard (examples: partner-sourced pipeline value, closed-won by partner, weighted forecast). Options: Partner-sourced pipeline value, Closed-won by partner, Weighted forecast for joint deals, Co-investment ROI, Deal velocity, Other
• List the systems that will feed the revenue dashboard (examples: your current CRM opportunity reports, partner pipeline exports, finance revenue recognition feed).
• Rate the required dashboard data freshness for executive review (examples: daily for forecasting, weekly for QBR prep). Options: Near real-time (minutes), Daily, Weekly, Monthly
• Share example visualizations or report layouts that your executives prefer (examples: stacked bar by quarter, table of named accounts with pipeline stage).
• Attach or describe any existing revenue reports we should mirror so the dashboard aligns with your internal reporting language.
• Outline who will have edit access to the dashboard and who should receive scheduled executive exports (roles or titles). Options: Executive sponsor only, Alliance operations + executive sponsor, Sales leadership and finance, Custom list — specify names

Deploy Executive Sponsorship Cadence and Meeting Packs

• State the intended cadence for executive sponsorship meetings (examples: monthly executive steering, quarterly business review). Options: Weekly, Bi-weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, On-demand
• Assign the expected attendees for each cadence by role (examples: VP alliances, head of product, named executive sponsor).
• Choose the standard pack contents you want for each meeting (examples: current pipeline summary, risk register, action log, financials). Options: Pipeline summary, Risk register, Action log with owners, Financial vs plan, Integration health update, Other
• Name the KPIs that must be included in the meeting pack for the executive sponsor to approve continued funding (examples: partner-sourced pipeline $ by quarter, conversion rate from partner leads).
• Explain the escalation path you want documented when a named sponsor becomes unresponsive (examples: substitute sponsor, executive escalation email template).
• Measure the target preparation time and data sources we should use to assemble each meeting pack (examples: 3 business days using CRM exports and campaign logs). Options: 1 business day, 3 business days, 1 week, Ad-hoc

Create Partner Playbook for Field Sales

• Summarize the primary use cases the playbook must cover for field sales (examples: co-selling motion, referral motion, joint proof-of-concept). Options: Co-selling motion, Referral motion, Joint proof-of-concept, Upsell into partner-enabled solutions, Other
• Report the common objections your field sellers currently raise about working with partners (examples: territory conflict, crediting ambiguity, technical handoff).
• Mark the specific sales enablement assets you want included in the playbook (examples: email templates, objection-handling scripts, demo checklist). Options: Email templates for outreach, Objection-handling scripts, Demo checklist, Deal qualification checklist, Competitive positioning bullets, Other
• Prioritize which account types or segments the playbook should target first (examples: named enterprise, mid-market, channel-led). Options: Named enterprise, Mid-market, SMB, Channel-led accounts, Other
• Flag any compliance or contract constraints that field sellers must follow when pitching a joint solution (examples: resale terms, co-marketing approvals).
• Verify how you want co-selling success credited in the playbook (examples: credit to partner-sourced opps tag, split revenue reporting, credit to primary opportunity owner). Options: Partner-sourced tag, Split revenue reporting, Primary opportunity owner credited, Custom crediting rule

Design Co-Investment Agreement Template

• Authorize the standard co-investment structures you are willing to accept (examples: fixed dollar match, percentage of marketing spend, milestone-based payments). Options: Fixed dollar match, Percentage of marketing spend, Milestone-based payments, No co-investment
• Set the minimum and maximum co-investment thresholds that should appear in the template (examples: minimum $25k per campaign, cap at $250k).
• Agree whether co-investment disbursements will be conditional on pipeline targets in the joint business plan (yes/no). Options: Yes, No, Conditional with defined milestones
• Document any required audit or invoicing artifacts for co-investment reconciliation (examples: campaign spend reports, signed invoices, customer attribution logs).
• Record who on your finance or legal team should be looped in to approve the final template (role or title). Options: Finance director, Legal counsel, Head of Partnerships, Other
• Allocate typical timelines for negotiating and executing the co-investment agreement in your organization (examples: 2 weeks, 30 days, 60+ days). Options: 1-2 weeks, 2-4 weeks, 30-60 days, 60+ days

Implement Account Co-coverage and Territory Rules

• Which coverage model do you currently use and wish to continue or change (examples: account owner only, shared account ownership, geography-based territories)? Options: Account owner only, Shared account ownership, Geography-based territories, Industry/segment-based
• How many accounts will be subject to co-coverage rules in the pilot cohort? Options: Less than 25, 25-100, 101-500, 500+
• Who in your CRM will be allowed to assign territory ownership and override co-coverage rules (role or title)? Options: Sales operations, Regional GM, Account owner, Other
• When an account has competing sellers, describe the tiebreaker rule you prefer (examples: named executive sponsor wins, higher forecast amount wins, joint coverage with defined roles).
• Describe any account lists that must be exempted from co-coverage (examples: strategic accounts, accounts under an existing exclusive channel contract).
• Specify the automation rules you expect applied to territory assignment (examples: assign by primary contact domain, by territory mapping table, by manual override). Options: Assign by contact domain, Assign by mapping table, Manual override only, Hybrid

Build Alliance Health Scorecard and Reporting

• Identify the top 6 health indicators you want on the alliance scorecard (examples: named sponsor engagement, joint pipeline $ change %, integration incidents open, training completion rate). Options: Sponsor engagement, Joint pipeline delta %, Integration incidents open, Training completion rate, First pipeline entries recorded, Co-investment spend vs plan
• Do you have any existing scoring thresholds or cutoffs that define green/amber/red status for partnerships? Options: Yes, documented thresholds, No, need recommendations, Partial — some metrics exist
• Confirm the acceptance criteria that will demonstrate the scorecard is operational for management (examples: automated weekly refresh, historical trend of 3 months, scheduled QBR export). Options: Automated refresh schedule configured, 3 months of historical data visible, Scheduled QBR export created, Stakeholder distribution list verified
• Provide the frequency and owner for running the health review cadence tied to the scorecard (examples: monthly by partnership ops, quarterly by executive sponsor). Options: Monthly by partnership ops, Quarterly by executive sponsor, Bi-weekly during pilot, Ad-hoc
• Indicate which data sources will feed each health metric (examples: CRM tags for pipeline, enablement platform for training completion, incident tracker for integration issues).
• Estimate the minimum data quality thresholds needed for each metric to be meaningful (examples: 95% of joint deals tagged, training completion >= 70%).

Develop Joint Value Proposition and Messaging Kit

• Choose the customer personas or buyer profiles the joint value proposition must address (examples: CIO evaluating integrations, head of operations seeking automation). Options: CIO / Tech exec, Head of Operations, Line-of-business leader, Channel buyer, Other
• Name the core customer problems and quantified outcomes the joint messaging should emphasize (examples: reduce time-to-value by X%, consolidate toolset to save Y%).
• Explain the primary competitive scenarios where the joint offering must be differentiated (examples: competing against single-vendor platform, competing with custom in-house integration).
• Measure the required artifact set for go-to-market enablement (examples: 1-pager, 10-slide sales deck, battlecard, demo script). Options: 1-pager, Sales deck, Battlecard, Demo script, Customer case study template
• Share any existing messaging artifacts or customer evidence we should reuse (examples: case study PDFs, recorded demos, testimonial quotes).
• Select the channels where the messaging kit must be immediately deployable (examples: field email templates, web landing page copy, partner portal content). Options: Field email templates, Web landing page copy, Partner portal content, Social proof assets, Other

Establish Integration Change-Management Protocol

• Identify the integration surfaces that must be covered by the change-management protocol (examples: API endpoints, webhook payloads, data schema for opportunity). Options: API endpoints, Webhook payloads, Data schema for opportunity, Authentication/credentials, Other
• Do you require a formal release-notes cadence and backward-compatibility window for partner-facing API changes? Options: Yes — release notes and compatibility window required, No — ad-hoc notification acceptable, Need to define window
• Verify who must approve an integration change before it is pushed to production (examples: integration owner, partner engineering lead, security review). Options: Integration owner, Partner engineering lead, Security/compliance review, Executive sponsor approval
• Provide the rollback and incident response steps you expect in the protocol (examples: revert deploy, open incident in tracker, notify named sponsors within 2 hours).
• Outline how integration changes should be communicated to field sellers and account teams (examples: changelog email, playbook update, required re-certification training). Options: Changelog email, Playbook update, Required re-certification training, Portal announcement
• Indicate any compliance or security review gates that must be satisfied prior to integration changes reaching partner accounts (examples: pen test, data flow diagram review).

• Master Services Agreement (MSA)
• Statement of Work (SOW)
• Data Access & Integration Authorization
• Fees & Payment Schedule
• Data Processing Agreement (DPA) / Regulatory Addendum
• Pilot Execution Authorization
• Change Order Agreement

• Assessment Kickoff and Hypothesis Alignment
• Joint Pipeline Review and Opportunity Mapping
• Integration and Technical Risk Review
• Go-to-Market Roles, Coverage, and Sponsorship Validation
• Assessment Synthesis and Decision Readiness

• Publish the account coverage map and role responsibility matrix.
• Deliver required test scripts or test data definitions for each acceptance test.
• Schedule follow-up technical sessions for any gaps that require deeper engineering work.
• Confirm target segments and target account list
• Account coverage map with role assignments and explicit conflict flags for follow-up.
• Co-sell and crediting rules documented and accepted as the basis for CRM updates.
• Sponsor engagement plan with escalation path and initial cadence agreed.
• Confirm scope and success signals
• Document the co-sell and crediting rules for CRM implementation and internal briefings.
• List open coverage conflicts and required decisions or policy changes to resolve them.
• Recap validated findings from working sessions
• Prioritized remediation roadmap ratified with named owners and target dates for all high priority items.
• Decision-readiness scorecard finalized with agreed scoring and acceptance threshold.
• Next-step plan and decision timeline confirmed to progress toward pilot acceptance.
• Publish the assessment deliverable including current vs desired state, remediation roadmap, joint pipeline targets, and the scorecard.
• Schedule the governance decision meeting to review pilot acceptance on the agreed timeline.
• Collect and record formal sign-off or documented objections from sponsors against the scorecard within the agreed review window.
• Assessment scope and success signals are ratified for the working sessions.
• Key hypotheses are classified as accepted, disputed, or needing data and a list of required evidence is agreed.
• Interview schedule and data delivery timeline are confirmed.
• Publish the agreed assessment plan, hypotheses log, and interview schedule.
• Provide the listed CRM extracts, integration logs, org charts, and contract excerpts by the agreed dates.
• Share calendar invites for all confirmed stakeholder and technical interviews.
• Agree pipeline ledger format and acceptance rules
• Validated joint pipeline ledger with each opportunity marked accepted, disputed, or needs more data.
• Top 5 near-term opportunities prioritized with clear 90-day targets and required enabling actions.
• List of account coverage and incentive conflicts that must be resolved to convert prioritized opportunities.
• Deliver the validated pipeline ledger with disputed items flagged and evidence requests attached.
• Produce a short list of CRM tracking field changes required to capture joint pipeline and next steps for implementation.
• Document the enabling actions for each prioritized opportunity and the timeline to start execution.
• Confirm integration endpoints and critical flows
• Integration gap register completed with severity ratings and remediation actions for each high or medium risk.
• Acceptance evidence and tests defined for pilot readiness per integration endpoint.
• Release synchronization risks documented with proposed mitigation steps and timelines.
• Publish the integration matrix with gap descriptions, severity, remediation actions, and acceptance evidence.
• Review initial hypotheses and known risks
• Map field roles to accounts and sales motions
• Present prioritized remediation roadmap
• Walk current-state integration behavior with evidence
• Walk each open opportunity and validate evidence
• Identify field engagement and coverage conflicts
• Identify gaps, failure modes, and release risks
• Review decision-readiness scorecard and scoring
• Agree required evidence and data sources
• Define co-sell rules, crediting, and dispute path
• Finalize interview roster and timeline
• Capture sponsor commitments and escalation path
• Agree next steps, owners, and go/no-go decision timeline
• Prioritize top pipeline opportunities and set 90-day targets
• Agree remediation actions, timelines, and acceptance tests
• Lock deliverables and decision points

• desired_state
• current_state
• stakeholders
• gaps
• success_criteria
• decision_readiness
• desired_state
• decision_readiness
• current_state
• success_criteria
• gaps
• stakeholders
• desired_state
• success_criteria
• stakeholders
• gaps
• current_state
• decision_readiness
• decision_readiness
• decision_readiness
• decision_readiness
• decision_readiness

• Technical Health Check
• Commercial Metrics Review
• Bilateral Obligations Audit
• Roadmap Alignment Review

• Schedule a technical impact assessment for any roadmap item that changes integration APIs or data contracts.
• Establish remediation plans with dates for any unmet obligations so the bilateral governance forum can track closure.
• Create a short dispute list for any items requiring escalation and agree next steps for resolution.
• Publish the bilateral obligations audit report with pass/fail/conditional statuses and linked evidence.
• Create a remediation task list with target completion dates for all conditional or failed obligations.
• Open escalation tickets for any disputes that cannot be resolved within the agreed remediation timeline.
• Review product roadmap updates that affect the integration
• Agree the set of roadmap items and backlog priorities that protect or grow the joint pipeline over the next quarter.
• Confirm co-marketing-sourced leads and joint pipeline generated are progressing toward the Pilot Assessment Deliverable targets or document corrective actions.
• Identify any product changes requiring a technical impact assessment and schedule that assessment.
• Publish the agreed quarterly backlog with priority, description, and target completion dates.
• Document co-marketing program outcomes and update the joint pipeline ledger with resulting opportunities.
• Confirm integration go-live and defect triage
• Confirm whether connector uptime and API error rate meet the expected thresholds for initial stability.
• Produce a prioritized defect list with remediation actions and resolution dates for each high-priority item.
• Agree timing for a post-fix verification test to confirm resolution of critical defects.
• Publish the updated defect tracker with severity, remediation steps, and target resolution dates.
• Schedule the post-fix verification session for each critical defect within the agreed timeframe.
• Share relevant logs and error samples for unresolved critical errors to aid troubleshooting.
• Reconcile revenue share calculations and payment timing
• Confirm revenue share calculations are reconciled or have a documented path to resolution.
• Determine whether joint pipeline value and partner-sourced pipeline count are trending toward the targets recorded in the Pilot Assessment Deliverable.
• Agree a timeline and evidence requirements to resolve any billing or attribution disputes.
• Publish a reconciled revenue share statement with supporting transaction evidence for disputed periods.
• Update the joint pipeline ledger with attribution notes, next-touch owners, and expected conversion dates.
• Document required billing adjustments and a timeline for corrective actions.
• Restate documented bilateral obligations for the initial period
• Have a documented pass/fail/conditional status for every initial-period obligation with attached evidence.
• Review SLA adherence for connector uptime and API response times
• Present evidence of fulfillment or gap for each obligation
• Review joint pipeline value and partner-sourced pipeline count against trajectory
• Assess co-marketing outcomes and joint pipeline generated versus targets
• Validate connector billing and usage invoicing accuracy
• Assess integration adoption signals, active integrations live and error trends
• Review minimum commitment trajectory and compliance
• Formal acknowledgment per obligation
• Agree priorities and shared backlog items for the next quarter
• Agree remediation plans and timelines for unmet obligations
• Document disputes or attribution disagreements
• Document open technical blockers and resolution timeline