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The partnership canvas

30 min | Team Individual | Technique Inspire and motivate Value creation

6hats

The Challenge

The Partnership Canvas is a prototype tool for modelling key business model partnerships. It offers a structured approach to help design strategies for partnerships. You can use the Canvas as an exercise to give students the opportunity to do this in practice on a given example.

List of required equipment

  • Printed paper (The Canvas)
  • Pens
  • Sticky notes (optional)
  • If you use the case study in-class, you will need a projector, a laptop and speakers (because a 15-minute video is included in the presentation)

What can students learn from this?

Students will learn how to analyze the value of each partner can bring in a partnership. They will be able to describe the desired value they look for in a partner, so as to better look for and to select partners. They will describe the value they offer in a partnership, and the created value for the end user, and how this transformation happens. If used as a team activity, it allows for new ideas to be sought.

How can I do this in class?

  • It can be used in class for activities that require analysis of partnerships, or at home.
  • Describe a social entrepreneurship effort. It may be as simple as cleaning a beach or a real business.
  • You may also use the “Colalife case study” included in the supporting material of this tool. (This would of course add another 17-18 minutes to the duration, or it could be given as homework.)
  • Decide if this is going to be an individual / team assignment.
  • Decide what kind of partner they are looking for (or let them decide)
  • Ask the students to use the Canvas to analyze the partnership.

If you use the ColaLife Case study, you need of course to use the presentation.

Reflection tips

Discuss the analysis your students presented:

  • How did that help you?
  • What would you do better next time?
  • What can you learn from each other?
  • What was the most important thing you learned?

If you use the Colalife case study in class, you may use the following questions (also included in the Colalife presentation)

  • What was the problem?  Who tried to solve it?
  • Assess the formation of the partnership
    • What stakeholders did they get onboard? Why?
    • Who contributed what?
    • Why would these stakeholders join?
    • How would you have approached them?
  • Assess their preparation
    • How did they prepare for the venture?

Relevant useful material

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