Partnering

We believe in the power of partnering to create positive outcomes on projects. We have seen it make a real difference in project quality, team performance, and issue resolution. 

Partnering is not an event – it’s a process that touches every aspect of project delivery.  An effective partnering process builds a common understanding of project goals and expectations and establishes working guidelines for the team to resolve disputes and communicate effectively.  We believe partnering does not involve silly games or artificial exercises - our approach to partnering focuses on the real risks and challenges of delivering complex, significant projects.  Team members come away with a clear understanding of how to make decisions, communicate effectively, and resolve the common challenges facing them on projects. 

We know our work is successful when teams provide us immediate feedback that “this has been the most valuable partnering session I’ve ever participated in,” and later, when they tell us they used the partnering agreements to create success on their projects.  We’re excited about the potential partnering provides project teams and are ready to help more teams make a real difference in how they manage and deliver significant projects across the United States. Partnering can have dramatic effects when followed by ongoing discussion of team agreements throughout the project. Having anticipated roadblocks and gained new communication and conflict resolution skills, team members are better equipped to deal with issues that come their way.

In the end, everyone wins – projects get done with high quality – on time and on budget. Team members are committed to project success, all firms make a reasonable profit, and team members typically like each other long after the project is completed.

Recent Partnering Projects

In the last year, we’ve provided partnering services for more than a dozen projects at military installations around the Midwest – from the $400 million replacement hospital at Fort Riley to the new prison and the Military Police Battalion Headquarters at Fort Leavenworth.  And, we’ve enjoyed working with all of the teams on the numerous projects at Fort Leonard Wood – from the Chapel to the Childcare Center.  We just completed partnering processes for the VA Leavenworth Cemetery Expansion project and the redevelopment of Disney World’s Fantasyland.  We’re currently providing partnering services across the entire project schedule for the team designing and building the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden Colorado.

In the recent past, we completed partnering efforts for the US Postal Service, US Courts, Federal Reserve Bank, and the General Services Administration.  We’ve also designed and implemented partnering for the $1 billion Sprint World Headquarters and the Wells Fargo Home Mortgage headquarters.  One of our project teams – for the Consumers Energy Headquarters – won the Marvin Black Award from the Association of General Contractors for project partnering.

Closer to home, we worked with Sound Transit on the LINK light rail start-up, with Seattle Public Utilities on storm water monitoring, and with King County on their transit redevelopment projects. We also enjoyed helping the Cedar River Council and Friends of the Cedar River plan, process and evaluate team performance through mid-stream partnering processes.

Related Articles:

The Case for Partnering in a Challenging Economy, 2009

Partner Up for Successful Projects, 2008

Sustainable Public Involvement: The Case for Lasting, Meaningful Stakeholder Partnerships, 2007

“Your ability to teach us to work as a team not only resulted in the best project Granger has ever built, but also gave us the foundation to win two national awards:  the Association of General Contractors’ Build America Award and the Marvin M. Black Excellence in Partnering Award.” 

James A. Blum, PE, LEED AP, Granger Construction Company

Photo Courtesy of Sound Transit

“Margaret (Meg) Winch (Communication Resources) has been an invaluable asset to Sound Transit and King County.  In a very short timeframe, Meg has assisted us in setting up the partnering framework that has been, and will continue to be, critical for the successful launch of the Central Link Light Rail System.  Meg is very proactive and highly responsive to the needs of her clients, always seeking ways to continually improve her services and add value for every dollar.” 

Martin Minkoff, Former Director of Transportation Services, Sound Transit