Getting the best out of partners through formal advisory boards.
Partner Advisory Boards (PAB), also known as Partner Advisory Councils (PAC), have changed a great deal over the last few years. Part of that is due to Covid. But a big part of that also is the increased value that vendors are placing on input from senior channel partners as indirect routes to market evolve.
WINE AND DINE TO LISTEN AND LEARN
Historically the emphasis for most vendors with Partner Advisory Boards was on recognition and reward. Modern Partner Advisory Boards are less wine and dine, more listen and learn.
For most vendors the advent of Covid took away the face-to-face component that made Partner Advisory Boards premium events, moving the meetings online. And that change has allowed vendors to make the meetings more structured, more focused and more valuable, to both the vendor organizer and to the PAB member attendees.
How has this been done?
THE PARTNER ADVISORY BOARD CHARTER
It starts with the who, why and what: the PAB Charter. The Partner Advisory Boards Charter is a short document that sets out the objectives and structure of the PAB. The Charter will explain why the vendor is running the PAB, examples might include:
· To share market and customer insights that impact our partner ecosystem.
· To highlight opportunities to grow our solution and service revenues.
· To discuss our customer offerings and our solutions roadmap.
· To identify areas where we can reduce process friction.
The Charter will also explain who should attend the PAB and what they should expect, examples might include:
· PAB members are likely to hold senior executive positions in their business.
· PAB members must commit to attend and actively participate in meetings.
· PAB meetings will be twice per year either via conference call or in-person.
As with any Board, the PAB has clear structure, objectives and membership.
THE PARTNER ADVISORY BOARD AGENDA
The agenda for a Partner Advisory Board should not be built by the vendor organizer but by the PAB member attendees. This means that one-to-one pre-calls are required with PAB members well in advance of each meeting to discuss and evaluate potential topics.
Typically a draft set of topics is developed by the vendor organizer, which is shared with PAB members during the pre-calls, and important topics are prioritized. Some vendors also use survey tools to gather member feedback on topics.
This process is critical to the success of a Partner Advisory Board as otherwise the Board members don’t own the agenda.
PARTNER ADVISORY BOARD ATTENDEES
Perhaps contrary to popular belief, the Partner Advisory Board is not a forum for the vendor to present information to their channel partners. It is a forum to discuss, listen and learn. Vendor content presented at the PAB should be very limited and designed only to seed discussion.
The ideal Partner Advisory Board will have ten to twelve partner members. The vendor attendees are split between ‘observers’ and ‘presenters’. Observers attend to listen and do not participate in discussion. Presenters seed discussions with brief content, often no slideware, and participate in their agenda item. A professional facilitator runs the meeting.
The meeting ‘belongs’ to the member attendees, not to the vendor organizer. It is their agenda and their discussion. It is the vendor’s opportunity to listen and learn.
PARTNER ADVISORY BOARD FOLLOW UP
If it’s an online meeting we recommend not to record the discussion, but to have a note-taker appointed. Detailed notes are prepared following the meeting, with recommended actions, and these are shared with attendee members.
The PAB is not an Executive Board, it is an Advisory Board. This means that recommendations are received for review by the vendor organizer and may or may not lead to specific actions or changes, depending on company strategy.
PARTNER ADVISORY BOARD VALUE
Modern Partner Advisory Boards are a critical component for vendor organizers in developing an effective indirect route to market, with engaged and committed channel partners. PAB members want to participate because it gives them an important voice in how the vendor is evolving its business for the future.
Face to face Partner Advisory Boards are returning, post-Covid, and premium locations remain appropriate for senior executives from top channel partners. However the increased focus on meeting structure and value that online PAB’s has brought will not go away.
ORGANIZING A PARTNER ADVISORY BOARD
Specialist outside expertise is often needed to run successful Partner Advisory Boards. Vendor organizers need help to create the Charter, to build the agenda and to run the meeting on the day.
Kovendi offers a proven package of services that delivers a quality experience for partner attendees and that ensures value for vendor organizers. Contact us to learn more.
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