Now that you’ve formalized your partnership—and are in a position to capitalize on it—start planning for the future. Strategic planning is the best way for partners to envision what will happen in the next few years.When partners plan together strategically, the synergy created is enormous. And the outcome is something your competitors can’t replicate because it exists only in the context of your partnership. No matter how hard they try, they cannot re-create that unique set of dynamics that is uniquely yours.

Some time ago I witnessed an example of this type of partnership synergy. At the time, I was participating in a workshop for a multimember partnership including the National Highway Safety Board, the California Department of Transportation, several automobile manufacturers, and some computer and software designers. They are dedicated to increasing auto safety and using technology to improve efficiencies. Their vision is to create a systemto provide interaction between the automobile and the road to enhance safety and performance. Electronic sensors embedded in the road surface will monitor traffic, surface conditions, and other useful information and relay it to the driver via a computer in the car. This data will be projected via a dashboard monitor or onto the windshield and also signal the optimum speed the car should be traveling under these conditions. Such a system could also indicate alternate routes should there be traffic delays or other obstacles.