Partnerships should come with a health warning

Partnerships can be a beautiful thing.

Two people (it is usually two) working together to achieve more than they could on their own. 

It sounds great but the reality can be different. I’ve failed at working in a partnership. My ex-partner was (and is) a lovely, capable guy but being a double act didn’t work for either of us. We went our separate ways in business after a couple of years and I think we have both been happier and more fulfilled since the split.

Thankfully our break-up was fairly harmonious (they are never completely so) but in my time running an accountancy firm I have seen some less-friendly splits where the partners have ended up falling out very badly indeed. Often the rift comes from an imbalance in the relationship. One partner feels they are working harder or want more from the business than the other. Tensions build and often come to a head with an agreement to break the partnership.

For me it was a learning experience. On the positive side, having a partner gave me the confidence to start and develop the business. After we achieved a modest amount of scale however, I wanted more control of decision-making and mapping out the future direction of the business. In a nutshell I wanted to be master of my own destiny. 

I have seen some partnerships that work. More often than not, these are a couple who are already in a relationship. They are used to dealing with the ups and downs of life - falling out, making up and able to communicate effectively with each other.

One of the key ingredients in successful partnerships I believe is having clarity of roles and responsibilities. At the start up stage, each partner tends to ‘muck in’ and do what needs to be done. Very quickly they will need to carve out roles built around their individual strengths. One partner will usually emerge as the leader and I think it works best if each partner is responsible for different activities - marketing, selling, operations and so on.

Another important feature of successful partnerships is communication. More than this it needs to be open and honest communication. I have observed partnerships where there are clear roles and responsibilities, one partner is clearly the leader and the partners get on well. The weakness has been that the junior partner has not been able to communicate their concerns effectively to the senior partner. This has led to the senior partners taking excessive risks with poor outcomes for the business.

Partnerships can work but if you are thinking of joining forces with a work colleague or friend, my advice would be to think hard and then think some more. Visualise how you will work together, not just in the good times but in the bad times too, which will inevitably arise. 

Before committing, spend some time together preparing a business plan. This can ensure that you are 'on the same page' at the start and is a good trial for seeing how you work together and reach consensus,

1 + 1 can equal much more than 2 in the best of partnerships.

In some cases it can be much less than a sum of the parts and can lead to the end of a close and long-standing friendship. 

So tread very carefully and do your homework before taking the plunge. It may help you avoid an expensive and often painful mistake.

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