TPI is committed to capturing our experiences of partnership and developing cutting edge theory from all our programmes.
We continually create and renew our practical tools, processes and approaches which support collaborations reaching their full potential, and have a range of publications available which support this aim, including toolbooks, case studies and research and policy papers promote new standards of partnering practice and build practitioners skills and knowledge around the world.
Featured Publications Toolbook Series Case Studies Research and Policy
Featured Publications
A selection of recent key publications.
School Partnerships for Impact Guide
The School Partnerships Alliance was formed to build on the many formal and informal partnerships across state and independent schools, and work closely with schools to encourage collaboration and promote best partnering practice.
It aims to draw o...
Multi Stakeholder Platforms as System Change Agents
In collaboration with Wageningen University and Research and the Institute of Development Studies, we are proud to announce the publication of a new report titled, "Multi Stakeholder Platforms as System Change Agents - A guide for assessing effectiveness...
Partnering for Philanthropic Impact Report
Foundations have a hugely important and unique role: as partners, as funders, as drivers of innovation, and as catalysts for collective action. Many Foundations are already using – or desire to use – partnering to maximise their impact. Many are mov...
Partner of Choice: World Vision's journey to becoming institutionally Fit for Partnering
The 2030 Agenda represents a fundamental shift in thinking in international development, recognising the interconnectedness of prosperous business, a thriving society and a healthy environment. Delivering the SDGs will require an unprecedented level ...
The SDG Partnership Guidebook
The SDG Partnership Guidebook is the flagship publication of the SDG Partnership Accelerator and serves as a practical resource to help build high impact multi-stakeholder partnerships for the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Guidebook aims to convey...
Collaboration in a changing world: Trends in cross-sector partnering for INGOs 2020
Major shifts are taking place in the context within which development and humanitarian partnerships operate. Our new report with Bond looks at the key trends which are currently influencing INGO partnerships.
This brief study is based on survey questions...
Partnership Platforms for the Sustainable Development Goals
The 2030 Agenda is built on a fundamental shift in approach to international development: engaging the unique roles and resources of all sectors of society and requiring extensive collaboration across sectors to achieve its ambitious goals.
‘Partnership p...
Maximizing Partnership Value Creation Guidebook
Partnerships across societal sector are an essential mechanism to deliver the SDGs. However, despite the rhetoric around collaboration, we are still not seeing sufficient impact being delivered compared with the scale of the goals.
Given the significant...
Collaboration for the SDGs: Exploring the support system for Effective Partnering
Dave Prescott & Darian Stibbe, The Partnering Initiative, Oxford, 2015
A Partnering Support System: The set of actors of all kinds (whether organisations, initiatives, platforms, individuals etc.) that together makes accessible the necessary...
The Better Together Guidebook
Better Together: Unleashing the Power of the Private Sector to Tackle Non-Communicable Diseases
The scale of the non-communicable disease challenge the world faces is staggering. Tackling the NCD crisis will require a significant shift in the way...
Delivering on the Promise
In-country multi-stakeholder platforms to catalyse collaboration and partnerships for Agenda 2030
Over the past few years both World Vision and The Partnering Initiative have engaged in and contributed to the global dialogue and practice on multi-stakeholder platforms and ...
Platforms for Partnership
Emerging good practice to systematically engage business as a partner in development
Reid, S., Hayes, J.P. and Stibbe, D.T.
The Partnering Initiative, Oxford, 2015
Download the report
Unleashing the Power of Business
A practical ‘Roadmap’ to systematically engage business as a partner in national development
While the role of the private sector and public private collaboration is core to delivering the SDGs, progress is still slow. At country level, some development act...
Toolbook Series
Our respected Toolbook Series provides practical knowledge and guidance for partnerships and have been developed close collaboration with practitioners worldwide.
The SDG Partnership Guidebook
The SDG Partnership Guidebook is the flagship publication of the SDG Partnership Accelerator and serves as a practical resource to help build high impact multi-stakeholder partnerships for the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Guidebook aims to convey...
Maximizing Partnership Value Creation Guidebook
Partnerships across societal sector are an essential mechanism to deliver the SDGs. However, despite the rhetoric around collaboration, we are still not seeing sufficient impact being delivered compared with the scale of the goals.
Given the significant...
The Better Together Guidebook
Better Together: Unleashing the Power of the Private Sector to Tackle Non-Communicable Diseases
The scale of the non-communicable disease challenge the world faces is staggering. Tackling the NCD crisis will require a significant shift in the way...
The Partnership Culture Navigator
This booklet, developed in collaboration with WFP, is the second in The Partnering Initiative’s Navigator series. It has been designed as a practical guide to help users navigate the challenges of dealing with different organisational cultures when wor...
Zambia Partnering Toolbook
The Zambia Partnering Toolbook is designed to support the uptake and delivery of partnerships that contribute to sustainable development in Zambia. It provides the rationale for forming these partnerships and offers a range of practical tools (below) th...
Moving On
Moving On addresses the exit aspects of a partnership - a part of the cycle often unplanned or mishandled.
The Moving On toolbook focuses on the exit aspects of a partnership a part of the cycle often unplanned or mishandled. It also looks at the...
The Partnering with Governments Navigator
The Partnering with Governments Navigator is aimed at assisting donors, NGOs and practitioners from the private sector in navigating the challenges and seizing the opportunities of partnership with governments.
The Navigator was developed with GIZ...
The Case Study Toolbook
The Case Study Toolbook is designed to help individuals to create their own case studies more successfully.
The Case Study Toolbook aims to provide insights into the process of successful cross-sector partnering, create better case study collection ...
Talking the Walk
Talking the Walk takes a highly practical look at the realities of communicating in and about partnership.
Talking the Walk is a toolbook for partnership practitioners from all sectors, to enable them to understand the importance of good communication...
The Brokering Guidebook
The Brokering Guidebook illuminates the critical part played by brokers in multi sector partnerships as both process managers and behind the scenes leaders.
It focuses on partnership brokering - that essential intermediary function that enables partners...
Case Studies
These case studies are intended to demonstrate how different organisations have tackled the challenges of cross-sector partnership, drawing learning from each approach. Lessons from these inform all our publications and training programmes. Some of these case studies have been made available here, and others are available from the Case Study Project section.
Partner of Choice: World Vision's journey to becoming institutionally Fit for Partnering
The 2030 Agenda represents a fundamental shift in thinking in international development, recognising the interconnectedness of prosperous business, a thriving society and a healthy environment. Delivering the SDGs will require an unprecedented level ...
Microsoft's Partnership Centric Culture
June 2010
Lessons from a decade of using cross-sector partnerships to promoted universal access to digital learning
Download the publication
Changing Trends in Business-NGO Partnerships - A Netherlands Perspective
July 2011 - with SOS Kinderdorpen
TPI and SOS Kinderdorpen conducted research with companies into the changing trends in business-NGO partnerships. The report also focuses on the corporate drivers and the business case for partnerships and identifies ke...
Changing Trends in Business-NGO Relationships in India
November 2011 - with SOS Kinderdorpen
This report looks at evolving patterns and emerging opportunities to maximize the benefits of innovative collaboration and was commissioned SOS Children's Villages.
Download the publication
Vodafone Foundation case study: Collaboration
December 2007
Collaboration is the case study of a three-year flagship Vodafone UK Foundation partnership between three UK charities: Samaritans, Shelter and YouthNet. The case study, produced by The Partnering Initiative, tracks the partnering journey...
Rio Tinto: Tackling the cross-sector partnership challenge
September 2006
This paper explores one multi-national corporation’s adoption of cross-sector partnering as a key element in building a sustainable and successful company. It examines how Rio Tinto has moved systematically from a number of somewhat a...
Conflicting Cultures : Lessons from a UN Business Partnership
September 2007
Conflicting Cultures is a fascinating and highly revealing fictionalised account of a real partnership between a UN agency and a multi-national company. The case study uncovers some of the difficulties encountered by those partnering...
Seeing is Believing: In the Bank’s Best Interest
December 2009
This case study looks at the partnership between Standard Chartered Bank and the IAPB (International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness). The focus of this study is the evolving scale and scope of the partnership over time, the challenges ...
Research and Policy
TPI not only captures, analyses and disseminates learning from its own projects – it also works with leading institutions to facilitate original research and to contribute to the wider community of partnership practitioners and theorists. This section includes a range of publications, from reports and good practice guides to regional perspectives on partnering and surveys of particular fields.
Multi Stakeholder Platforms as System Change Agents
In collaboration with Wageningen University and Research and the Institute of Development Studies, we are proud to announce the publication of a new report titled, "Multi Stakeholder Platforms as System Change Agents - A guide for assessing effectiveness...
An ‘all-of-society’ approach involving business in tackling the rise in NCDs
The incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), in particular, the chronic diseases attributed to lifestyle factors
linked to poor diet, lack of physical activity, smoking and alcohol abuse, are rising dramatically throughout the world.
Already,...
Collaboration in a changing world: Trends in cross-sector partnering for INGOs 2020
Major shifts are taking place in the context within which development and humanitarian partnerships operate. Our new report with Bond looks at the key trends which are currently influencing INGO partnerships.
This brief study is based on survey questions...
Partnership Platforms for the Sustainable Development Goals
The 2030 Agenda is built on a fundamental shift in approach to international development: engaging the unique roles and resources of all sectors of society and requiring extensive collaboration across sectors to achieve its ambitious goals.
‘Partnership p...
Collaboration for the SDGs: Exploring the support system for Effective Partnering
Dave Prescott & Darian Stibbe, The Partnering Initiative, Oxford, 2015
A Partnering Support System: The set of actors of all kinds (whether organisations, initiatives, platforms, individuals etc.) that together makes accessible the necessary...
An introduction to multi-stakeholder partnerships
Darian Stibbe and Dave Prescott, The Partnering Initiative, Oxford, 2016
This briefing document for the GPEDC High Level Meeting in November 2016 offers a definition of multi-stakeholder partnerships (MSPs) and shows how they are being used, where ...
Collaboration is the 'new normal'
by Darian Stibbe, Global Development Goals: Partnerships for Progress, UNA-UK, 2014
As development goals become increasingly dependent on partnerships of diverse
actors, how can the barriers be broken down to enable effective, concerted action?
Download...
Delivering on the Promise
In-country multi-stakeholder platforms to catalyse collaboration and partnerships for Agenda 2030
Over the past few years both World Vision and The Partnering Initiative have engaged in and contributed to the global dialogue and practice on multi-stakeholder platforms and ...
Partnering for Impact
Supporting Systemic Change to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals in Africa.
by Richard Gilbert and Beth Jenkins, 2014.
This report analyses a wide range of business partnerships in Africa to identify key barriers and enablers for achieving...
Platforms for Partnership
Emerging good practice to systematically engage business as a partner in development
Reid, S., Hayes, J.P. and Stibbe, D.T.
The Partnering Initiative, Oxford, 2015
Download the report
Unleashing the Power of Business
A practical ‘Roadmap’ to systematically engage business as a partner in national development
While the role of the private sector and public private collaboration is core to delivering the SDGs, progress is still slow. At country level, some development act...
Cafe Conversations
2006
A copendium of accredited essays by alumni of the Partnership Brokers Accreditation Scheme on the practice and theory of brokering multi-sector partnerships for sustainable development.
Download the publication
Facing the Facts: a survey of partnership practitioners
September 2006
This survey was conducted by The Partnering Initiative to discover just how successful multi-stakeholder partnerships have become and what changes are needed to enable partnerships to become more effective.
Download the publication...
Emerging opportunities for NGO-business partnerships
July 2008
This discussion paper originated as part of a Cross-sector Partnership (XSP) project involving World Vision, Accenture Development Partnerships and The Partnering Initiative. This paper aims to play its part in: revealing partnership potential,...
Current practice in the evaluation of cross-sector partnerships for sustainable development
November 2008
This working paper evolved from an investigation of current practice in evaluating partnerships in 2008 with a team of students from the London School of Economics. The paper brings together the results of the investigation.
Download...
Partnering Step by Step
January 2009
A guide to partnering at the grassroots level, written in response to demand from people working in many parts of the world on local level partnerships for sustainable development.
Download the publication
Better Partnerships through Better Agreements
The Partnering Agreement Scorecard
By Stuart Reid and Stella Pfisterer,
Annual Review of Social Partnerships, 2014
Download the publication
Partnership Matters Journal
The Partnership Matters Journal explores a range of topics in cross-sector partnerships and drew on the work on those involved in the IBLF and University of Cambridge Programme for Industry Post-graduate Certificate in Cross-Sector Partnerships programme.
There...
Please also join our group on Linked In to participate in the latest discussions, or see our blogs on topics related to partnering.