Lessons summarised

To summarise the lessons then, I think that potential partners need to do the following:

Understand exactly what it is that they are putting in and getting out of the partnership;
Have some mutually agreed key performance indicators so that the partners know it is being successful;
Ensure that the partnership actually delivers the benefits to both parties; and
Have a clear and up-front exit strategy for when the relationship has run its course.

Doing these things, in our experience, increases the probability of a positive outcome to the partnership.