1. Reviewing a Strategic Alliance using an MOUP* Workshop
An explanatory document for participants
* MOUP = Memorandum of understanding and Principles

2. Contents What is it? Why is it useful? How is it conducted?
What is the workshop agenda?
Who else has used this approach?
What did they identify as the value?
How much does it cost?
How do I get further details?

3. What is it?
The acronym MOUP stands for Memorandum of Understanding and Principles. The concept is already well established as alliance best practice in many partnering excellence companies. The MOUP is a multi purpose tool;
In an already existing relationship the MOUP serves as a re-examination, clarification and reinforcement of the strategic aims and ambitions of both sides for the relationship.
In a newly formed relationship (or one in which there has been significant change) the MOUP provides the opportunity for both sides to reaffirm their commitment to existing / new initiatives and objectives.
For an ongoing relationship the MOUP can provide an invaluable strategic ‘roadmap’ giving structure, guidance and direction.
For a specific initiative the MOUP provides a simple framework within which the new idea can be quickly tested and developed to working business case level.
Because an MOUP is a non legally binding agreement it can be developed relatively quickly. The MOUP allows all parties to a relationship to ‘build from the top down’.

4. Why is it useful? The MOUP is useful for the following reasons;
Vision of the relationship – The MOUP allows both / all sides to a relationship to reaffirm / discover the overall Vision which drives the relationship.
Clarification of strategic intent – In an established relationship it is essential to regularly review the strategic intent of both sides to ensure continuing congruence and alignment.
Business value proposition – Value propositions change and need to be regularly reviewed if they are to be effective.
Internal alignment - The workshop allows the multiple teams within an organisation to understand how their efforts contribute to overall success.
Business to business alignment - The exercise allows both / all sides to the relationship to understand how they align operationally to achieve success.
Governance - The MOUP document articulates the governance model which is agreed by both / all sides.
Communication - The MOUP document which is produced as a result of the exercise is an excellent internal and external communication tool.
Identification of key stakeholders – The exercise allows both / all sides to identify and seek consensus from all key stakeholders.

5. How is it conducted? Before the workshop
A pre workshop briefing pack is sent to all attendees explaining the purpose, nature, intent, and value of the exercise.
A pre workshop questionnaire is completed by all attendees to capture multiple perspectives on the relationship and identify any areas of contention
At the workshop
The results of the pre workshop questionnaire are presented and discussed with a view to achieving a broad based consensus view of the state of the relationship
A ten point agenda is then used as a framework to shape the resulting discussions (see later)
After the workshop
The results of the discussion/s are documented in a five page MOUP document which (after suitable review) are validated and endorsed by both sides

6. What is the workshop agenda?
Morning
Business Value Proposition
Vision
Key metrics
Alliance reward system
Market fit of proposed solutions
Mutual needs
Governance
Afternoon
Key stakeholders
Scope
B2B strategic alignment
Relationship plan
Communication
Relationship Change Management
Internal alignment

7. Who else has used this approach?
The concept is now actively used by a large range of alliance best practice companies including;
IBM, Nortel, Microsoft, Oracle, Vodafone, Starbucks, Schering, AstraZeneca, Alcatel, Fujitsu, Siemens Communications, Accenture, Ariba, Epiphany, ITS, SSA, IBS, Genesys, PLM, Air France, Delta, Intentia, Capgemini, SAP, Siebel, i2, Peregrine, Intel, Xerox, McAfee, Business Objects, Infor, Avaya, Bank of America, Bank of Scotland, Scottish Widows, AXA, Nordea, BNP Paribas, Japan Corporate Bank, GE Money, AMP Capital, UBS, Lufthansa, Continental Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Siemens AG, BASF, EBRC, RCC, Rifcon, Exponent, Battelle BT plc, Computacenter, Rolls Royce, KLM, Kuehne & Nagle, TNT, Micro Focus, HP (UK), Eli Lilley, StorageTek, GSK (Healthcare), Cardinal Health, Bax Global, Exel, Reckitt Benckiser, uLogistics, CSC,, BASF and AirPlus, Continental Airlines, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Northwest Airlines, and Lawson.

8. How much does it cost?
Alliance Best Practice Ltd charges £2000 per day
Typically an MOUP workshop takes three days;
One day to prepare
One day to deliver and
One day to document the agreed actions
Consequently the typical cost of such an assignment is £6,000 excluding VAT and any reasonable out of pocket travelling expenses

9. What is the value?
The following quotes come from senior individuals at organisations in your sector who have attended an MOUP workshop;
“For the first time we now have a common perception of the relationship from both sides. This is immensely valuable in speeding up communication and go to market strategies. I believe this has saved us at least 6 months work.”
“The exercise paid for itself many times over as an immediate consequence of our increased mutual understanding.”
“Our pipeline went up over 40% in six weeks”
“We have accelerated our understanding of the gaps in our knowledge and internal processes. We estimate that this has saved us 3 man years of effort.”
“We have been able to assess accurately our capabilities as matched against a world class database. This has allowed us to be realistic in our growth ambitions and also to avoid making the common mistakes made by others in our situation, thus saving a considerable amount of time and money (estimate €650,000).”
“The coaching that has been provided has been immensely valuable in improving the day to day performance of all team members in executing the agreed strategies. As an example one relationship has increased from $4,012,000 to $9,282,000.”
“It has been established that ABP has saved us over 5 man year’s effort by giving us already developed templates, tools and methodologies on which to develop our action plans.”
“Early signs are that the incremental revenue generated as a result of this assignment will far outweigh any cost involved to a factor of over 100 to 1.”
“In the quarter following the workshop we produced three times more revenue than in the previous three quarters combined!”

10. MOUP Document Structure
The MOUP itself is non legally binding this is to allow it to be created quickly and to focus on form rather than function.
However the MOUP is intended to be supported by multiple other documents many of which are legally binding .
This is illustrated opposite.

11. How do I get further details?
For further details please contact;
Mike Nevin
Managing Partner
Alliance Best Practice Ltd
Web:
Office: +44 (0)
Mobile: +44 (0)
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