Strategic Partnerships

By Stacy M. Menz, PT, DPT

This month’s issue is all about strategic partnerships.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a strategic partnership is “an arrangement between two companies or organizations to help each other or work together, to make it easier for each of them to achieve the things they want to achieve.” These partnerships can be formal or informal. You may have some that you aren’t even aware of!

What I really liked about some of the articles in this issue is they take a look at using a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis to see where you may benefit from a strategic partnership. I will definitely be adding this to our planning process. I think it’s a great way to analyze the partnerships that are already in place as well. They may have been beneficial in the past, but are they still? Or are there other areas of need that can be filled by just the right partnership?

Maybe there are organizations in your community that you can fill a need for. For instance, I know of several private practices that are contracting with the local hospital to provide outpatient services. In some cases, these practices are handling the hospital’s entire rehabilitation department. What about businesses in your area? Can you provide value to each other’s clients or market?

While I am a sole owner, I like to collaborate with others. I have found a pediatric occupational therapy clinic in our area that wants to collaborate as well. We meet once a month to look at how we can support each other in growing as well as share experiences, opportunities, and resources with each other. While this is not a formal partnership, it is filling an area of need for me.

Take a look around in your area and look for organizations you could collaborate with—to your mutual benefit!