Scaling Your Partnership Organization

A newsletter about partnerships strategy &
operations by Bernhard Friedrichs

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TL;DR

• Perfect timing matters - early scaling wastes money, late scaling slows growth

• Two paths to choose: Full Lifecycle (one manager does all) or Split Function (separate teams)

• Don't rush into specialization - wait until you truly need it

• Success killers: hasty changes, messy handoffs, wrong incentives

• Some partnerships work better simple - especially strategic and technical deals

• Link to full guide for subscribers below 👇

Hi,

Last week just before I started my holidays I was doing an assessment for a fast growing SaaS company and their partnerships lead brought up a question that I asked myself several times when growing partnerships teams through different growth stages.

"We just got our Series B funding," she said. "I have three amazing partner managers, but now I need to show a team growth plan for 2025. I just don't know when the right time to scale is, or what roles I actually need."

This is exactly why I love what I do. Here was someone facing real pressure to grow their team after funding, but also worried about messing up what was already working well. It's that classic partnership dilemma - you need to scale to grow, but partnerships are all about relationships, and those get complicated fast.

When Should You Scale Your Partnership Organization?

Growing a partnership team is one of the trickiest challenges in B2B SaaS. Too early, and you waste resources. Too late, and you risk missing opportunities. Here's what you need to know about getting it right.

The Two Models You Need to Know About

Most partnership organizations evolve through two main team structures:

1. The Full Lifecycle Model

One partner manager handles everything from recruitment to growth. Great for building deep relationships, but most managers can only handle 20-30 partnerships effectively.

2. The Split Function Model

Separates recruitment from growth management. More scalable, but introduces handoff challenges. Usually makes sense around the 50+ partner mark.

Three Common Pitfalls to Watch Out For