Triumphant Alliances

Viewed simply, an alliance is a number of organisations working together as a team. And, in the same way that teamwork between individuals depends on common goals, so it does for teamwork between organisations.
However, while individuals can develop and accept the goals for themselves reasonably swiftly and autonomously, organisational decision making is necessarily more involved and protracted - often requiring a clearer and more explicit rationale to guide and inform the debate.
QFD provides a very practical framework for exploring the rationale and opportunities of an alliance, for clarifying and agreeing the roles and responsibilities in making it happen, and for documenting and communicating the logic to the necessary stakeholders and supporters.
The end result has been dramatically improved performances for all parties involved - but isn't that what teamwork is all about?
To understand more about the use of QFD in driving the performance of alliances and partnerships, read the following case studies:
Leveraging Partnerships: Illustrates the use of QFD by a software company (Microsoft) to dramatically improve the performance of strategically important partnerships and thereby improve sales and customer satisfaction.
Making Alliances Work: Tells how QFD was used to build a successful virtual organisation between supplier and customer for the design and implementation of an innovative retail computer system.