Tell Us About Your World

• Who are we speaking with and what’s your role? Options: VP of Partnerships, Channel Chief / Head of Channels, Director of Partner Operations, Partner Program Manager, Head of Alliances, Other
• How many active partners does your program currently engage? Options: Fewer than 25, 25–50, 51–100, 101–250, More than 250
• What percent of your company’s revenue is attributable to indirect channels today? Options: Under 10%, 10–19%, 20–29%, 30–49%, 50% or more, Unsure
• What recent event or pain made you start looking for a partner platform now? Options: Spreadsheet breakdown from scale, Undetected channel conflict, New channel chief demanding attribution, MDF reconciliation disputes, Preparing for growth, Other
• Describe, in your own words, one recent moment that made you think “we need a better way” (brief narrative).
• If a platform migration could risk losing a portion of pipeline during transition, how would that feel for you and your leadership team? Options: Manageable if temporary, Major concern — could delay promotion/compensation, Unacceptable without guarantees, Depends on mitigation plan

Are You Comfortable Flying with Blind Spots?

• If a critical partner deal slipped through the cracks today, would you know why — immediately or only later? Options: I’d know immediately and why, I’d know after close/reporting, Only in retrospective analysis, We’d likely never know
• Walk me through your current deal registration process from partner submission to CRM attribution—who touches it and which handoffs are manual?
• Which systems currently hold registration, approval, and attribution data? Options: Spreadsheets/Excel, Email threads, Shared drives (e.g., Google/SharePoint), Slack/Messaging, CRM custom fields, Homegrown portal, Existing PRM, Other
• How long does it typically take to approve a registration, and what causes the longest delays? Options: Under 4 hours, Same day, 1–2 days, 3–7 days, More than a week
• Describe a recent delayed approval or fragmented attribution incident—what happened, who was impacted, and what was the fallout?
• How often in the last 12 months have you experienced channel conflict where fragmented data was a root cause? Options: Never, Once, 2–3 times, 4–6 times, More than 6 times
• What monitoring, alerts, or dashboards do you have today to detect missing attributions or registration disputes?

What Would It Cost If Nothing Changed?

• If partner-sourced revenue were under-reported by 10% this quarter, what would that mean for your team’s targets and incentives? Options: Minor impact, Moderate — could affect bonuses, Significant — impacts forecasts and headcount, Severe — board-level concern, Unsure
• Estimate the annual revenue at risk from deal registration delays, duplicate submissions, or lost attributions (ballpark number or range). Options: Under $100k, $100k–$500k, $500k–$2M, $2M–$10M, Over $10M, Unsure
• How many hours per week does your team collectively spend reconciling MDF, registrations, and partner-submitted pipeline? Options: Under 10 hours, 10–30 hours, 31–60 hours, 61–120 hours, Over 120 hours
• How many full-time equivalents (FTEs) are effectively tied to manual partner operations work today? Options: 0, 0.5–1, 1–3, 4–7, 8 or more
• Tell us about a concrete case where manual processes caused a measurable dispute, lost deal, or reconciliation issue (what happened, dollars/impact if known).
• Which three KPIs would you say must not deteriorate during a migration? Options: Pipeline coverage, Partner adoption rate, Deal registration processing time, Attribution accuracy, MDF reconciliation time, Partner satisfaction (NPS)

Who Really Decides — and Who Moves the Needle?

• If we could guarantee zero disruption to active partner workflows, would procurement, legal, or finance still raise blockers to a purchase? Options: Yes — procurement will, Yes — legal will, Yes — finance will, No — major blockers removed, Maybe — depends on terms
• List the internal decision-makers and approvers for both purchase and deployment (titles or names and their primary concerns).
• Which internal teams must be involved for CRM integration, data mapping, and ongoing attribution (select all that apply)? Options: Sales Ops, CRM Admins, RevOps, IT/Integration, Legal, Finance, Partner Marketing, Customer Success, Other
• Who owns partner communications and onboarding today, and how would that role need to change during a pilot?
• How do your partners currently prefer to submit registrations and interact with you? Options: Email, Spreadsheet upload, Portal/PRM, Phone, CRM shared links, Other
• Which stakeholders on your side would see this platform as a strategic win, and which would view it as an added operational burden? Please name roles and why.

Imagine a World Where Registrations Just Work

• If deal registrations processed in under four hours for every partner, how would your day-to-day priorities shift?
• What are the non-negotiable platform features your partners will insist on for adoption? Options: Simple submission form, Mobile-friendly portal, Single sign-on (SSO), CRM sync/real-time attribution, Audit trail and approvals, Co-branded partner experience, MDF management
• Describe the minimum viable pilot scope (number of partners, partner tier, data types, integrations) that would convince you the platform can scale.
• What adoption rate among pilot partners would make you confident to proceed to full rollout? Options: >90%, 80–90%, 70–79%, 60–69%, <60%
• How will you measure attribution accuracy during and after rollout (specific metrics, checks, or sample audits)?
• At 90 days post-launch and at 12 months, what outcomes must be true for you to call the project a success?

What’s Standing Between Us and a Smooth Migration?

• What single migration risk worries you most — losing pipeline visibility, broken CRM links, partner adoption failure, or something else? Options: Lost pipeline visibility, Broken CRM integrations, Low partner adoption, MDF reconciliation errors, Data integrity issues, Other
• How tolerant are you for temporary gaps in pipeline reporting during migration? Options: Zero tolerance, Up to 1 week, 1–4 weeks, A month+, Depends on mitigation plan
• Describe your CRM and integration landscape (single instance vs. multi-instance, custom objects, middleware, API limits).
• Which data sets must be migrated as a priority (select all that apply)? Options: Partners and contacts, Open registrations, Historical attributions, MDF balances and claims, Active deals/opportunities, Custom partner fields, Other
• What migration experiences have you had before—what went well, and what failure modes would you never accept repeating?
• Which rollback, staging, or dual-write strategies would make you feel safe during cutover? Options: Parallel running (dual write), Phased partner cohorts, Shadow reporting against CRM, Automated reconciliation scripts, Manual sign-off gates, Other

If We Commit — How Will We Stay Accountable?

• If we set a pilot with clear metrics, what outcome would force you to pause or stop the project? Options: <60% partner adoption, Significant data loss, Major revenue impact, Repeated integration failures, Other
• Which pilot success metrics and SLAs must we agree on before starting (choose all that apply)? Options: Registration processing time SLA, Attribution accuracy target, Partner adoption %, CRM sync frequency and latency, MDF reconciliation accuracy, Uptime and support SLA
• Who will be the single owner responsible for pilot success on your side (role or name)? Options: Director of Partner Ops, VP of Partnerships, Sales Ops Lead, CRM Admin, Program Manager, Other
• What is your ideal timeline for configuration, pilot, and full rollout? Options: 6–8 weeks config, 1 quarter pilot, 1 quarter rollout, 8–10 weeks config, 1 quarter pilot, 2 quarter rollout, Custom timeline — please specify, Unsure
• What internal approvals and procurement steps are required, and how long do they usually take? Options: Simple approval (2–4 weeks), Moderate (4–8 weeks), Complex (8–16 weeks), Very complex (16+ weeks)
• What would you need from us in the first 30 days to feel we’re delivering real value?

• Current State & Consequence Alignment (Solution Experience Kickoff)
• Live Scenario Walkthrough — Deal Registration & CRM Attribution
• Partner Workflow Simulation — Registration to MDF / Co‑marketing Flow
• Validation & Pilot Acceptance Workshop (Decision & Next Steps)

• All: Schedule the pilot kickoff meeting and governance checkpoint cadence (weekly ops, biweekly exec).
• Customer: Provide an example conflict case (email thread or ticket) if additional edge-case reproduction is needed.
• Recap Scenario Goals
• Demonstrate the platform's partner UX is measurably simpler than email workflows for the selected scenarios.
• Prove MDF reconciliation eliminates the primary drivers of disputed claims using customer sample data.
• Validate that CRM linkage maintains attribution through MDF and co-marketing events without breaking pipeline lineage.
• Agree mitigation steps for partner adoption risks and any configuration changes required.
• Customer: Approve a pilot cohort of partners (names/emails) and agree to allow a limited live MDF claim trial for 2–4 partners.
• CustomerNode: Implement agreed MDF reconciliation rules and supply a reconciliation report template for finance sign-off.
• All: Define UX acceptance metrics (time-to-submit, submission error rate, partner NPS) and set measurement windows.
• Customer: Flag any legal or compliance requirements for MDF fund handling that must be embedded in workflow.
• Executive Summary of Findings
• Agree and document the single-sentence future-state outcome that the pilot must prove.
• Finalize pilot success metrics, SLAs, and data acceptance criteria required for go/no-go decisions.
• Assign clear owners, timeline, and governance cadence for the pilot execution.
• Secure executive sign-off to proceed to the pilot or identify and schedule resolution of remaining blockers.
• All: Sign and approve the pilot SOW including agreed success metrics and acceptance criteria.
• Customer: Provision final sandbox/API access and test data needed for pilot execution.
• CustomerNode: Deliver pilot runbook, training plan, and monitoring dashboard for the agreed KPIs.
• Introductions & Meeting Objectives
• Produce and agree a single-sentence current state that everyone can repeat.
• Surface and quantify the business consequence(s) in operational terms (dollars, hours, risk).
• Select the specific real customer scenarios that will be exercised in the Solution Experience.
• Agree on pre-work, required data artifacts, and delivery dates to enable live validation.
• Customer: Deliver one-sentence current-state and 3–12 sample deal registrations (CSV) with CRM IDs and timestamps.
• Customer: Provide CRM schema mapping (object/field names), a sample partner workflow description, and contact for sandbox access.
• CustomerNode: Prepare Solution Experience environment seeded with customer sample data and create test partner accounts.
• All: Confirm dates for the sequence of live walkthrough sessions.
• Recap Current State & Success Criteria
• Prove the platform can ingest and process the customer's real deal registrations and write reliable attribution into CRM.
• Validate the platform reduces approval cycle time and prevents the specific conflict modes cited by the customer.
• Get explicit confirmation (yes/no and any corrections) that the behavior shown aligns with the customer's needs.
• Capture necessary mapping tweaks or data gaps to resolve before partner-wide pilot.
• Customer: Review shown CRM mapping and confirm required field transformations or identify missing fields.
• CustomerNode: Adjust mapping or integration behavior based on corrections and re-run a fresh registration for verification.
• All: Record acceptance criteria for attribution accuracy (e.g., mapping coverage, audit trail retention, acceptable error rate).
• One‑Sentence Current State
• Partner Portal UX — Partner Perspective
• Future-State One‑Sentence Outcome
• Scenario 1 — High‑priority Deal Registration
• Attribution & CRM Reconciliation
• Consequence Quantification
• Finance Flow — MDF Approval & Reconciliation
• Pilot Success Metrics & Acceptance Criteria
• Conflict Detection & Resolution Demo
• CRM Sync & Attribution Reconciliation
• Select Real Scenarios to Test
• Governance, Owners & Timeline
• Adoption Risk & Mitigation Review
• Quantify Delta vs Baseline
• Pre-work & Data Requirements
• Decision & Next Steps
• Validation Questions & Close
• Wrap & Next Steps
• Forced Validation & Acceptance

• Migrate Partner Records and Contacts
• Deploy Partner Portal with SSO
• Configure Deal Registration Workflow
• Implement Deal Registration Conflict Detection
• Integrate CRM Bidirectional Sync
• Automate MDF Allocation and Reconciliation
• Setup Co-branded Content Library and Distribution
• Enable Partner Pipeline Sharing and Visibility
• Activate Partner Performance Dashboards
• Configure Role-Based Permissions and Hierarchies
• Launch Partner Onboarding Automation
• Enable API Exports for Attribution Reporting

Migrate Partner Records and Contacts

• Do you require migration of partner records and contacts into the platform? Options: Yes, No, Partial (only specific tiers)
• How many partner and contact records need to be migrated? Options: Less than 500, 500-5,000, 5,000-20,000, More than 20,000
• Which source systems contain current partner data? Options: Spreadsheets, CRM (e.g., Salesforce), Legacy PRM, ERP, Other
• List any custom partner attributes or fields that must be preserved or mapped (e.g., program tier, rep linkage).
• Do records require deduplication or enrichment as part of migration? Options: Deduplication, Enrichment (e.g., company details), Both, None
• Are there privacy, consent, or regulatory constraints (e.g., GDPR, data residency) for partner data? Options: Yes, No
• What is your preferred migration window and any blackout dates when partner workflows must not be interrupted?

Deploy Partner Portal with SSO

• Do you plan to deploy a partner-facing portal for deal registration, MDF requests, and content? Options: Yes, No, Pilot only
• Which SSO providers or identity protocols must be supported? Options: Okta, Azure AD, Ping, Google Workspace, SAML (other), OIDC (other), Other
• What level of portal branding and UI customization is required? Options: Standard branding (logo/colors), Custom UI/UX, Per-partner custom landing pages, Multi-language
• Which partner user types should have access (e.g., admins, sales reps, marketing)? List roles and expected permissions.
• Do partners need mobile-friendly access or an app experience? Options: Responsive web only, Native mobile app required, Both
• Are there partner onboarding or approval workflows required before portal access is granted? Options: Yes, No, Partial (by tier)

Configure Deal Registration Workflow

• Should deal registration be enabled for all partner tiers or only specific tiers? Options: All tiers, Specific tiers only, Pilot tier(s)
• What required fields and metadata must a partner submit with a registration (e.g., opportunity value, account owner, close date)?
• What approval routing is required after submission (e.g., AE review, legal review, regional manager)? Options: Single approver, Multi-step approvals, Auto-approve below threshold, Other
• Do you require time SLAs for registration decisions (e.g., decision within 4 hours)? Options: Yes - specify SLA, No
• Should registrations create records in your CRM immediately, or after approval? Options: Immediately on submission, Only after approval, Configurable per program
• List any validation rules or automatic checks (e.g., account ownership, existing pipeline flags) that must run on submission.

Implement Deal Registration Conflict Detection

• Do you need automated conflict detection against CRM and existing registrations? Options: Yes - CRM and registrations, Yes - CRM only, No
• Which fields should be used to identify potential conflicts (e.g., account name, domain, opportunity ID, contact email)?
• What conflict resolution policy do you follow (e.g., first-come-first-served, SEP by channel, human review)? Options: First-come-first-served, Priority by partner tier, Sales owner overrides, Manual review required, Other
• Do you want automated notifications and escalation when conflicts are detected? Options: Yes - email, Yes - in-app, Yes - both, No
• Are there acceptable false-positive tolerances for conflict detection (i.e., how aggressive should matching be)? Options: High sensitivity (catch most), Balanced, Low sensitivity (avoid false positives)
• Describe any historical conflict scenarios we should model during configuration (e.g., channel conflict incidents).

Integrate CRM Bidirectional Sync

• Do you require bidirectional sync between the platform and your CRM? Options: Yes - full bidirectional, Yes - limited fields, Read-only from CRM, No
• Which CRM(s) are in scope for integration? Options: Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, HubSpot, Other
• Which objects and fields must be synchronized (e.g., accounts, contacts, opportunities, custom PRM fields)?
• What is the desired sync frequency and latency tolerance (e.g., real-time, near real-time, nightly batch)? Options: Real-time, Near real-time (minutes), Hourly, Daily batch
• Do you have existing middleware or ETL platforms (e.g., Mulesoft) that must be used? Options: Yes, No
• List any CRM triggers or automation that must be preserved or updated to avoid breaking workflows during sync.

Automate MDF Allocation and Reconciliation

• Do you currently run MDF programs that require tracking, approvals, and reconciliation? Options: Yes - active MDF programs, Planned, No
• How do you allocate MDF (e.g., by tier, by performance, by campaign)? Options: By tier, Performance-based, Application-based, Manual allocation, Other
• What approval and claim workflows are required for MDF spend and reimbursement? Options: Pre-approval required, Post-event claim, Both pre-approval and claim, No approval
• What reconciliation cadence and reporting are required (e.g., monthly fund reconciliation, disputed claims process)? Options: Monthly, Quarterly, Per-campaign, Other
• Are there accounting or finance integration requirements for MDF (e.g., export to ERP)? Options: Yes, No
• Describe common causes of MDF disputes today so we can build reconciliation rules to reduce them.

Setup Co-branded Content Library and Distribution

• Do you need a centralized content library for co-branded assets (e.g., one-pagers, decks, logos)? Options: Yes, No, Pilot only
• What content types and formats must be supported (e.g., PDFs, PPTX, video, templates)? Options: PDF, PPTX, Images, Video, HTML assets, Other
• Do you require dynamic co-branding (auto-insert partner logos/contact info) or manual download only? Options: Dynamic co-branding, Manual download with guidelines, Both
• Should access to content be restricted by partner tier, region, or certification status? Options: Yes - by tier, Yes - by region, Yes - by certification, No
• Do you need distribution tracking and analytics (e.g., which partners downloaded which assets)? Options: Yes, No
• Describe any approval or versioning requirements for content before it is published to partners.

Enable Partner Pipeline Sharing and Visibility

• Do partners need to share pipeline information with you and vice versa? Options: Yes - full pipeline, Yes - aggregated metrics only, No
• What level of visibility is required into partner pipeline (e.g., deal-level, stage-level, aggregated by period)? Options: Deal-level, Stage-level, Aggregated by period, Custom
• Are there confidentiality constraints preventing some deals from being shared? Options: Yes, No
• Should pipeline sharing be automatic via CRM sync or manual entry by partners? Options: Automatic via sync, Manual partner entry, Both options
• Do you need alerts for changes in partner pipeline (e.g., stage movement, large opportunity added)? Options: Yes - email, Yes - in-app, No
• What reporting cadence and exports do you need for partner pipeline (e.g., weekly CSV, dashboard)?

Activate Partner Performance Dashboards

• Which KPIs are required on partner dashboards (e.g., registered deals, MRR, win rate, MDF utilization)? Options: Registered deals, Pipeline value, Win rate, MDF utilization, Attribution by partner
• Do you need role-specific dashboards (e.g., partner view vs. internal program manager view)? Options: Yes - partner vs internal, Yes - multiple internal roles, No
• What historical window should dashboards surface (e.g., 30/90/365 days)? Options: 30 days, 90 days, 365 days, Custom
• Do you require scheduled reports or automated exports to stakeholders? Options: Yes - scheduled emails, Yes - API exports, No
• List any custom metrics or calculations (e.g., partner-influenced revenue) that must be implemented.
• Are there visualization preferences or BI tools to integrate with (e.g., Tableau, Looker)? Options: Tableau, Looker, PowerBI, Native dashboards only, Other

Configure Role-Based Permissions and Hierarchies

• Do you require role-based access control for internal users and partners? Options: Yes, No
• How many distinct roles and permission levels do you anticipate (e.g., partner admin, partner user, internal PM, finance)? Options: 1-3, 4-7, 8+
• Should permissions be inherited via organizational hierarchy (e.g., partner company → divisions → users)? Options: Yes, No
• Do you need role-specific UI or dashboard restrictions (e.g., hide finance data from partners)? Options: Yes, No
• Are there approval constraints tied to roles (e.g., only partner admins can submit MDF requests)? Options: Yes, No

• Master Services Agreement (MSA)
• Statement of Work (SOW)
• Order Form / Commercial Quote
• Pilot Success Criteria & Acceptance Plan
• Service Level Agreement (SLA) for Integrations & Support
• Data Processing Agreement (DPA) & Privacy Controls
• Integration & Migration Acceptance Criteria
• Governance & Joint Operating Model
• Go-Live Readiness & Signoff
• Training & Partner Enablement Commitment
• Security & Compliance Attestation
• Change Order / Scope Amendment Process
• Payment Schedule & Invoicing Terms
• Partner Portal Terms of Use & Partner Agreement

• Success Outcomes Review (Executive)
• Adoption & Partner Engagement Deep Dive
• Attribution & CRM Reconciliation Workshop
• Shared Backlog Grooming & Prioritization
• Continuous Improvement & Risk Review

• Create turnaround commitments for all open critical bugs and track daily until resolution.
• Identify and document all root causes for attribution mismatches in the sample set.
• Approve a prioritized remediation plan with owners, test cases, and a target accuracy SLA.
• Agree on post-fix validation process and monitoring to prevent recurrence.
• Implement agreed mapping and transform changes in a sandbox and run the approved validation dataset.
• Deliver a reconciliation report showing pre/post accuracy and circulate to stakeholders.
• Configure dashboard alerts for attribution drift and assign an owner for monitoring.
• Backlog Health Overview
• Agree on a prioritized backlog that balances critical fixes with high-impact enhancements.
• Assign owners and sprint targets for top-priority items with clear acceptance criteria.
• Confirm the stakeholder communication plan and incident SLA adherence going forward.
• Publish the prioritized backlog and sprint assignments to all stakeholders within 48 hours.
• Welcome & Objectives
• Document acceptance criteria for the top 5 enhancements and circulate to product and partner ops.
• Risk & Incident Register Update
• Validate governance model and confirm owners for ongoing SLA and risk monitoring.
• Approve a continuous improvement roadmap aligned to measurable success metrics.
• Ensure there is a clear escalation path for incidents that threaten attribution or adoption.
• Update the risk register with assigned mitigations and owners and share with governance stakeholders.
• Initiate automation pilots for the top two manual processes identified and report back with ROI estimates.
• Publish a quarterly metrics dashboard and schedule the next governance review meeting.
• Confirm which success signals have been achieved and document rationale.
• Decide whether to proceed to full rollout, continue pilot, or approve remediation work.
• Assign executive owners and timelines for any required remediation work or approvals.
• Produce a concise success report showing evidence for each success signal and distribute to stakeholders.
• If remediation required, assign executive sponsor, remediation owner, and target completion date.
• Schedule the decision follow-up meeting within two weeks to confirm progress or finalize rollout plan.
• Pre-work Review & Data Snapshot
• Identify the top 3 adoption blockers and the partner cohorts most affected.
• Agree a set of targeted enablement and comms actions with owners and measurement criteria.
• Define a 30/60/90 day adoption target trajectory and validation approach.
• Create and distribute a partner communications and enablement plan targeted at low-adoption cohorts.
• Assign product/UX owner to implement quick UX fixes and report back in two weeks with impact estimates.
• Schedule partner-facing office hours / training sessions and invite affected partners within one week.
• Pre-read Data Snapshot
• Review Critical Bugs & Escalations
• Walkthrough of Attribution Flow
• Cohort & Feature Usage Analysis
• Executive KPI Snapshot
• SLA & Performance Review
• Enhancement Prioritization (ROI/Risk)
• Success Signal Comparison
• Review Mismatch Cases & Root Cause Analysis
• Partner Feedback & Case Studies
• Improvement Opportunities & Automation
• Sprint Allocation & Owners
• Governance, Roles & Escalation Paths
• Enablement and Incentive Actions
• Fix Plan & Validation Tests
• Business Impact & Consequences
• Sign-off Criteria & Monitoring
• Pilot Adjustments & Measurement Plan
• Communication & SLA Commitments
• Roadmap Alignment & Metrics
• Decisions & Next Steps