7 Years Into Building a Partner Strategy: Check-in and Lessons Learned

SaaS Connect - SaaS Partnerships & SaaS Leaders

On this episode, George Kyriakis, Sr. Director Business Development and Partnerships at FreshBooks, talks about his experience in partnership-based business development over the last seven years, a time spent learning from both successes and failures.

George emphasizes the importance of securing buy-in from executives for partnership strategies. His lessons in this area stem from past experiences, particularly when he faced resistance from an executive who didn't support his efforts in a previous role.

George is a big believer in maintaining focus, and he gives an example of how he streamlined FreshBooks’ payment partner list to improve leverage and collaboration. He’s found that having too few or too many partners can be a problem, and maintaining two or three strategic partnerships is generally optimal.

At one point, FreshBooks capitalized on an acquisition by a partner, demonstrating the importance of being agile and prepared to take advantage of unexpected events.

Looking ahead, George considers complementary partnerships and combining efforts between partners for more substantial outcomes. He also weighs the opportunities and threats in the evolving landscape, including economic concerns and shifts in market demand.

Resources mentioned:

George Kyriakis⁠ -

https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgekyriakis/

FreshBooks⁠ | LinkedIn -

https://www.linkedin.com/company/freshbooks/

FreshBooks | Website -

https://www.freshbooks.com/

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