In this episode of the Collaborative Business Podcast, recorded in 2014, I am in conversation with Francine Allaire, someone who brings both depth and pragmatism to the topic of collaboration. This is one of those conversations where experience speaks louder than theory. Francine has spent most of her career in sales, partner development, and ecosystem building, primarily in the IT and consulting industry, including senior roles at Oracle, as well as CSC, Sun Microsystems, and KPMG.

What makes this episode particularly valuable is the way Francine connects collaboration to real business outcomes. She does not present collaboration as a soft concept or a fashionable slogan, but as a core business capability. In a world where organisations are constantly asked to do more with fewer resources, she makes a compelling case that no company, regardless of size, can afford to go it alone. Collaboration, in her view, is no longer optional. It is becoming the dominant business model for sustainable performance and growth.

A central part of our discussion revolves around the six critical success factors Francine uses to assess and build partnerships. These factors may sound familiar at first glance, but her strength lies in how she groups and explains them in a way that makes them immediately applicable. She speaks about chemistry and compatibility, about complementarity rather than overlap, about shared vision and expectations, and about trust and communication as non negotiable foundations. What stands out is her insistence that whenever these factors are compromised, partnerships almost inevitably underperform.

We also explore the organisational reality behind alliances. Francine is refreshingly honest about the fact that many companies like the results of collaboration more than they like the effort required to make it work. She talks openly about culture, incentives, and compensation, and how these often undermine collaborative behaviour despite good intentions. This leads to a thoughtful reflection on the role of alliance and partner professionals, who must act not only as business developers, but also as diplomats, mediators, and ambassadors inside their own organisations.

Towards the end of the conversation, Francine shares a powerful personal example from her career that illustrates how collaboration can dramatically change outcomes under extreme pressure. Her key message is simple but profound. Think relationship first, business second. Companies do not partner with companies. People partner with people.

This episode offers practical insight, grounded experience, and a clear reminder that strong relationships remain at the heart of successful alliances.

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