Management
Issue No. 33 - February/March 2007
How to make partnerships produce
Partnership broker Ian Dixon knows how to put two and two together to make — well, considerably more.
As Chief Executive of several state government agencies during the 1990s Ian formed the view that government, business and community sectors had to work together more effectively to achieve better outcomes for the state.
“Two major initiatives that I was involved in during that time have become the catalyst for developing our partnership practice today - the stage 2 expansion at Olympic Dam and the amalgamation of local councils in the mid-1990s,” Ian says.
“In 1999 I started my business with the aim of bridging the gap between the sectors and helping to deliver ‘real partnerships’ that deliver results. This has now developed to our unique role as ‘partnership brokers’ where we work within and between the various sectors to help them come together and partner effectively.
“As the Independent Chair, Process Managers and Negotiation Facilitators for the Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) Statewide Negotiations in SA we helped establish and now provide ongoing support to one of the largest and most complex multi-party negotiations this state has ever seen.
“We work with the negotiating parties, including the mining, pastoral and fishing industries, the State Government, local government and the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, who represent some 23 native title claim groups from around the state.”
Ian believes there is a lot of scope for businesses to benefit from working in strong partnerships, whether to grow export markets, to develop new products or to grow into new areas. Some companies might see these benefits and opportunities but were unsure about how to go about partnering with others for fear that they would lose their competitive advantage or their IP,
“Certainly partnerships can offer a lot of advantages to a State such as ours where some 80% of the business sector is c...
