The Partnership Brokers Association (PBA) is proud to announce the first issue of a Journal dedicated to all that is involved in the art and science of professional partnership brokering. Entitled Betwixt & Between – The Journal of Partnership Brokering, this provides a public platform for thought leadership, critical analysis and insights into breakthrough practice from across cultures, sectors and geographies. PBA is the only organisation in the world with a total focus on partnership brokering as a central element in building inclusive and sustainable development partnerships. PBA has three elements: Learning (enquiry and action research), Training (professional skills development) and Transforming (advocacy, system challenge and change). The Journal falls under the remit of the PBA’s Learning Community of Practice and is a mechanism for sharing evidence and insights from within and beyond the organisation’s growing alumni of partnership brokers. It is a public platform that brings together thought leadership, original thinking, insights and breakthrough practice in partnership brokering from across cultures, sectors and geographies. The Journal’s content is sourced primarily from those operating as partnership brokers – mainly but not solely graduates from PBA’s own international training programme. Contributions are also welcome from individuals working in any sector and location, who have instigated or provided resources for partnerships. Are you someone... Read the article
Abstract: In 2012, the Millennium Water Alliance (MWA) commissioned Improve International to conduct an independent evaluation of MWA’s programme effectiveness and provide quantifiable evidence and examples of the value-added (if any) of working in coalition to implement water, sanitation and hygiene programmes in the developing world. The Collective Impact Report (Improve International, 2012) found one of the key added values of working in coalition was the clear improvement in all areas when the MWA began to be professionally managed by a partnership brokering unit. Another key added value... Read the article
Adding Value: The broker role in partnerships for employment and social inclusion in Europe Abstract: In Europe, the “partnership principle” is promoted as a policy instrument for improving employment and social inclusion and supported by Structural Funds such as the European Social Fund (ESF). Within this context partnership broker organisations play a vital role. However, while much is known about knowledge transfer about different partnership approaches and activities, far less is known... Read the article
Abstract: This article is based on the findings of a research study and report on the role of 15 intermediary mechanisms- ‘platforms’[1]- and how they promote and foster private sector collaboration for disasters and humanitarian action[2]. The research was conducted by the Humanitarian Futures Programme, King’s College London, with support provided by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited. Through in-depth interviews as well as desk-based research, the study sought to understand the origins, role, and the various... Read the article
Exploring brokering skills across the introvert-extrovert continuum Introduction This article raises the question of whether it matters if a partnership broker is introverted or extroverted[1], [2]. A recent public discussion about Susan Cain’s book ‘Quiet: The power of introverts in a world that can’t stop talking’ has highlighted the importance of recognising one’s temperament in any professional field. I am applying this notion to the field of partnership brokers - is it indeed true that there is an expectation nowadays that brokers should... Read the article
Choosing our words with care – a consideration of precise speaking as a critical tool in a partnership broker’s toolbox. In considering this topic, I am influenced by two contrasting views of words: The quote by TS Eliot (below) captures the essential ‘slipperiness’ of language. He uses words themselves to convey something of their own elusiveness so that as we read we find ourselves in uncertain territory with ideas being named and almost immediately, amoeba-like, changing their nature and eluding our understanding. Rene Magritte[1] uses an image of a word to convey the exact... Read the article
Fostering harmonious oil company and ethnic host community co-existence through a local content partnership in the Niger Delta. Abstract: Social and civic conflict in the Niger Delta around the distribution of oil and gas revenues and the call for more involvement of the local population in development decisions and environmental degradation creates opportunities for local content partnerships. As an independent broker, Sampson Abiala describes his experience of brokering a local content partnership between a construction company upgrading facilities for Total EPNG - Nigeria National Petroleum... Read the article
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Betwixt and Between is a journal published by the Partnership Brokering Association (PBA) to share ideas, developments and actions in cross-sector partnership
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