The Strategic Alliance Handbook (SAH) gives practicing alliance executives all the tools they need to do their job, all in one place. A sales manager has a sales manual and an accountant has an accounting manual, even a car mechanic has a car manual. So why shouldn't an alliance manager have an alliance manual?

1. The Strategic Alliance
Handbook (SAH)
Mike Nevin
Managing Director Alliance Best
Practice Ltd

2. Strategic Alliance Handbook - Contents
“Its not an Alliance Handbook – it’s the Alliance Handbook!”
 Foreword
- Russ Buchanan President of the Association of
Strategic Alliance Professionals
 Preface: How it all began
- An introduction to the Alliance Best Practice
Framework including development history
 Part I Emerging Alliance Best Practice
- Alliance Success Factors
- Common challenges
 Part II Alliance Analysis
- Benchmarking alliance relationships
- Organisational alliance maturity
- Alliance optimisation
- Creating a new strategic alliance
 Part III Common Success Factors
- The commercial dimension
- The technical dimension
- The strategic dimension
- The cultural dimension
- The operational dimension
 Part IV Special Strategic Alliances
- Co-opetition: sleeping with the enemy
- Insource / outsource / smartsource
 Part V Developing Alliance Capability
- Partnering with SMEs
- Developing alliance programmes
- Alliance standards and schemes
- Collaboration: the future
Page  2

3. Background – Book Synopsis
“This is the only book on alliances you will ever need!”
Strategic alliances offer organisations an alternative to organic growth or acquisition
when faced with the need to develop the business to a new level, innovate in terms
of products or services or significantly reduce costs.
The Strategic Alliance Handbook is a clear and complete guide to the nuts and bolts
of the process behind successful collaborations. The book enables readers to
understand the commercial, technical, strategic, cultural and operational logic
behind any alliance and to establish an approach that is appropriate for the type of
alliance they are seeking and the partner organisation(s) with whom they are
working.
Whether you are an alliance executive, responsible for the systems, strategy and
performance of your organisation's alliancing programme or an alliance manager
needing to ensure the success of a given partnership, The Strategic Alliance
Handbook is an essential guide.
Page  3

4. About the Author
“Mike Nevin is one of the foremost alliance gurus around!”
Page  4
Mike Nevin is the founder and first chairman of ASAP Europe, The
Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals.
He now runs his own consultancy firm, Alliance Best Practice Ltd
(www.alliancebestpractice.com).
This is a research and benchmarking consultancy specialising in
collaborative business-to-business relationships (alliances and
partnerships).
The consultancy uses proven methodologies and tools (alliance best
practices) to help clients initiate and manage alliances.
It also maintains a database of over 200,000 observations of alliance
best practice in action.
The company has worked with over 300 alliance leading companies
including; IBM, Microsoft, SAP, Oracle, Capgemini, Accenture,
Logica, Tieto, BT, O2, Rolls Royce, GSK, AstraZeneca, DuPont and
BASF.

5. Initial Review Comments
“This book applies to High Tech and Pharmaceutical alike”
 ‘The methodology that the author describes in this book matches exactly the processes that
an experienced alliance manager would recognise as best practice. By identifying this with
his 52 common success factors, the author has described a template that can be used by
any alliance manager to build a successful alliance and to diagnose where there are
weaknesses in the relationship.’ - Jim Whitehurst, Alliance VP, SAP and former UK
President of Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals
 ‘At last, the one book which accelerates an Alliance program between companies using a
common methodology. Creates an aurora between Alliance partners where each has the
desire to work together delivering exceptional joint propositions. This book will be utilised by
Canon worldwide.’ Frank Steggall, Canon UK and Ireland
 ‘This book takes a comprehensive and critical view of alliance best practices and presents a
structured and practical system for both analysis and intervention. Importantly, it has been
thoroughly road-tested through Mike Nevin's vast experience of assisting companies to
improve their partnering capabilities. A key strength is its applicability across different
industry sectors. A must for any serious partnership professional!’ Peter Thurlby, Principal
Consultant, Phase7
Page  5

6. Ordering Options
 Amazon.co.uk
- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Strategic-Alliance-Handbook-Mike-
Nevin/dp/0566087790/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411730906&sr=8-
1&keywords=strategic+alliance+handbook
 Amazon.com
- http://www.amazon.com/Strategic-Alliance-Handbook-Business---
business/dp/0566087790/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1411731015&sr=8-
2&keywords=strategic+alliance+handbook
 eBook Format
- http://www.ashgate.com/default.aspx?page=4800
Page  6

7. Further Details
Imprint: Gower
Illustrations: Includes 19 b&w illustrations
Published: October 2014
Format: 244 x 172 mm
Extent: 384 pages
Binding: ebook PDF (Also available in ebook ePUB)
Other editions: Hardback
ISBN: 978-0-7546-8142-7
ISBN Short:9780754681427
BL Reference: 658'.046
LoC Control No:2014011281