Agree how the partnership will work before presenting a single confident offer to the client. A friendly introduction is not a delivery arrangement.
Separate a referral from co-delivery
In a referral, the second provider may contract directly for a separate assignment. In co-delivery, both teams contribute to the same client promise. The responsibilities, information flow and commercial terms need to match that arrangement.
Do not describe the partner as your employee or use their client examples as your own. Explain the relationship accurately.
A completed fictional responsibility card
Two firms propose a reporting-process project: a management consultant and a data specialist.
| Responsibility | Agreed owner |
|---|---|
| Main client contact | Management consultant |
| Process interviews and recommendation | Management consultant |
| Data feasibility review | Data specialist |
| Combined proposal and schedule | Both review; main contact issues agreed version |
| Client questions on technical findings | Specialist answers with main contact included |
| Final output review | Both firms check their contribution |
| Invoicing and payment | Agreed separately in written commercial terms |
The last row should contain the actual arrangement before pitching. “We’ll work it out later” is not a plan.
Discuss the difficult boundaries
What happens if the specialist finds that the proposed technical work is infeasible? Who tells the client? Can either firm add work or change the schedule? Who owns a request that touches both scopes?
Agree how client information may be shared, where work will be stored and what happens when the project ends. For formal terms, confidentiality, liability or intellectual property, obtain appropriate professional advice rather than copying a generic clause from an article.
Client kickoff guidance from Asana highlights roles and communication. A joint project needs those decisions between providers before asking the client to rely on them.
Price the interface work
Include time for coordination, combined review and client communication. Two separately efficient workstreams can still need meaningful integration.
Use a clear fee basis and decide how changes are approved. Do not promise the client a single fixed price while each partner assumes the other will absorb extra work.
Present one coherent client choice
The proposal should explain who does what, what the combined output is and which conditions matter. The client should know whom to contact without becoming the coordinator of two firms.
After the project, review the actual collaboration before repeating it. Keep the parts that worked and fix the handoff that caused rework.
A good co-delivery arrangement expands what you can credibly offer. It should not depend on hiding the seams between the teams.