# PartnerImpact > PartnerImpact — B2B SaaS partnerships advisory. Field notes on partner program design, co-sell, tiering, attribution, and the operating model behind partnerships that compound. PartnerImpact is the advisory practice of Bart Dirksen, focused on partner program design, co-sell execution, tiering and scoring, partner attribution, and the operating model that makes B2B SaaS partnerships produce pipeline and revenue. Content is written for Heads of Partnerships, CROs, and founders building or fixing a partner program. ## Key pages - [Home](https://www.partnerimpact.net/) — B2B SaaS partnerships advisory by Bart Dirksen. - [Finding Traction in Partnerships (book)](https://www.partnerimpact.net/book) — The operating system for partnerships that compound. - [Read a free sample of the book](https://www.partnerimpact.net/book/sample) — Opening chapters of Finding Traction in Partnerships. - [Partner Program Maturity Assessment](https://www.partnerimpact.net/partner-maturity-assessment) — 15-minute diagnostic across 48 dimensions of a partner program. - [Insights index](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights) — Essays, build guides, and field notes. - [Contact](https://www.partnerimpact.net/#contact) — Request an intro or advisory conversation. - [Plain-text mode](https://www.partnerimpact.net/text/) — Static, JavaScript-free plain-text versions of every key page. - [Privacy policy](https://www.partnerimpact.net/privacy) ## Build guides - [Building partner attribution in HubSpot](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-attribution-in-hubspot) — HubSpot has no partner attribution module. Here is how to assemble one from deal properties, UTM tracking, workflows, and reporting, plus the multi-partner and rep-level models, and where the native setup gives out. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-08-15) ## Field notes - [The partner program ROI most teams never run](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-program-roi) — Partner teams report gross revenue and pipeline, but rarely put the cost of the function and the margin of the deals on the same slide. Run the number that makes the program believable. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-08-23) - [Work backwards from the number: a partner pipeline planner](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-pipeline-target) — Most partner targets are set forward from last year. Set them backwards from the number instead: the deals, opportunities, and partner-sourced pipeline a revenue goal actually requires. (Co-Sell & GTM, 2026-08-16) - [A partner program is a system, not a channel](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-program-is-a-system) — The whole partner function on one page: seven domains on an AI foundation, and why having every part does not mean the system works. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-08-11) - [Partner metrics, mapped to the whole journey](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-metrics-bowtie) — Most partner programs measure the partnership with one lagging number. This interactive map lays out the volume, conversion, and time metrics underneath it. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-07-19) - [Promote monthly, demote semi-annually](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/tier-promotion-demotion-cadence) — Promote monthly, demote every six months. That asymmetric cadence is deliberate behavioural design, and it is why tier models actually drive activity. (Tiering & Scoring, 2026-06-26) - [Points-based scoring that's still a revenue scoreboard](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/points-based-scoring-collapsed-weights) — Most points-based partner scores are revenue scoreboards in disguise. Weights collapse onto one axis and partner behaviour never actually changes. (Tiering & Scoring, 2026-06-26) - [A partner score without a recommendations layer is a report card](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-score-recommendations-layer) — A partner score without a recommendations layer is a report card. Turn the number into the two or three actions that move a partner up a tier. (Tiering & Scoring, 2026-06-26) - [Co-sell that actually closes](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/cosell-that-actually-closes) — Co-sell stalls when partnerships and sales run different playbooks. Fix the handoff spec, the compensation, and the weekly cadence. (Co-Sell & GTM, 2026-05-20) - [The partner portal went live. Nobody came.](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/program-before-proposition) — The partner portal goes live and nobody comes. Programs get built inside out. Design the partner value proposition before the internal machinery. (Program Design, 2026-04-28) - [Your partner org chart is not an operating model](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-org-chart-vs-operating-model) — Reorganising the partner team rarely fixes execution. The org chart moves, the operating model does not. Change the operating model instead. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-04-28) - [An ecosystem is shaped by who leaves](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-ecosystem-exit-criteria) — Every partner program tracks who joins. Almost none decide who should leave. Exit criteria are what keep an ecosystem from carrying dead weight. (Ecosystem Strategy, 2026-04-28) - [Your partner program is rewarding the wrong things](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-program-rewarding-wrong-things) — Tier thresholds and certifications made sense when partners sold and installed software. Buyers now buy outcomes and most programs have not caught up. (Program Design, 2026-04-24) - [Why multi-agent deals break partner attribution](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/multi-agent-attribution-governance) — Deals now route through multiple partners and AI agents at once, and sourced/influenced attribution breaks. The fix is governance, not another tool. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-04-24) - [The partner base is about to split in two](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/ai-agents-reshaping-partner-base) — AI is automating the routine middle of partner services. Sort your partner base into the tiers that will matter in 18 months, before the split forces you to. (Ecosystem Strategy, 2026-04-24) - [When a partnership stalls, suspect structure before people](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partnership-stalls-design-not-people) — When a partnership stalls, the first instinct is to blame the people. The cause is almost always structural. Here is how to tell the two apart. (Operating Model & Attribution, 2026-04-23) - [Most programs enable partners too early](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/partner-activation-sequence) — Programs lose partners in the gap between recruit and first deal. Sequence the heavy enablement after early momentum, not before it. (Co-Sell & GTM, 2026-04-23) - [A co-sell SPIFF is a bet on behavior, not a reward for revenue](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/co-sell-spiff-behavior-design) — Most co-sell SPIFFs are built like recognition programs and then miss the target. Design yours as a bet on one specific seller behavior instead. (Co-Sell & GTM, 2026-04-23) - [Why partner programs stall between year one and year three](https://www.partnerimpact.net/insights/why-partner-programs-stall) — Partner programs stall between year one and three not because of partners but because the operating model was never built. Here is what tends to be missing. (Program Design, 2026-04-15) ## Tools for AI agents (WebMCP) This site exposes structured tools to AI agents via WebMCP when the browser supports it: - `search_partner_insights` — search the insight library by topic or question. - `diagnose_partner_problem` — map a described partner problem to relevant insights and next steps. - `plan_partner_pipeline_target` — work a revenue goal back to partner-sourced pipeline, opportunities, and deals. - `get_book` — details and locale-aware retailer links for Finding Traction in Partnerships. - `get_book_sample` — the free sample chapters of the book. - `start_assessment` — open the Partner Program Maturity Assessment for the visitor to complete. - `complete_partner_maturity_assessment` — fill the 48-dimension assessment and return scores (assessment page; submission of personal data requires explicit opt-in). - `list_partner_metrics`, `get_partner_metric`, `search_partner_metrics`, `highlight_metric` — the partner metrics catalogue (partner-metrics-bowtie article). - `request_intro` — prefill (never auto-send) an introduction request to Bart Dirksen. ## Machine-readable - [Sitemap](https://www.partnerimpact.net/sitemap.xml) - [llms-full.txt](https://www.partnerimpact.net/llms-full.txt) — identity, the full maturity-model structure, and the full text of every insight. ## Usage Content may be quoted or summarised with attribution to PartnerImpact and a link to the source URL.