Course Overview

Public private partnerships can play a powerful role in helping governments and organizations achieve complex goals that no single sector can accomplish alone. When designed and managed well, partnerships can combine the strengths of government, business, and civil society to deliver greater impact, efficiency, and innovation.

This course provides participants with the knowledge and practical skills needed to initiate, develop, and manage public private partnerships across the full partnership life cycle. Using a structured and hands-on approach, participants learn how to scope partnership opportunities, identify and engage the right partners, formalize agreements, and manage partnerships through implementation and measurement. The course draws on real-world case examples and emphasizes practical application throughout.

Participants receive a comprehensive digital workbook with tools and templates designed for immediate use. These materials support ongoing partnership development and serve as reference resources beyond the course.

What You Will Learn

Participants gain a practical understanding of how public private partnerships function across their full life cycle, from early scoping through implementation and renewal or closeout. The course strengthens participants’ ability to identify partnership opportunities, assess potential partners, and design collaboration strategies that reflect both public and private sector motivations. Participants also build skills in developing partnership agreements, managing implementation, and measuring partnership value in ways that support learning and accountability.

Course Format

This course is delivered through four virtual, interactive, instructor-led sessions (or two days in-person). Participants work on developing a real or hypothetical partnership throughout the course and apply concepts and tools at each stage. Participants who complete the full course receive a certificate of completion.

Module Breakdown

Module 1: Foundations and Scoping

The first module introduces what defines a true public private partnership and why partnerships matter as a strategic tool. Participants explore the seven-phase partnership life cycle and examine how partnerships differ from contracts, grants, and procurement mechanisms. The module focuses on the scoping phase, including how to assess organizational goals, identify partnership opportunities, and determine whether a partnership represents the right approach. Through discussion and case examples, participants begin scoping their own partnership ideas and clarify shared objectives.

Module 2: Partner Identification and Engagement

The second module focuses on finding and engaging the right partners. Participants learn strategies for mapping potential partners across sectors and preparing compelling cases for collaboration that reflect partner interests and motivations. The module emphasizes cross-sector communication and perspective-taking. Participants also examine engagement processes, including vetting, due diligence, and risk assessment, and practice developing partnership purpose statements and outreach strategies.

Module 3: Formation and Agreement Development

The third module addresses how to formalize partnerships through joint planning, governance structures, and partnership agreements. Participants explore the essential elements of memoranda of understanding, including roles, responsibilities, resource commitments, decision-making processes, and accountability mechanisms. Using real-world examples, participants learn how to treat agreements as living documents that can evolve over time. Hands-on exercises support drafting key components of partnership agreements aligned with organizational goals.

Module 4: Implementation and Measuring Success

The final module focuses on implementation and ongoing partnership management. Participants learn how to move from planning to action, develop implementation plans with clear milestones, and establish monitoring and evaluation approaches. The module introduces strategies for measuring partnership success across external impact, internal value, and relative costs and benefits. Participants also explore approaches for managing relationships, building trust, and supporting continuous learning. The course concludes with participants refining their partnership plans and sharing insights with peers.

Who Should Attend

This course is appropriate for:

• Government officials and program managers involved in partnership development or oversight
• Professionals responsible for initiating or managing cross-sector collaborations
• Staff from nonprofits, foundations, or private sector organizations engaged in public sector partnerships
• Teams seeking practical tools and frameworks to strengthen partnership design and implementation

Prerequisites

No prior experience with public private partnerships is required to participate in this course.