An Overview of Project Partnering

Partnering is a voluntary, organized process by which two or more organizations having shared interests perform as a team to achieve mutually beneficial goals... 

Partnering has been defined in a number of ways.  The booklet, "Partnering: Changing Attitudes in Construction," published by the Associated General Contractors of America says:  "Everyone involved in the construction project agrees to treat everyone else as a partner.  It's all based on the premise that working together creates success.  And the benchmarks of success are determined at the beginning...  Partnering creates a team approach to the effective and efficient management of a construction project."

The American Arbitration Association in its publication, "Building Success for the 21st Century: A Guide to Partnering in the Construction Industry," states:  "Partnering is a voluntary, organized process by which two or more organizations having shared interest perform as a team to achieve mutually beneficial goals...  Partnering is also a collaborative process that focuses on...[the] good faith joint resolution of problems."

The Construction Industry Institute, a leader in the research and implementation of construction industry Best Practices, defines Partnering in its "Partnering Tool Kit:" "Partnering is a proactive management process that integrates and optimizes the value-added services of each party to best achieve the business objectives of all parties within the relationship...  Partnering utilizes the concepts of teamwork, trust, and honesty in order to promote the common goals of the partnering relationship and to develop a win/win mentality and atmosphere for all parties involved."

History of Partnering

Partnering, as a formal process, began in the early 1980's when the Army Corps of Engineers adopted it as a means of alternative dispute resolution. The Corps' philosophy was that the best dispute resolution is dispute prevention.  Not only was Partnering successful as an alternative dispute resolution strategy, but the Corps found that Partnering also improved project control and safety.

In 1991 the Associated General Contractors of America endorsed the Corps' concept of Partnering and began to publish literature and promoting the Partnering process.  Also in 1991, the Arizona Department of Transportation became the first state agency to adopt Partnering as a strategy for managing construction projects statewide.  The Texas Department of transportation followed Arizona's lead and initiated Partnering on 5 pilot projects.  Based on the success of these pilot projects, the Department expanded the use of Partnering statewide in 1993.

Since then, the use of the Partnering process has been expanded to include all phases of design and construction.  Partnering has proved so successful in the construction industry that the process has been adopted in a wide variety of manufacturing and service industries.