Record minutes of meetings and other important information and share them from the beginning. This begins to build trust and shared understanding, while preventing or correcting misunderstandings, that will be necessary groundwork for the legal working agreements to follow. Working agreements between partners must be clear, well thought out, provide a mechanism for orderly review and withdrawal from the agreement, and put in writing. Letters of agreement, memos of understanding, and contracts are all considered legal documents. Recognize that each party brings different, and often not equal in value, resources to the table.
Some groups bring in-kind contributions of time, staff, equipment, etc.
Treating those who bring one kind of resource differently than those who bring another will erode trust. All are valuable and necessary to make the project work. Each party brings different needs from their organization. These must be respected and considered as negotiation occurs. A successful partnership will be one that gains energy from the contribution of each of the partners.