159 - Meet Your Partnerships Mentor - Nelson Wang on First Principles
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Nelson Wang, the Global Head of Partnerships at Airtable, talks about the importance of transitioning from tactics to principles in building successful partner programs. Nelson shares his experience in building partner programs and emphasizes the value of customer interviews and first principles. He also addresses the challenge of long-term thinking in a short-term job market and the importance of assessing customer needs and building trust.
Takeaways
- Transitioning from tactics to principles is crucial in building successful partner programs.
- Customer interviews and understanding their pain points are essential for building customer-centric partner programs.
- Sharing lessons and experiences can help others be more successful and make their lives easier.
- Balancing short-term wins with long-term trust is important in building sustainable partner programs.
- Assessing customer needs and building trust are key components of successful partnerships. Being customer-obsessed is crucial for long-term success in partnerships.
- Helping customers reach their desired outcomes is the key to creating value.
- Saying no and prioritizing key initiatives is essential for success.
- Quality is more important than quantity in partnerships.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Teaser of the Book
01:10 Using Airtable for Workbook Creation
03:06 Transitioning from Tactics to Principles
05:39 The Importance of Customer Interviews
07:17 The Value of First Principles
08:56 Nelson Wang's Motivation to Share Lessons
10:38 Balancing Short-Term Wins and Long-Term Trust
19:17 The Challenge of Long-Term Thinking in a Short-Term Job Market
20:49 Assessing Customer Needs and Building Trust
25:31 Customer Obsession and Long-Term Success
26:27 Setting Up a Partner Program for Long-Term Success
27:04 The Importance of Being Customer-Obsessed
28:01 Helping Customers Reach Their Promised Land
28:29 Making Hard Asks in Pursuit of Customer Outcomes
29:54 Outside-In Approach and Focusing on Customer Outcomes
30:15 Being Bold in Pursuit of Customer Outcomes
31:32 The Importance of Saying No and Prioritizing
32:36 Knowing Your Customers and Partners
33:31 Focusing on Key Priorities at Different Company Stages
34:31 Quality Over Quantity in Partnerships
36:46 Avoiding Shiny Object Syndrome
37:12 The Importance of Making Good Decisions
38:11 The Power of Compound Interest in Partnerships
41:23 Getting Buy-In from Leadership
42:20 Presenting Strategy to CXOs and Boards
44:17 Sharing Strategy and Getting Feedback
46:49 The Importance of Quality in Partnerships
169 episodes