Starplotting S.01 Ep. 01: That $10M Partner Pipeline That Was Never Real

Your partner pipeline looks huge. But how much of it is real? Shawn James, founder and COO of AlignBiz, explains how partner pipelines get inflated and how to catch it. Starplotting Ep. 01: That $10M Partner Pipeline That Was Never Real In this episode, Shawn breaks down where partner revenue actually comes from: relationships open the door, enablement makes it repeatable, and customer success makes it grow. He shares the blunt filters he uses to spot fake pipeline, like deals with no movement in 90 days, the same deal registered by two partners, or a customer who doesn't even know your name. Plus a real story of one customer, three partners, and one deal that got counted three times. You'll also hear how to build a simple qualification routine for optimistic partner forecasts, why Shawn weights every deal by proof, and the trends he's excited about, from cloud marketplaces to data-driven co-selling. His rule of thumb: if the customer can't tell you why they're buying, it isn't pipeline. It's a rumor with a dollar sign. About Starplotting Most partner programs are situationships. In Starplotting, team Starplot sits down with partner leaders around the world to talk through what goes wrong and how to finally define the relationship. #Starplotting #Partnerships #PartnerPipeline #B2BSaaS #GoToMarket