Ten steps from signed to selling.
You own the partner program. Here is the kit and the course to turn it into a channel that brings revenue: who to recruit, what to pay them, how to onboard them, and how to track every deal.
Written by Roy Lapin, a partnerships leader who has run every kind of partner and builds the AI agents that run them.
How to build a partner program, in order
Each step rests on the one below it. Recruiting is step 5, not step 1. Scroll to climb.
-
Step 01
What the company needs
Start from the company's goals. The partner program runs alongside where the company is heading, as part of sales and growth.
HubSpotSalesforceClaudeCourse module 1 -
Step 02
Partner type and profile
Start from your customers' biggest pain, then find who already sits next to it. Write down who is not a fit, too.
ClaySales NavigatorApolloKit 01 · Course module 2 -
Step 03
Tiers and commission
One sentence every partner can repeat: what they earn, for how long, and when it's paid.
PartnerStackToltKifloKit 02 · Course module 3 -
Step 04
PRM, one source of truth Key step
A PRM, partner relationship management, is to partners what a CRM is to customers: one place for every partner, their stage, their deals, their training and what you owe them.
Build it before you recruit, on the CRM you already have. It is what lets every partner get credit, get paid on time and get the right next step. Skip it, and the program runs on memory and spreadsheets.
HubSpotmonday CRMSalesforcePartnerStackImpartnerKit 04 and 06 · Course module 4 -
Step 05
Recruit
Your customers' agencies and consultants first. They have already seen your product working.
ClayLemlistObertDripifyInstantlyharmony.aiKit 05 · Course module 5 -
Step 06
Onboard
A welcome from a named person, a dated path, and one ask on day one: name 2 or 3 companies that fit.
HubSpotToltLoomSkilljarNotionKit 03 · Course module 6 -
Step 07
Activate
In most programs only 10 to 20% of signed partners ever bring business. This is the step that moves that number.
Slack ConnectCrossbeamHyperboundKit 03 and 06 · Course module 7 -
Step 08
Engage and manage
Every partner has a stage, and every stage has a next step. Review it every Monday.
HubSpotmonday CRMClaudeKit 06 · Course module 8 -
Step 09
Partner service
One front door for every partner request. Every ticket tells you what to fix.
Zendeskmonday CRMClaudeCourse module 9 -
Step 10
Optimize
Every pillar is a bucket. Find the leaks, then automate and streamline.
ClaudeHubSpotSalesforceCourse module 10
Where are you on the staircase? 12 questions, 3 minutes, free.
Take the free scorecardYou own partnerships. Here's what usually gets in the way.
Six templates, ready to use on Monday
Fill in your own numbers, switch them on, and run the program. Hover a file to see what's inside.
Partner ICP template
Decide who to recruit before you write one email.
What's inside- Partner tiers A, B and C, ranked by fit
- A "not a fit" list
- A 1 to 10 scoring rubric: 7 and up gets a call within 48 hours
- Signals to watch, and recruiting through your customers
Tiers and commission
The offer partners actually see.
What's inside- Recommended defaults: 10 to 25%, first 12 months, 90-day attribution
- The one-line commission sentence
- Rules of engagement on one page
- A claim process for deals the tracking missed
Onboarding and nurture emails
Load them into your email tool and switch them on.
What's inside- 19 emails over the first year
- Branches on "has a paying customer"
- Every email gives something new and has one ask
- Templates ready to paste
Tracking setup
Every partner gets credit and gets paid on time.
What's inside- The settings to change in your affiliate tool
- A setup checklist: test purchase, second payment, refund
- Attribution rules to publish
- A 10-minute Monday data check
Partner outbound playbook
Recruit your first 20 partners.
What's inside- Where the list comes from, in order
- A 3-step LinkedIn and a 3-step email sequence
- What to do with every kind of reply
- Rules: real people, every message approved
Partner OS dashboard
The one dashboard that runs the program.
What's inside- 5 pillars, each with its KPIs
- The 9-stage lifecycle with stuck signals
- The 45-minute Monday partner review
- Plays: wake the zombies, grow the producers
All six files, $49. Instant download, yours to keep.
Get the kitNot sure yet? Take the free scorecardSigned to Selling
8 weeks, 12 modules, one live group call a week. Short lessons on your own time, then a live call to work on your own program.
Strategy
Weeks 1 to 2- 01Start from the business, not from the partners
- 02Pick your partner type and your ideal partner profile
- 03Program design: the deal you offer partners
You leave with a Partner Program Brief, an IPP canvas, a tier and commission model.
Infrastructure
Weeks 3 to 4- 04Build the machine before you recruit
You leave with a PRM field map and a stack checklist.
The five pillars
Weeks 4 to 7- 05Recruit
- 06Onboard
- 07Activate
- 08Engage and manage at scale
- 09Partner service
You leave with outreach templates, the AI calling agent, a 30-day onboarding plan, a business plan template, a lifecycle map, a request form.
Grow
Weeks 7 to 8- 10Optimize
- 11High-touch partner management
- 12Scale: the team and AI
- +Your 90-day plan, presented live for feedback
You leave with a KPI sheet, a weekly partner agenda, a hiring plan, and your 90-day plan.
The next cohort starts on Monday 4 January 2027. A small group, taught live, by application.
Built by someone who has done it at scale
Years building and scaling the partner ecosystem of a global, publicly traded software company: from a few thousand partners to well over ten thousand, across every partner type, with a team I hired and led.
I build the machine myself: the partner database, the support desk, the automations, and the AI agents that run them.
Today I design partner programs for software companies, from early-stage startups to established players. This kit and this course are that method, written down.
- Real numbers onlyIf I didn't do it, I don't teach it.
- One thing you can use tomorrowIn every template and every lesson.
- Show up every weekConsistency builds trust, with partners and with the people you teach.
- Explore first, buy when you're readyTake the free scorecard, read the 10 steps, see how it works. Buy only when you want to go deeper.
Explore first. Buy only when you're ready.
Partner Program Scorecard
12 questions, 3 minutes. Your score out of 36, your level, and the 3 weakest areas with one fix each.
Take the scorecardThe AI agent that calls every partner applicant
The full prompt and the 6-step call flow. Paste it into any voice agent platform and every new applicant gets a call within minutes.
Start with the kit. Go deeper with the course.
Partner Program Kit
- All 6 templates
- Every number you need to add is marked
- The order to use them in
Kit + teardown
- All 6 templates
- A 45-minute teardown of your program, with Roy
- Your 90-day plan in writing
Live with Roy LapinPartner program teardown
- Bring your program as it is
- We find the step that's stuck
- Your 90-day plan in writing after the call
Signed to Selling
- 12 modules over 8 weeks
- A live group call every week
- Your 90-day plan, reviewed live
Bought the wrong thing, or a file won't open? We'll make it right. Refund policy
FAQ
Who is this for?
Anyone who wants to build a partner program, from a one-person company or a startup to enterprises and large organizations. It fits best if you own partnerships, or you're about to: the first partnerships hire, a founder or VP Sales running partners themselves, or a leader scaling a program that already works.
Which partner types does it cover?
All of them: referral partners, resellers, agencies, consultants and system integrators, affiliates and more. It starts with your ICP, your ideal customer profile. From there you reverse engineer your IPPs, your ideal partner profiles: the people your ideal customers already trust, who already have a foot in the door.
Do I need special software?
No. Build on the CRM you already have. The tracking template covers referral links, codes and payouts with a simple affiliate tool.
How do I get the kit?
Right after payment you get an email with your receipt and the download link, and you land on a page that tells you where to start.
When does the course start?
The next cohort starts on Monday 4 January 2027. It's a small group, taught live, so places go by application: send your details and we'll reply by email.
Won't this be out of date by the time I finish? Everything changes so fast.
The tools will change. The people won't. AI can write your emails and score your applicants, but a partner still commits to someone they trust, and a CEO still puts a team behind your product because of a relationship. How that trust is built, and the psychology of getting a business to invest in someone else's product, is the part of partnerships that doesn't move. It's also the part you can't copy from a template, and it's the heart of this course. The templates and tools are the easy half. You get both, and we use AI for everything it does well.
Can I get a refund?
The kit is a download, so kit sales are final once you've downloaded it. If a file won't open or you bought by mistake, email us within 14 days and we'll fix it or refund you. Calls can be cancelled for a full refund up to 24 hours before. Details in the refund policy.
Is the teardown for me?
If you want an outside eye on your program before you buy anything else, yes. 45 minutes live with Roy for $150, and your 90-day plan in writing after the call. With the kit it is $179.
Apply for the January cohort
The next cohort starts on Monday 4 January 2027. It's a small group, taught live, so every application is reviewed. Send your details and we'll reply by email.