Same destination, different maps: Creating alignment in institutional–vendor partnerships

Institutions increasingly rely on external partners for everything from extra capacity to complex, high-stakes work. These relationships often begin with shared goals and strong intentions — but they succeed (or stall) based on alignment, not effort alone.

Like any journey, partnerships require agreement not only on the destination, but on the map used to navigate along the way. In institutional work, the "map" shows up as scopes, timelines, contracts and success metrics. The "landscape" is the environment the work moves through: organizational constraints, decision dynamics, capacity limits, compliance realities and shifting priorities. Friction often arises not because anyone is doing something wrong, but because each side is navigating with a different mental model of that landscape.

This panel brings together higher ed and vendor perspectives, guided by a moderator, to compare how each side defines success, anticipates constraints and resets alignment when conditions change. Using four alignment areas and concrete "question sets" attendees can reuse in RFP development, onboarding and ongoing engagements, we'll surface common misalignments, practical repair moves and lightweight habits that make partnerships more resilient over time.