2007 has been a watershed year for Global Partners. We have now celebrated more than 15 years of working with global organizations to help them achieve their most important growth objectives - on a global scale. Over these years we have developed highly innovative programs in Strategic Selling, Global Account Management, Project Management and Leadership. We estimate that we have assessed, trained, coached and supported more than 5,000 people in 25 countries as they learn and apply leading- edge techniques to develop their professional skills and improve their performance.

2007 was also a year of change and growth for Global Partners. During 2007 we launched our High Value Selling Skills (HVSS) system which has now been successfully piloted with one of the largest household appliance and electronic retailers in Europe. In order to support our HVSS system as well as our clients in Europe, we have established a joint venture company with our long-term partner ASI, based in Utrecht (the Netherlands). And we are delighted to announce the appointment of Mr. Sebastiaan Parqui as Managing Director for ASI Global Partners. Further details about Sebastiaan are included in this edition of Global Perspectives.

We have continued the development of our Global Partners Network, adding significant expertise in strategic marketing with Jay Gronlund and the Pathfinder Group. Jay brings a wealth of experience and know-how in the area of consumer marketing as well as leading-edge concepts, such as Word of Mouth (WOM) marketing, which he describes in his article in this edition of Global Perspectives.

We have also significantly enhanced our capabilities in the area of Hi-Technology marketing with the addition of Ian Thomas and his company Pedagogia. Ian's knowledge and experience in strategic marketing and sales for companies in semiconductors, mobile phones and medical equipment compliments and enriches our own experience in those areas.

2008 will be another year of growth for Global Partners. Our plans include the launch of the Global Partners e-Network, an interactive website intended to provide on-line coaching, training and information for the thousands of individuals who have participated in our many programs over the years. We will continue to expand our global network, particularly in greater China, as our clients continue their global expansion.

In this, our final Newsletter of 2007 we offer several value-adding items. In addition to Jay Gronlund's thoughtful piece on Word of Mouth Marketing, we provide a unique perspective on the changing relationship between Key Account Managers and Key Supplier Managers. This article, The Changing Ways of Purchasing and How Sams Can Benefit was recently published in Velocity, the magazine of the Strategic Account Management Association.

We also provide two tools that can be used to assess a change management or business improvement initiative. The first, entitled 15 Best Practices for Evaluating Your Sales and Account Management Process can be used to assess an existing or recently implemented process. The other, entitled Guaranteed 1st Time Success is a template that can be used to plan and 'guarantee' the success of an initiative - prospectively.

We also provide two tools that can be used to assess a change management or business improvement initiative. The first, entitled 15 Best Practices for Evaluating Your Sales and Account Management Process can be used to assess an existing or recently implemented process. The other, entitled Guaranteed 1st Time Success is a template that can be used to plan and 'guarantee' the success of an initiative - prospectively.

All the best,
Paul Hesselschwerdt
President
Global Partners Inc.