This section is dedicated to celebrating Partnering, and sharing new innovations with our fellow members of the construction industry.

Simply put, Partnering is just people working together – a voluntary system of handling normal, everyday jobsite construction problems in a mutually agreeable manner before they turn into major issues that create lawsuits. There is no mystery about partnering; it is simply an attitude change. All stakeholders resolve that issues be settled by peacefully employing a positive and cooperative approach.

The Corps endorsed partnering as far back as 1990, saying "Clearly, the best dispute resolution is dispute prevention...By taking the time at the start of the project to identify common goals, common interests, lines of communication, and a commitment to cooperative problem solving, we encourage the will to resolve disputes and achieve project goals."

The AGC has a long history of supporting ways of resolving disputes in an alternative manner, such as mediation and arbitration – anything to stop or slow the trend toward more formal lawsuits. As early as 1926, AGC endorsed the principle of arbitration, and continues to this day to promote ADR and dispute avoidance.

It is important to note that partnering is a voluntary system. Occasionally a contractor or contracting officer will ask why we don't make partnering a requirement. This is against the entire spirit of partnering – if it is not a voluntary agreement by all parties, it is just another contract provision. We aren't trying to downplay the importance of the Contract through Partnering; we are just trying to ensure that all players with valuable experience to share are allowed to play. And one of the contract provisions that is enforced by all courts is the concept of "good faith and fair dealing" – basically the courts requirement that the parties "play well together".

Partnering attempts to establish a working relationship among all team members based on cooperation and teamwork and achievement of mutual goals and objectives. Partnering is a concept that every contract has an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and through the exercise of that agreement, the stakeholders strive to create a synergy of purpose to solve problems for the good of the project.

Read more about partnering case studies.

The Partnering Best Practices Section was created as a joint effort of the Associated General Contractors and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Their mutual goal is to foster the spirit of Partnering in all construction projects and relationships. They believe that this spirit should extend beyond just a single project. The final goal of this joint effort is to create long term relationships that engender trust and cooperation in all stakeholders as they strive together to create a useful infrastructure that supports the needs and desires of the United States public.

For more information, send email to Marco Giamberardino at .