How to use the Confederation Relationships

  1. Compile a list of issues/topics we are currently following and interested in from the partner organization– consult with your AOR team members on issues. This list will change as issues and interests change. Don’t scare them off with a list of 20 issues. Designate the broader issues and then pinpoint several specific ones to begin with. I can work with you on these.
  1. After initial email exchanges to get acquainted following the signing of the agreements, lay out how you propose to work with your POC. Explain the following:
  2. The purpose of this arrangement is to make both our products better for our respective audiences.
  3. STRATFOR wants to deepen its knowledge and understanding of the country they’re in and having a collaborative relationship will help both us and them.
  4. We offer them some exclusive interviews in that country and will support them with background information and our analysis of topics they’re covering. They can reprint one paid piece of ours per week (average).
  5. Send your POC the list of topics and issues that you and your team have compiled for that country/region and send it to them so they can identify pieces of information as they come across them that would be useful to you.
  6. You would like them to do the same – make sure they know what is available on our website and then ask them what issues they are interested in. Knowing what they’re following or writing about means you can give them a heads up on anything we’re doing that falls under those topics. You can then send them, personally, an article to read and republish.They can republish one article of our paid content per week but make sure they reference They should also use the following “Copyright of Stratfor.com; reprinted with permission.” That means they need to ask before they reprint or at least let you know they’re doing it.
  7. You can also offer our STRATFOR experts for them to interview. Remember most of these orgs are traditional journalists so they write stories and need interviews. Giving them an exclusive interview in that country can be a big deal for them. Exclusive would mean either:
  8. You give it to them and them only in that country
  9. You give them a time lead on the interview (maybe a few hours or a day depending on the time criticality of the issue/event)
  10. Make sure to go through our PR machine on this – Kyle can handle setting it up etc but you need to be watching for these opportunities and suggest to them we have a great expert on XYZ.
  1. It’s important to get a regular flow of information coming and going between you and your POC. There may be other journalists in that org that you deal with just as your POC may talk to other of our analysts, but it’s still YOUR relationship to handle. A regular flow in a country where not much is happening could include a weekly summary or report on a topic of interest to us. In a country where a lot is going on, the ability to task them with questions and have them respond is key.
  1. This is an important part of your work as intelligence/field analysts and collectors. BUT we need to keep tabs on the time and effort you’re putting into this program. Therefore, if you are asked by our partners to produce something out of the ordinary or out of this range I’ve described above you MUST tell me so Peter, Stick and I can decide if you have the time to fulfill that request or not. We may scale down the request or task it to others to fulfill. Your time is valuable and you have many requests coming at you so it is our job as your managers to help you manage the time you are allocating to these partnerships.