Reviewing inactive partnerships before renewal

Before renewing an inactive partnership, find out what stopped, whether the original customer need remains and what a further term would require. Inactivity calls for investigation. It does not prove the partner lacks value or justify renewing unchanged.

Establish what stopped

Compare agreed activities with work completed. A relationship meant for occasional specialist input may be quiet by design. Another may have stalled because an agreed campaign never passed approval. Separate a planned quiet period from an unmet commitment.

Gather the current agreement and amendments, activity record, open work, live joint material and authorised decision-makers. Check the expiry, renewal mechanism, notice dates and continuing obligations in the actual terms. Do not assume inactivity ends the arrangement or that renewal requires no action.

Diagnose the pause

Ask both teams about the last customer problem the relationship helped address and where work stopped.

These observations do not identify a cause by themselves. Check dated records and speak to those involved before describing a partner as unresponsive or unsuccessful.

Choose a defined outcome

Renew with work attached when a current need, credible contributions and an agreed next activity exist. Name its owner, output, limits and decision date.

Renew with a narrower role when occasional expertise remains useful but a broad campaign commitment does not. Pause or let the term end when no workable next step is agreed, subject to the contract and any required notice. Refer disputed rights or obligations to authorised people.

Avoid a vague campaign promise to justify renewal. If evidence is incomplete, record what must be confirmed and when. A small proposed activity should say what result would change the decision.

Check live material and rights

List joint pages, recordings, logos, downloads and scheduled messages. Check which may remain in use, who may update them and what needs correction if an offer has changed. IP Australia distinguishes existing, newly created and third-party material in collaborations and advises parties to clarify ownership and use. Actual permission depends on the rights and agreement, not on whether a campaign once ran.

Arrange review or withdrawal of an inaccurate customer-facing claim regardless of the renewal outcome. The ACCC can require businesses to back up claims they make about their products or services and may investigate misleading claims.

Finish with a dated decision record: the customer need and activity found, contract points checked, both teams’ account of the pause, chosen outcome, authorised decision-makers, next action and open asset questions.

Key Compliance and Governance Points for Partnership Renewals