The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) aimed to increase its revenue and visibility
As part of our firm's ESG initiatives, Simon-Kucher worked pro bono with IWBF to help the federation achieve its goals
The International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) is the global governing body responsible for organizing and promoting wheelchair basketball, a sport that empowers athletes with physical disabilities to compete at the highest level. With 111 member nations and a presence in international competitions such as the Paralympic Games, the IWBF plays a crucial role in fostering inclusivity and athletic excellence worldwide.
At the time of our pro bono project, the IWBF managed a small portfolio of partnerships, which restricted growth potential. A key issue was the lack of a clear and compelling value proposition, making it difficult to attract potential partners or communicate the benefits of collaboration with the federation.
IWBF had limited internal resources dedicated to marketing and managing partnerships. This constrained their ability to invest the necessary time and effort into building relationships, conducting outreach, and managing existing partners—all critical to securing and maintaining successful collaborations.
The key objectives of our pro bono project with the IWBF were:
- Understanding partners' expectations: Gain a deeper understanding of potential partners’ decision-making criteria when choosing organizations to collaborate with.
- Structuring the partnership approach: Establish a structured approach to target prospects and guide them through the engagement-to-negotiation process.
- Strengthening the value proposition: Enhance the value proposition with clear, data-driven selling points, creating more compelling and attractive offers.
A clear path for building and managing high-value partnerships
We set out to help IWBF structure a more compelling offer that would resonate with potential partners and drive future growth
Internal stakeholder interviews: A series of interviews with key internal stakeholders at IWBF allowed our team to design a prioritization framework identifying the most promising partnership prospects. This involved a detailed review of the federation’s current partnership features, exploration of new features, and assessment of the level of activation required for each feature to maximize value.
Prospect interviews: Interviews with prospective partners provided insights into the expectations and decision-making criteria that companies use when choosing partnerships, as well as their perceptions of parasport federations like IWBF.
Nationwide quantitative market study: A nationwide market study in collaboration with the market research agency Potloc captured public perception of parasports and the role corporations play in supporting them. This informed the development of a more compelling value proposition for IWBF’s partners.
Benchmarking and pitch decks: Through mystery shopping and desk research, we benchmarked partnership pitch decks from similar organizations. This comparison helped IWBF improve their own pitch materials by incorporating industry best practices, making their proposals more attractive to potential partners.
Best practice sharing: We provided guidance on best practices for prospecting and negotiation. This enabled IWBF to refine its partnership engagement strategy, from targeting to closing deals.
Stronger value proposition, more targeted outreach, and more effective negotiations
A "Where to Play" and "How to Win" approach laid the groundwork for sustainable partnership development and growth
Deliverables included:
- Prioritization framework focusing on the most promising companies for partnerships, based on strategic alignment and potential value.
- Detailed persona ID cards, identifying key decision-makers within target companies and outlining their specific expectations and preferences.
- Restructuring of IWBF’s partnership offerings, organized by specific use cases and required levels of activation.
- Detailed recommendations for the structure and content of IWBF's pitch decks, integrating key figures from the market study to strengthen their selling arguments.
- Comprehensive playbook outlining best practices from prospect targeting to managing introduction meetings and negotiating deals.
The federation is now better positioned to build long-term, mutually beneficial relationships with corporate partners, increasing both revenue and visibility in the parasports space.
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