International Partnering Institute

What International Partnering Institute does

International Partnering Institute (IPI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2007 and headquartered in the United States, with a stated mission of advancing Collaborative Partnering in the construction industry. The organization provides education, professional development, research, guidance, and facilitator certification services to owners, construction managers, designers, contractors, and facilitators. Its core offerings include a Project Leader Certification Training program for project teams and a three-tier Facilitator Certification program (PIPI, SIPI, MIPI) tied to facilitator experience levels of 25+, 100+, and 250+ sessions. IPI also distributes the Collaborative Partnering Potential Indicator (CPPI), a risk assessment tool built on insights from 4,000+ projects, and publishes the Partnering 3.0 White Paper and the Lead with Trust Podcast.

IPI operates a community-led go-to-market model organized around organizational membership, with more than 150 member organizations paying recurring dues. Revenue is generated through three principal streams: membership dues (subscription/recurring), training and certification enrollment fees, and annual conference and event fees (the 18th Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony is scheduled for May 13, 2027 at the Grand Hyatt SFO). Distribution is direct to enterprise construction organizations, supplemented by the Find a Facilitator directory, webinar recordings, newsletter, and a public website. The organization also offers Facilitated Dispute Resolution (FDR) as a paid service. There is no technology product, no API, and no software platform; IPI is a methodology, certification, and community-association business with quantified outcome claims including 5-10% cost and schedule savings, $114 return per $1 invested, and 12% greater stakeholder satisfaction.

IPI is led by Executive Director Brandy Richardson, CAE, with Board President Judi Mosqueda (San Francisco International Airport) and founder Sue Dyer serving in an ex-officio education and certification role. The organization is small (1-10 employees) and does not disclose revenue, raise external funding, or report M&A activity. Its competitive positioning rests on a credentialed facilitator network, proprietary methodology, and a 17+ year track record in construction-industry partnering practice.

Name

International Partnering Institute

Legal name

International Partnering Institute

Website

https://partneringinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

International Partnering Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides Collaborative Partnering certification, training, and methodology services to 150+ member organizations across the U.S. construction industry, including owners, construction managers, designers, contractors, and facilitators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Livermore

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: IPI is a membership-based nonprofit organization with more than 150 member organizations. Members include owners, construction managers, designers, contractors, and facilitators who pay dues to access resources, certification, networking, and the organization's partnering framework.
2. Training and Certification Programs: Project Leader Certification Training and Facilitator Certification programs provide revenue through enrollment fees. Teams enroll in certification courses to learn collaborative partnering practices.
3. Conference and Event Fees: Annual conferences and awards ceremonies (such as the 18th Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony) generate revenue through registration fees, sponsorships, and event participation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

International Partnering Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides Structured Collaborative Partnering education, certification, and membership services to the construction industry. It trains project teams and facilitators through multi-tier certification programs, operates a membership community of more than 150 construction organizations, hosts an annual conference, and offers Facilitated Dispute Resolution services to mitigate claims and improve project outcomes.

Product overview

International Partnering Institute (IPI) offers a comprehensive suite of products and services focused on advancing Collaborative Partnering in the construction industry. The core offerings include the Project Leader Certification Training, which equips project teams with Structured Collaborative Partnering skills, and a three-tier Facilitator Certification program (PIPI, SIPI, MIPI) based on experience levels. IPI provides organizational membership with access to resources including the Owner's Toolbox, Partnering Newsletter, and Partnering 3.0 White Paper. Additional offerings include the Lead with Trust Podcast, annual IPI Conference, and the Collaborative Partnering Potential Indicator (CPPI) risk assessment tool. The organization also offers Facilitated Dispute Resolution (FDR) services and an annual awards program recognizing excellence in partnering. Together, these products form a complete ecosystem supporting construction industry adoption of collaborative delivery methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Lead with Trust Podcast: A production of the International Partnering Institute (IPI), hosted by IPI's Founder Sue Dyer, focused on spreading the value of Collaborative Partnering to construction leaders.

Products and services

• Project Leader Certification Training

Quantifiable outcome

• 5-10% cost reduction through proactive issue resolution, risk mitigation, and reduced claims
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Lean Construction Institute (LCI): LCI is a nonprofit membership organization dedicated to transforming the construction industry through Lean principles, with education, communities of practice, and certification activities. Like IPI, it sells into construction owners and teams seeking collaborative methodologies and is built on a community/membership model addressing the same adversarial culture problem IPI targets.
• Construction Industry Institute (CII): CII is a research organization consortium of owners, contractors, and academics developing best practices for capital projects, with research publications and benchmarking tools. It is comparable to IPI in serving owner/contractor coalitions on collaborative project delivery and in producing data-driven research (similar to IPI's CPPI) that informs construction practices.
• Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA): DBIA is a membership-based organization promoting integrated project delivery, including design-build, with its own certification programs for professionals and teams. It is directly comparable to IPI because both advance collaborative delivery methods in construction and certify practitioners working on alternative-delivery projects — the same buyers IPI targets.
• Construction Management Association of America (CMAA): CMAA is the leading US association for professional construction managers, offering the CCM credential, training, and standards. It overlaps with IPI's CM-firm member base and owner-side project delivery training, and competes for the same continuing-education and certification budgets that IPI's Project Leader and Facilitator programs target.

Broad incumbents

• Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC): ABC is a national US construction trade association representing merit-shop contractors with training, certification, and advocacy programs. It is a broad incumbent that competes with IPI for the same contractor-side training and certification wallet, though its scope spans the full construction industry rather than a partnering-methodology niche.
• American Institute of Architects (AIA): AIA is the largest US professional society for architects, offering credentials, continuing education, and contract documents widely used in construction. It overlaps with IPI on the designer-side segment of construction projects and on continuing-education/training revenue, but its scope is much broader than partnering facilitation.
• Associated General Contractors of America (AGC): AGC is the largest US construction trade association with tens of thousands of member firms spanning general contractors, specialty contractors, and service providers. It is a broad incumbent in the same construction ecosystem IPI serves and overlaps on training, certification, and industry advocacy for construction stakeholders.

Emerging players

• National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS): NIBS is a nonprofit that brings together building industry stakeholders to support the built environment through codes, standards, and research. It is comparable to IPI as a non-profit industry convener that produces resources and convenes stakeholders around improved construction outcomes.
• OrgMetrics, LLC: OrgMetrics is the founding consultancy of IPI's founder Sue Dyer and the source of the data behind CPPI (built from 4,000+ projects). It is an emerging player that delivers partnering facilitation and consulting services directly to construction owners, partially overlapping with IPI's facilitator and FDR service offerings.

Others

• American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE): ASCE is a major engineering professional society offering credentials, publications, and conferences. It is an adjacent ecosystem participant serving many of the same public-sector infrastructure owners that IPI works with, though its primary focus is engineering standards rather than partnering facilitation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PartneringInstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-partnering-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about International Partnering Institute