NOVEMBER 2018 GERMINATION.CA 5 Stephen Denys, director of business management for Maizex Seeds, maintains the two companies are compatible in many other ways as well. “In this case, they’re extremely compli- mentary to each other in terms of foot- print, in terms of skillsets, and in terms of areas of expertise, so it was kind of natu- ral to put these two businesses together,” he says. Denys notes that strong relationships already existed between the leadership of Maizex Seeds and La Coop fédérée through each company’s involvement with the Canadian Seed Trade Association and other industry organizations, and that this famili- arity helped seal the deal. Find the Right Partner Kaastra points out that La Coop fédérée has had positive results with similar part- nerships in the past. “To have a good success with a joint venture, it’s important to find the right [partner] that's focused on success, that's focused on growth, and that’s focused on creating value,” he says. “The second piece is [to ensure] there’s a good cultural fit between those individu- als and your organization. Just because somebody might be focused on growth and creating value and success doesn't necessarily mean that they do that in the same manner that another individual would, and that really speaks to the values and how the business operates and the culture of the organization,” Kaastra adds. “The third piece that’s pretty important is recognizing each other's function within the partnership. Both parties have a role to play, some more than the other depend- ing on what the function is, and each party needs to clearly identify what this is so there are no surprises. … Each party has to be a contributor, each party has to bring something to the equation, and then the other party has to have confidence in that other individual.” Don’t Forget the Legalities Kaastra says having a formal framework that defines how the partnership operates as well as clearly-defined business and financial plans and organizational structures in place are a must in any successful joint venture. “The documentation that governs the partnership, in our experience, is extremely important,” says Kaastra. “People can change over time, so you really need to have a structured approach.” Baute agrees, stating it’s always essential to get excel- lent counsel on legal, accounting and other matters when entering into agreements like this. “You need to have some very good advice every step of the way, especially in terms of thorough due diligence and completing all the signed documents like the share- holders agreement, the purchase agreement, all those types of things. I can’t overstate that — it’s the founda- tion of how your relationship is going to proceed going forward, and if you didn’t do a good job of that, you’re setting yourself up for a lot of angst,” he says. “You’re not going to be able to do a deal unless you basically have all your ducks in a row.” Casper Kaastra, crop production general manager for La Coop fédérée. Photo: La Coop fédérée. Stephen Denys, director of business management for Maizex Seeds. La Coop fédérée research farm in St-Hyacinth, Que.