You are not alone if you are looking to collaborate across companies to foster innovation. There are some common challenges that come up, like misaligned goals, cultural differences, and information silos. This whitepaper summarises some of the best-practices to make collaborating across companies the game-changer it should be. These learnings have been generated and applied in a high paced idea validation project of Wertstatt 8, the innovation unit of regional energy supplier Energie AG Oberösterreich together with the venture builder V_labs. To truly succeed in cross company collaboration, you need to follow some crucial steps. First things first: Be transparent about why you are doing this and make sure everyone involved is on the same page. This will save you some major headaches down the line. Next, assemble a team of experts who can combine their domain knowledge and leadership skills to keep the project moving forward. Anddon't forget the importance of clear communication and process facilitation! When it comes to making progress, speed is key. That means setting clear expectations, timelines, and ways of working together. You want to avoid anystandstills that could slow down your progress once your project starts.Finally, prepare for tough decisions ahead of time. By being proactive andsetting up a solid decision-making process, you can avoid unnecessary downtimes in the future. By following these best practices, you will be well on your wayto collaborating efficiently and driving outcomes that connect domain knowledge with a clear innovation process. Trust us, it is worth the effort!