This paper considers the complexity of managerial work in the UK non-profit sector that can be particularly observed at the interface between for-profit and public sector organisations. This nexus of working and learning, which requires knowledge of and an ability to act and interact on a number of levels, comes together in a variety of partnership arrangements with public sector, non-profit and private sector agencies. Key questions are raised: how can this individual and collective learning outside the organisation both contribute to the success of partnership working and be transferred back into the 'internal' dimension of building the capacity of one's own organisation? Can active alliances of different organisations value the diversity of sector differences? How might the learning brought about by these arrangements be captured and harnessed and where does the ownership of learning processes and knowledge creation lie?