Territory and account scope. Define the countries or regions, sectors and customer types the partner covers, plus named strategic accounts that remain direct. This prevents a broad “Europe” mandate from obscuring where the distributor is genuinely active and who owns each customer relationship.

Exclusivity and pricing authority. Set the conditions under which exclusivity applies, which discounts or quotations the partner can approve, and how lead registration works. The same rules should also explain how channel conflict is resolved when two partners or a direct team pursue the same account.

Pipeline visibility. The Malaysian manufacturer should be able to see more than purchase orders. Opportunity stage, buyer contact, expected value, next action and forecast timing create enough visibility to judge whether the channel is developing real demand or only reacting to occasional enquiries.

Service, stock and technical support. Agree who holds local stock, handles samples and demonstrations, answers technical questions, manages after-sales issues and escalates customer problems. These responsibilities matter especially when the product needs application support or when service quality affects repeat business.

Performance review, exceptions and exit. Use regular review points for coverage, pipeline quality, conversion and strategic-account exceptions. If performance falls short, the rules should allow territory changes, direct intervention or an orderly exit without losing visibility of open opportunities and customer history.