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By B. Michael Berger,
Vice President, Advantage Consulting, Inc.
In many firms most of
the staff regard business development as something "they,"
being that group of people who are always on the phone or having lunch
with someone, do, not something "we," the people who really do
the work around here, are responsible for. Truth is when most of the work
your firm does is for the government; business development is absolutely
everyone's job.
No matter what your
role in your company, the key to success is improving the "bottom
line” and the key to that improvement is new business. If you're a creative thinker, you've probably figured out there can be big
value in involving the technical staff and line managers in the business
development process. The fact is that while rainmakers and professional
"BD's" may be key to
business success, the "rest" of the organization can, if they
are asked, trained and supported, bring in 70 to 80% of all new business
earned by a firm.
"Come on,
there's got to be a
catch."
Yes there is, and
it’s real simple…your clients always need goods and services but for the
most part they are only willing to buy from people they know and trust.
Logically, those clients TRUST and rely on the people who provide them
the best solutions to their problems. If you're
on the technical staff or one of the line managers, then YOU are the
"solution provider" we are talking about.
"I'm a little convinced, but I don't have a clue about how to develop business
and I sure don't intend to
sell anything. Besides, where do I get resources or support, let alone
the extra hours to do it?"
Good points. To be
successful in business development you need some training - not weeks,
the equivalent of a day and a half will do - to learn the tactics,
techniques and tools to do it right. But more important than the
training, there's going to
have to be a commitment from your firm's
top management that they'll
support this "puppy." If there's
one rock solid truth about this kind of business development it's that it starts at the top of the firm and
works down, it doesn't bubble
up from the bottom. Your top staff will have to provide encouragement,
leadership, guidance and direction, and perhaps some dollar resources -
without it the process will fail. And even if you get all that support
each of you tech staff and line managers will have to work as a team
because you're already working
your butts off and you sure don't
have any extra hours to devote solely to business development.
"Ok, what do
I have to learn?"
Well, it is fair to
say that relatively few of us attended a college or university where
"business development" appeared on the curriculum, particularly
if we were learning to be engineers or computer specialists. We have to
overcome some misconceptions - the first is that you aren't going to "sell" anything, which
is fine because you wouldn't
have done it anyway. You will need to know what your company can do - for
what its worth, most people really know only what they do - then you'll have to learn to overcome the desire to
talk and learn to LISTEN for your client's
needs, wants and requirements.
"You mean all
there is to business development is to just listen?"
Well, not exactly.
The most essential element in business development is establishing and
maintaining relationships - remember that people buy from people they
know and trust - we call those people "friends." When you start
treating clients the same way you treat a good friend - like listening to
them and helping them solve problems - pretty soon your clients become
more trusting of you and begin to share their needs, wants and
requirements with you without you even having to ask.
"I think you're saying that I have to interact with
people, and that's not what I
do."
Networking can be a
bit intimidating at first, but it's
a skill you can learn and it can be enjoyable when you learn some of the
tricks. For example, there's a
right way to meet and greet people, get into a conversation, describe -
very briefly - who you are and what you do, and to get the other person
to start talking - that's when
you start listening. There are even tricks about what to write on the
nametag you get at a networking event, how to wear that tag, and even how
to make best use of the business cards you receive.
"Ok, so its
pick up cards and listen, right?"
Again, not exactly.
One meeting doesn't build a
relationship, there's got to
be a lot of follow up. Business development is more than simply finding
opportunities. It takes time to build a potential client's trust in you, learn what that client needs,
prove you understand the requirement, demonstrate your interest and your
capabilities, and most importantly, earn the trust and confidence we
spoke of.
There are lots of
opportunities and lots of people out there - you need to plan your
business development efforts then take it slow and steady. But every once
in a while a firm begins to sweat when it finds it can't guarantee "coverage" for its
people. Those companies tend to switch their business development program
from simply being "important" to a crisis or "urgent"
level and things tend to get frantic. Frankly there's
no need for that ever to happen. When business development is a normal
part of almost everyone's
everyday job a firm can be confident its people will be finding the
opportunities that will keep them covered for one, two, three or more
years into the future.
Getting to that point
takes time, resources, training, and most importantly, full commitment by
the management team. Regardless, the best place to be in business
development is the on the leading edge, not the "bleeding
edge."
For more information,
contact Mike at 703-642-5153 or e-mail: mailto:mberger@acibiz.com
About the author: Mike
Berger's
specialties are business development, training for corporate and
government personnel, and collecting and analyzing information. He also
supports clients wishing to obtain or make better use of their GSA
Schedules and handles issues relating to corporate security. Mr. Berger
completed 27 years service with the Federal government, and also retired
as a Colonel from a parallel 31-year career in the Active Army and the
Reserve Components. He holds a BA from Syracuse
University did post-graduate
study at the Syracuse University School
of Social Work, and holds an MA in Management and Supervision from Central Michigan University.
He is a graduate of the US
Army War College,
and published author in field of Military History and Occupational
Analysis. He has edited and published numerous works including
biographies and historical texts
Advantage
Consulting, Inc. ™
7611 Little River Turnpike, Suite 204 West, Annandale, VA 22003-2407 USA
VOICE: 703-642-5153, FAX: 703-658-0159
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Advantage Consulting, Inc.™
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