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Business Intelligence, What are Essential Elements of Information?
By Bill Hamilton, Vice President, Advantage Consulting, Inc.

We all need information to live, to work and to play. In business we need to know as much about our target organizations as we can. The more we know and understand our customer, the better job we can do for them.

The term we use is "Own the Organization." By owning the organization, we mean that we have enough access to be considered by the customer as a solution provider and not just a casual acquaintance. The term refers to your relationship with the customer and not necessarily your relationship to a particular project or opportunity. That comes later.

You have identified your top target organizations or agencies. Now you need to ask yourself key questions. What is the mission of the organization? What goals and objectives does the organization and its employees have? Some of this information can be obtained from open sources, but some of the subtleties you can only learn by knowing people in the organization well.

Who are the decision makers and "influencers" of policy? How well do you know them and how do you get to know them better? What are their concerns and objectives? Do you really know what they do and how they do it? What is their vision for the future and how do they plan to reach that vision? What are their priorities?

Programs depend upon funding. How well do you know their overall budget and the elements that comprise that budget? What potential programs are in the works and how competitive can your company be? What are the problems the organization has to solve? Have they considered how they will be able to solve them? Do you understand their problems? Are there opportunities for your company that may or may not be formally recognized? Finally, does the organization know, respect and trust you?

Form these questions, you can build a plan to enhance your knowledge and build an account strategy. Your Customer Service Team is the logical organization to develop and manage the plan -- but all company employees assist in the plan development by contributing their knowledge and information. As we have said many times, Business Development is a Team Sport and the stronger the team collecting, evaluating and disseminating information, the better your business development efforts will be.

Want to discuss information collection or possibly how to establish a Customer Service Team? Call me at 703-405-8912 or contact me by e-mail at bhamilton@acibiz.com and let's talk.

Business Development Spending Plans for Business Tools!
By John Bender, Vice President, Advantage Consulting, Inc.

We continue to see a significant shift toward buying packaged, Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) applications because the real cost of creating your own tools is becoming more apparent.

When was the last time you assessed how well your BD process was working? Now may be the time to correct deficiencies and find a tool to reinforce the processes you want. Have you invested in your business development process and tools so that you can remain (or become) competitive?

The best of intentions and even training won't help if you make BD too hard for the folks who do it. Homegrown administrative systems often get in the way rather than assist the BD process. We have found proven systems focused on helping a government contractor�s business development process become more effective in getting and growing new business!

Contact John Bender at 703-855-3163 or jbender@acibiz.com for details on what is available and what might work best for you and your company.

Tactics and Tips for Successful Teaming
By Sid Jaffe, President, Advantage Consulting, Inc.

The following are tactics small and emerging businesses use for establishing teaming relationships. The process of teaming is more than making a few contacts and hoping to be a part of the winning team. It is an organized approach and system for growing your business. The following is the second of three articles with some tactics and techniques to maximize your effectiveness as an organization in becoming a strong teaming partner.

Create Access to Prospective Teaming Partners. Every business relationship begins with access to someone in a target organization. Often, that access occurs as a result of a social or casual contact. It is through the initial access points that you begin to expand your familiarity with an organization and the people in that organization get to know your firm and people. The relationships you are creating happen over a period of time and it is incumbent on you and your staff to follow-up on the contacts you have and the access points you develop to nurture the relationship.

Know the Decision Makers and Influencers. There are often specific people tasked with the responsibility of identifying business teaming partners. While there are no unimportant people when it comes to business relationships, there are those people with whom it is crucial that you have access and that know your compelling story. You need to have earned their attention by having focused on them and their firm.

Know the End User Problems. The reason that companies team is to win business and ultimately, solve an end-customer's problem. The more you understand the end user's dream, mission and requirements, the more likely that you will be able to position your firm and solutions as a requisite part of the overall solution. Your goal is to be in a position to select the team that addresses those requirements, and make that the winning team. Early on in the contact process with the client and potential teaming partners, your people need to confirm the research that they have done in establishing the nature of the end user's problem.

Understand the Funding. In this time of changing priorities, policies and perhaps administrations,some programs will have a better or worse chance of being issued as RFP's, and once awarded, becoming funded. The closer you are to the funding decision and the project "champion" the more valuable you are on the team. Frequently, the decision to pursue an opportunity rests on the relationship and knowledge the bidding company has with the decision maker. The relative importance of a program in the overall operation of an end-user client and the support that there is internally for the program, is best understood through trusted business relationships. Having these relationships will make your firm an important teaming partner.

For additional information contact Sid Jaffe at sjaffe@acibiz.com at 703-855-3160.