July 2024- Business Development Process

Almost all companies, to some extent, model their Business Development (BD) processes on the methodologies established by Shipley Associates. The “BD process” graphic in their policies or handbooks often resembles Shipley’s 96-Step Business Development Process, usually including the same core attributes, albeit with different names to appear unique (e.g., “Step Review’ or ’Milestone Review’ instead of Decision Gate Review). They almost always use the same timeframes for conducting work, key tasks to accomplish within those timeframes, and include Color Team Reviews for solutioning and incrementally reviewing the progress of the pursuit.

In spite of basing company processes on arguably the “gold standard” for BD, many organizations fall short in consistently applying these methodologies effectively. The shortfall is usually most evident in Color Team Reviews, especially Blue Teams.

The Blue Team brings together Operations, Logistics/Supply Chain, BD representatives, and customer/solution Subject-Matter-Experts (SMEs) to review the capture plan, evaluate the proposed solution, and recommend changes for better positioning. However, due to time or resource constraints, or a combination of both, companies often skip the Blue Team altogether, leaving the solutioning to the Capture Manager alone. Solutioning is then relegated to one-on-one engagements between the Capture Manager and support staff as schedules allow, and artifacts are no more than extra slides in the gate/step/milestone briefing deck. Consequently, bids with immature risk mitigation strategies and inadequate pricing are submitted.

The bottom line: If you are going to have a “gold standard” process in place, then use it correctly. Having a well-designed process, whether it’s for BD, project management, or any other function, is only the first step. The true value of the process is realized when it is fully and consistently exercised.