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O P I N I O N
The everything firm Going after any and all jobs lowers probability, thus hampering success, and can damage relationships with established clients.
A s with most things in life, there is a point of diminishing returns when it comes to going after new work in the AEC industry. This is especially true when times are good, as they are now for many firms. Lots of opportunity does not mean that firms need to be going after everything that comes their way. It means they can now be choosier and more strategic about the work they pursue. Many firms are doing more proposals and interviews than ever, yet they have not increased the size of their marketing and business development support staff proportionately. This is leading to decreased win rates as evidenced by the industry average dropping from 33 percent to 22 percent over the past year.
Chad Clinehens
1)Be more strategic in every pursuit. Firms need to be strategic about what clients they pursue and who in the firm is tasked with leading those pursuits. This speaks to the need for annual marketing plans that outline what markets the team will pursue, what specific clients, and who in the client organiza- tions the firm will target for development. When firms come to the realization that they are going af- ter too much work and not getting the returns they “The obsession with new work can erode your relationships and focus on older, established clients and the untapped opportunities with them.”
Going after everything limits the creativity and customization on proposals, interviews, and other business development support activities that set you apart from the competition. I see many firms doing two to three times the proposals they did just three years ago, but without any increase in marketing staff. Thus, higher probability and higher profit potential are being cannibalized by lower probability and lower contribution. Furthermore, the obsession with new work can erode your relationships and focus on older, established clients and the untapped opportunities with them. Here are a few simple business management techniques firms can employ to fight the tendency to go after lots of new work at the expense of better contracts and established clients.
See CHAD CLINEHENS, page 10
THE ZWEIG LETTER September 12, 2016, ISSUE 1167
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