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Manage Business Development
“Executive–Business Development”, “Manager–Business Development”, or “VP–Business Development” are impressive and heavyweight titles often heard of in business organizations. Sales, strategic initiatives, business partnerships, market development, business expansion, and marketing–all of these fields are involved in business development, and are often mixed up and mistakenly taken as the sole function of business development, which leaves the question: “What exactly is business development?”
This article explores the nitty-gritty of business development, what it encompasses, and what, if any, standard practices and principles to follow.
In the simplest terms, business development can be summarized as the ideas, initiatives and activities aimed towards making a business better. This includes increasing revenues, growth in terms of business expansion, increasing profitability by building strategic partnerships, and making strategic business decisions. But it's challenging to boil down the definition of business development. First, let's look at the underlying concept, and how it connects to the overall business objectives.
Business development activities extend across different departments, including sales, marketing, project management, product management and vendor management. Networking, negotiations, partnerships, and cost-savings efforts are also involved. All these different departments and activities are driven by and aligned to the business development goals.
For instance, a business has a product/service which is successful in one region (say, the United States). The business development team assesses further expansion potential. After all due diligence, research and studies, it finds that the product/service can be expanded to a new region (like Brazil). Let’s understand how this business development goal can be tied to the various functions and departments:
The business development scenario discussed above is specific to a business expansion plan, whose impact can be felt by almost every unit of the business. There can be similar business development objectives, such as a development of a new business line, new sales channel development, new product development, a new partnership in existing/new market, and even merger/acquisition/sell-off decisions.
For example, in the case of a merger, significant cost savings can be accomplished by integrating the common functions of the housekeeping, finance, and legal departments of the two firms. Or, a business operating from five different offices in a city can be moved to a large central facility resulting in significant operating cost savings. But would this lead to employee attrition, if the new location isn't convenient for everyone? It's up to the business development team to assess such concerns. In essence, business development involves high-level decision-making based on a realistic assessment of all potential changes and their impact. Through new ideas and initiatives, it aims to improve the overall business prospects, which drive the functioning of the different business units. It is not sales, it is not marketing, it is not partnering. Instead, it is the ecosystem encompassing the entire business and its various divisions, driving overall growth.
Business developer(s) can be the business owner(s), or the designated employee(s) working in business development. Anyone who can make or suggest a strategic business change for a value-add to the business can contribute towards business development. Businesses often encourage employees to come up with innovative ideas, which can help in improving the overall business potential.
Businesses also seek help from external incubator firms, business development companies (BDC) and small business development centers (SBDC). However, these entities assist in a business establishment and the necessary fine-tuning only during the early stages of business setup. As a business matures, it should aim to build its business development expertise internally.
Since business development involves high-level decision making, the business developer should remain informed about the following:
Due to the wide open scope of business development and activities, there are no standard practices and principles. From exploring new opportunities in external markets to introducing efficiencies in internal business operations, everything can fit under the business development umbrella.
Those involved in business development need to come up with creative ideas, but their proposals may prove to be infeasible or unrealistic. It's important to be flexible, to seek out and take constructive criticism, and to remember that it's a process.
Business development may be difficult to define concisely, but it can be easily understood using a working concept. An open mindset, willingness for an honest and realistic self-assessment, and the ability to accept failures, are a few of the skills needed for successful business development. Beyond the ideation, implementation and execution of a business development idea, the end results matter the most. The bright minds in business development should be ready to accommodate a change in order to achieve the best results. Every approval or disapproval is a learning experience, bettering preparing you for the next challenge.
Chuck Reynolds
Contributor
