Business Development Playbook

BL COMPANIES

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PLAYBOOK For NEW & EXPERIENCED BUSINESS DEVELOPERS

APRIL 2022

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PLAYBOOK For NEW & EXPERIENCED BUSINESS DEVELOPERS

JESSICA FASI x Mark koellner x John mancini x tom Pechillo 1st Edition (revised 10.4.22)

BL COMPANIES 2022

FOREWARD

B L Companies utilizes our in-house experts (YOU!) to maintain and grow our business. This playbook will provide the preliminary tools for beginning to be successful in this role at BL. This is an evolving document and is only meant to be used as a guide – feel free to bring in your own ideas, and utilize this playbook as a starting point. It’s organized into sections and can be read consecutively, but each section can live on its own if you need to refer to it separately. Please reach out to Mark, John, Tom or Jess if you have any feedback.

Thank You!

Jess, Mark, John & Tom

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Business Development Playbook

Business development is the creation of long-term value for an organization from customers, markets, and relationships.

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Content

05 09 13 21 25 37 39

1: ROLES 2: ORGANIZATION 3: APPROACH 4: MARKETING 5: expertise GETTING (AND STAYING) ORGANIZED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES & APPROACH MARKETING RESOURCES TO SUPPORT BD ACTIVITIES 6: CLOSING GLOSSARY CONSULTING WITH BL’S BD EXPERTS MAINTAINING AND GROWING THE RELATIONSHIP ROLES OF RELATIONSHIP MANAGERS & PROJECT MANAGERS

GLOSSARY OF SELECT BD TERMS

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ROLES OF RELATIONSHIP MANAGERS AND PROJECT MANAGERS

SECTION ONE

ROLES

I f you’re reading this, or have participated in Business Development (BD) Training or will be doing so, you have been identified as someone who will be participating in and leading BD activities. Let’s first compare the role of the BD Lead for a client with that of a Project Manager. The Business Development (BD) Lead for our client’s primary activities ensures that the client has a positive experience at BL from the time of initial contact through completion of the project and beyond. The BD Lead is known as the Relationship Manager (RM) as is identified as such in Deltek’s Client Relationship Management module (CRM – more on the use of CRM later). The RM for a client can change over time, such as when a client becomes less strategic to BL or is providing fewer opportunities, the original RM leaves or changes roles, or in the interest of succession planning and transitions. let’s compare the role of the bd lead for a client and that of a project manager.

The RM typically identifies the project or program opportunities, which may be transferred to a new RM at an appropriate time.

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The RM’s roles are separate from those of the Project Manager (PM) . The RM is responsible to maintain appropriate contact with the client, sometimes on a pre-determined basis with the clients’ agreement. The RM should check in on performance of the PM, the overall project status overall and discusswith the client what additional project or programmatic opportunities the client has. The RM’s relationship with the client may be short-lived (as is the case with one small project opportunity), or last decades over a series of projects and/or programs the client has. The responsibilities of the RM are at a strategic level, well thought out, scheduled and deliberate. The RM should always be available to field calls from the client, and be mindful that if the client’s requests are related to the performance of the project, and therefore under the PM’s responsibilities, the RM should steer the client back to the PM. For our most strategic clients and programs, the RM should assess whether a steering committee is warranted, and assemble the appropriate decision- makers as necessary and appropriate. The Project Manager’s (PM’s) primary responsibilities are to ensure that the project performs toBL’s expectations for quality, schedule, profitability, and accounts receivable. The PMs resource the project through the Resource Planning tool in Deltek, and is responsible for staffing the project to meet BL’s and the clients’ expectations. With respect to client communications, the PMs should be communicating project status, issues, schedule and deliverables. The PMs are also responsible for preparing the scope and fee proposal, securing change orders before

THE RELATIONSHIP MANAGER AND PROJECT MANAGER ARE SEPARATE ROLES AND HAVE DIFFERING RESPONSIBILITIES.

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additional scope items are performed, and following up with the client on Accounts Receivable, and securing change orders before additional scope items are performed. The PMs should ALSO ask about additional opportunities with the clients. The PMs must advise the RM on any substantive issues with the project, especially those relating to schedule and project financials. The PMs can ask the RMs for assistance in communicating with the clients, but the core responsibilities of the PMs (as outlined in our Job Descriptions, PM Manual and training programs) remain those of the PMs, not the RM.

The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said. Peter Drucker

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GETTING (AND STAYING) ORGANIZED

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SECTION TWO

ORGANIZATION

P rior to performing Business Development activities, you should develop a plan for getting and staying organized. A great way to do this is by using Deltek’s CRM, which is a core expectation at BL. The reason for this is simple – you can be doing lots of great BD, but if it’s not in CRM, no one knows it’s happening . It’s crucial for you to be utilizing our Deltek CRM system to track your opportunities and activities. Remember, if you don’t put the data in, you can’t get the data out. CRM provides a number of useful tools and features. All personnel performing business development activities should be trained in the use of CRM. If you need this training, please contact Heather Halotek. develop a plan for getting and staying organized prior to performing bd activities.

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CRM / WHAT TO TRACK:

What to track:

What to report:

• Opportunities ‒ Quals Packages & Presentations • Strategies • Activities • Relationships • Client Contacts • Marketing Campaigns (how are we tracking the results)

• Client activities • Opportunities ‒ Probability ‒ Fees ‒ Quals Packages & Presentations

Client contact information needs to be kept up-to-date! Marketing will use these contacts for targeted mailings and events.

In addition to the use of CRM, some other useful tools, tips and tricks for getting and staying organized are as follows.

Outlook Calendars – this is a great way to easily organize your day, week, or month. You can also set up reminders and individual or recurring appointments or meetings.

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Find Your Flow – Viva is a useful feature in Microsoft to help get and stay organized. We all have access to it through BL’s software suite. What Viva does is to review your e-mails and make suggestions to help prepare for scheduled meetings, follow up on tasks and other helpful tips. It also offers to schedule “focus time” in 2-hour blocks to allow for focused BD prospecting, strategy development, calls, developing and inserting strategies into CRM, etc. Like all strategic and high value activities, planning a time when that’s all we will focus on is beneficial. Try it, you’ll like it! Have your own great tip or tool for organization? Pass these along to one of the members of our BD Training Team (Jess Fasi, Mark Koellner, John Mancini or Tom Pechillo)!

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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES & APPROACH

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SECTION THREE

APPROACH

LET’S DIVE INTO SOME STRATEGIES FOR ULTIMATELY LANDING THAT PROJECT.

S o now that you’ve gotten a plan together for getting organized, let’s dive into some strategies for identifying clients and general opportunities, meeting with potential clients, and pursuing specific opportunities, and ultimately landing that project. Market Analysis: Service Line or Geography For breaking into new service lines and/or newgeographies, you’ll typically want to do some analysis that takes into account potential clients and risk factors. Some of the steps you will likely want to take and consider are the following. You may want to add others. • Identify potential clients • Research clients • Know your competition • Focus on Efforts That Have the Best Chance of Success for BL ‒ Growth ‒ Profit ‒ Follow-on Work • Strength, Weakness, Opportunity & Threat (SWOT) analysis and interpretation

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SCALE OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT RISK

Always remember it’s easier (and incurs less risk) when selling existing services to existing clients in existing geographies. The effort and risk increase to moderate when selling existing services to new clients, or new services to existing clients, or services in new geographies. The most challenging opportunities, as well as those with the most risk, are those where we’re selling new services to new clients in new geographies. The following chart illustrates this.

THERE ARE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF RISK INVOLVED WITH PURSUING NEW CLIENTS.

Figure 1.1. Business Development Risk

Develop Relationships Typically, you’ll want to develop relationships with clients that you can trust, and that can develop a trust in BL. • Add value and build trust • Personal connection (common affinity and liking one another) • Business value (strength of business impact) • BOTH are important • EITHER can come first • Trust Graph – the more our client trusts us, the more open they will be with us (see Figure 1.2).

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TIP: You can watch the “You are the BL Brand” videos on the Intranet (under Documents and Resources) to learn more about the markets we serve and services we offer. These can help you in cross-selling!

Meeting and Follow-up (Existing and New Clients) Some things to consider when setting up and conducting meetings:

• Calls, Virtual vs. In-Person Meetings (Both are important – need to determine which is right for a given situation) • Attire – based on environment, type of meeting or event, level of individual within the client’s organization • Number of BL Attendees – balance existing relationships to gain intel vs. involving other BL staff; consider number of attendees on client’s side • Follow Up (also see Section 6: Maintaining and Growing the Relationship) ‒ Essential to keep the relationship going ‒ Don’t let relationships get stale ‒ Ask for the work Cross-sell (can also occur up front) • Know what BL does in various disciplines (not just your own) • Watch the “You Are the BL Brand” videos on the Intranet. What’s In It for THEM? When marketing BL, be sure to look at what you’re saying from the client’s perspective. If you’re going to make a statement about how BL stands out in a particular area, ask the following questions to yourself “So what? What does that mean to me, if I’m the client?”

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A perfect example of this is selling the fact that we are an ESOP. All of us at BL understand what that means culturally, but clients (especially new clients) likely will not. It’s good to say something like “Since we are 100% employee-owned, you as a client are important to the entire company, and as a result, all of our staff of the entire company wants to ensure that our project is successful and that you are satisfied, because that success benefits all of our employee-owners.” Use your own words and phrasing, but the point is, explain the why and the how of what you’re saying will benefit the client.

Use your Leadership Development tools and training (ID Compass Point, Active Listening, etc.) to help with this.

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Teaming Arrangements There will frequently be times when teaming with other consultants represents a path to success for us. Sometimes, other consultants have existing relationships that we can leverage or are in geographies where we do not have offices or appropriate staff. In addition, frequently subconsultants are required due to specialty services or other requirements (such as DBE/MBE/WBE requirements for public work).

In these cases, the following strategies can be employed:

• Referrals • Establish consistent relationships with teaming partners • Trading Work (Quid Pro Quo)

Figure 1.2.

Buyer Trust Graph.

TIP: It’s helpful to cultivate your “elevator pitch” in how to talk about BL. An elevator pitch, elevator speech, or elevator statement is a short description of an idea, product, or company that explains the concept in a way such that any listener can understand it in a short period of time. This description typically explains who the thing is for, what it does, why it is needed, and how it will get done.

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be sure to include the marketing department on any responses to rfp/rfq requests.

Proposals (also see Section 4: Marketing Resources) When writing proposals, make sure that you are providing the client the scope of services that they want or need. In addition, keep in mind that if there is a fee proposal that accompanies, the Scope of Work, these need to be consistent – don’t over-promise in the Scope and then not include commensurate fee. When responding to solicitations, be sure to look at the evaluation criteria and address each of those points adequately, and arrange the response in the order that the items in the solicitation were requested (or in order of the selection criteria). • Use Deltek to open Opportunities and convert to Proposals • Writing Style – be sure to use a consistent, professional writing style • Marketing Assistance – our Marketing department can be a valuable resource. For any RFP/RFQ responses, involve Marketing from the start by requesting Marketing Assistance in CRM when entering the opportunity.

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GENERAL TIPS AND TRICKS:

• Be yourself – clients will sense when you’re inauthentic • Look for cues when having a conversation with a client / potential client ‒ Do they look interested or bored? ‒ Are they engaged or trying to get away? ‒ Sometimes you must try a few topics to keep the conversation flowing ‒ Try to find common interests – sports, hobbies, vacations, etc.

• Make Action a Priority • Block off time in Outlook to make that call you’ve been needing to make for weeks. This can be done using the Viva feature in Microsoft. • Leverage BL’s Resources ‒ Delegate when possible ‒ Use Marketing – help with proposals, promo materials, previous proposals, project sheets, etc. (SEE SECTION 4) ‒ Reach out to others for advice ‒ Don’t reinvent the wheel

• Build Your BD Skills as you go

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4

MARKETING RESOURCES AVAILABLE to support BD ACTIVITIES

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SECTION four

MARKETING

T he Marketing Team is available to support all BD efforts, and should be used in most cases to assist in the BD process. Below are some of the best practices and the resources available to facilitate your success. How to Utilize the Marketing Team • Request Marketing Assistance via CRM ‒ Specify the nature of assistance that’s needed (RFP/RFQ, Quals Package, Presentation, etc.) ‒ Include the deadline and any other pertinent documents or information ‒ Follow up with an email to Heather Halotek and Jessica Fasi with more information on the nature of your request. the marketing team is available to support all bd efforts.

important: THERE IS A PROCESS THAT SHOULD BE FOLLoWED TO RECEIVE THE ASSISTANCE THAT’S NEEDED FOR YOUR BD EFFORTS.

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MARKETING RESOURCES AVAILABLE

Figure 2.1. Requesting Marketing Assistance in Deltek

There are a number of resources available to you to facilitate your BD efforts. Below is just a sample – if there’s something not listed, just reach out and we’ll be able to help no matter what!

• Quals packages

‒ Can be generic or client-specific

• Brochures ‒ Client-specific / Market-specific / Discipline-specific • Presentations ‒ PowerPoint presentations for client meetings or other speaking opportunities • Events / Tradeshows / Conferences ‒ Networking events ‒ Professional Organizations ‒ Speaking Opportunities • Mini-websites • Social media (LinkedIn, etc.) ‒ To promote a specific event we’re attending or completed project, etc.

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• E-blast ‒ Targeted emails to a specific mailing list (for broader reach) • Branded BL Merchandise ‒ Pens, Boogie Bots, Hats, Mugs, etc. • Specific Marketing Campaigns ‒ For example: mailings, special client event (ICSC NYC reception).

tip: don’t overpromise deliverables to the client – be realistic when proposals and quals can be sent.

MARKETING IS The process of creating firm awareness; building and differentiating the brand; driving business development activities; and identifying, anticipating, and satisfying client objectives to achieve profitable business goals. Society for Marketing Professional Services

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CONSULTING WITH BL’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXPERTS

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SECTION FIVE

EXPERTISE

WE CONSULTED WITH OUR INTERNAL BD PROFESSIONALS TO SHARE THEIR EXPERTISE.

B L Companies has business development expertise in each of our market sectors and disciplines. If you have questions, need advice, or simply need a sounding board, feel free to reach out to these individuals. These people have been developing, fine-tuning and adjusting their techniques for many years.

BL’s BD Experts (please note, this is not an all-inclusive list of all the BD professionals at BL)

Bob Blickley // Engineering (LD) Matt Bruton // Engineering (LD) Michelle Carlson // Engineering (LD) Paul Curcio // Engineering (Energy) Travis D’Amico // Engineering (LD) Bill Fries // Engineering (LD) Tom Hamilton // Engineering (Energy) Sam Haydock // Environmental

Mark Koellner // Environmental Derek Kohl // Engineering (PI & Energy) John Mancini // Engineering (LD) Jen Marks // Land Survey

Rai Muhlbauer // Architecture Tom Pechillo // Engineering (PI) Christen Robbins // Architecture Brad Wolf // Environmental

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WISDOM FROM BL’S BD EXPERTS

We asked this group of business developers to provide their input and expertise on a number of topics related to their secrets to success, navigating BD during the pandemic, and how to cold call. There’s a wealth of information here! Read at your leisure and understand that business development strategies will vary depending on the person -- you can alter your approach based upon what resonates with you.

Business development

strategies will vary person-by- person.

WHAT’S YOUR TRADE SECRET?

Persistence and ability to drive strategy and actions to realize longer term opportunities, including breaking in with larger clients. Forming a strong relationship with the Client based on expertise, honesty and humor. I try to be friendly and knowledgeable to everyone i interact with on a project. Client, peer review engineer, town staff, contractors. Not being an a**hole goes a long way. I also try to be as responsive as possible so I am not the one holding anything up. Personality is my trade secret. It’s important to make sure the client knows you are a person and not a robot. Be authentic and be yourself. Consistency and follow through. You can’t be afraid to hear someone say no.

Care about their project/business as much as they do – let them feel your passion and show them that you understand THEIR needs. Try to stay in touch even when not pursuing a specific opportunity. Always ask new contacts how you can help them out (i.e. ask: who do you want to meet? Is there anything I can do to help you...?). Show your interest in helping them, and they will value and trust you. Be yourself! Be genuine, warm and enthusiastic. Collaboration. People want to work with those they enjoy working with. Knowledge of the products I sell, ability to strike up conversation, sense of humor.

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WHAT MAKES YOU MOST EFFECTIVE? • Relationship building, responsiveness and client care. • I care about the Client in terms of both the business and personally. • Effective communication and timely responses. • Do not be pushy... hard sells don’t work well I have found. In person is key. • Understanding the needs of the client/project and how we fit into it. Find ways to always be a resource. • Willingness to share parts of my past/personal experience to make a connection. • Quick follow-up when clients call and providing professional guidance/information in response to clients’ inquiries. • Clients see lots of consultants and can smell a “sales job” right away. You want them to come away from the conversation thinking that you care about them as people as well as their issues as clients. • Biggest success is working with the client and contractor through CA to complete a project successfully. Clients are often looking at the next project when they are in construction. If it is going well, they will reach out for more work or recommend you to others. Contractors also make recommendations based on the relationships formed during CA. • Being a problem solver and willing to think outside the box. Also being able to connect the dots and see the forest through the trees. Also being a matchmaker between clients and business partners.

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What has not been effective?

• I wouldn’t say that I’ve moved away from it because sometimes you need to in order to get your foot in the door, but a caution to not price a first opportunity too low and then have to work to not be tied to that price if you begin to get repeat work. • Trying to be someone else or approach a client with anything but your own personality and technique. • Bringing the hammer down, or repremanding. Changed to support and listening. • Making promises I cannot keep. Spreading myself too thin and loosing focus, not being able to follow through.

• I would not recommend chasing clients who have a preferred vendor. It is harder to break in and not worth the effort. However, it is important to be aware of the ongoings as situations always change. Also, do not look at contractors as ‘us’ versus ‘them’. They are part of your network. • Talking about how great BL is and not relating that to how that benefits the client. As employee-owners, we all know the value of the ESOP for us, and we proudly state to our clients that we’re an ESOP. But what does that mean to them? Relate this and all other BL differentiators and attributes to the client and their needs, and connect the dots for them.

• Sending clients a package of qualifications as a first step of

initiating a new relationship is not effective. Generic information does not send the message that you understand the client and have the ability to assist with their specific needs.

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How do you generate new business through existing clients? Is it harder/easier in a remote environment?

• Cross selling other services, complete work with quality and timeliness, touching base with client periodically. It’s harder in a remote environment, less personal especially with new clients or newer relationships. • Harder. You first have to gain a Clients trust in not only you but your team. This means having a PM that cares and produces high quality product with an aggressive and proactive approach - i.e. champion for the Client. Once the Client is comfortable with you and the team, you can request introductions and map to other geographic locations or departments in their company. The introduction meeting with the new group should start with an e-mail exchanged and/or phone call but must have an in person meeting to present the BL quals and team. • Always be asking them what is the next thing I can help you with AND doing a great job on the current project so they don’t question whether you can handle the next one or not. • Simply ask them what they are working on and if there is anyone else they know in the region that needs our help. We sell all services all the time and its amazing if we educate them, they tend to call us with possible new business and other clients from them. • It starts by doing good work for existing clients. This means always staying on schedule, meeting budgets, and communication throughout the project so there are no surprises. If you are seen as a resource, it makes it much easier for clients to refer you to others. Generating new business is more difficult, but surely not impossible, in a remote environment. My team and I find that you need to be even more in tune with every email throughout a project to be looking for new names and companies that provide opportunities for follow up. • Ask, ask, ask –Ask the existing client if anyone else in organization is doing same thing, ask client if there are other departments in their organization that could use our services, ask client if they have any friend/former co-workers in similar management positions.

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How do you generate new business through existing clients? Is it harder/easier in a remote environment? • Good relationships and keeping them tight. Same but different in remote environment, its about the bond. Sometimes the video screen can “let you into the clients home” whereas creating a tighter bond. It all comes down to communication and the bond with the person. • Good performance and inquiring about what the client may be planning next is essential in generating new opportunities (repeat business) with the client. Asking the client if they would be willing to serve as a reference, or write a letter of recommendation that can be used by potential new clients to verify our performance is important. It is also a good idea to ask clients for introductions to other potential clients, brokers, financial institutions, etc. • Ask for introductions to folks that run other departments/projects/programs. if your client likes you, they will gladly introduce you to others within their organization and recommend you to them. If the new department/program is outside your discipline, act as the facilitator and bring another BL person to the meeting who is the expert. This is generally harder in a remote environment because in person, your client is often in the same building as the person s/he wants to introduce you to, and can walk you over. • I usually check in with clients that we want to do business with, even if we do not have an active project. Keeping in touch keeps you to the front of mind. I have found it is harder in the remote environment because conversations tend to be more business oriented. When in person, you can develop a stronger relationship beyond a project. • The best way is to ASK for more work. This is easier when you are doing a great job on existing projects - on schedule, on budget, quality work product. That makes asking easier, but you still have to ask!!

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Attending scoping meetings, kick off meetings, key milestone meetings such as Public Information Meetings and following up on major submissions. Require internal team to include me on meeting planners, invites. Also ask to review major submissions (at a high level) or check in with PM periodically. DESCRIBE YOUR PROCESS FOR CHECKING IN WITH YOUR CLIENTS Put a meeting in the calendar and plan monthly calls with them. The process does depend on the duration of the project. We have many projects that are in and out the door quickly, but the key is to still check in and stay in communication throughout even a quick turn project. It is also essential to check in after to solicit feedback, find out what else is in the pipeline, and potentially ask for a referral.

I utilize a number of methods. 1) I attend many of the project calls and keep tabs on a high level. The Client likes when the Principal who sold the idea of using BL is part of the overall team. This does not mean perform any of the PM tasks! My input is strictly looking at the financial structure and impacts, timeline, ways to push the BL team, and using my experience - methods to save the Client money. 2) Always be available. This means calls on weekends and late at night. On larger projects, the Client may be under pressure for deadlines that don’t respect the normal work day hours. Be there for them to help them succeed. 3) Personal activities. I find out what we have in common - this may mean scheduling a mt bike ride on the weekend, texting during a favorite football team/game, making light hearted bets on sports - loser wears the opposing teams jersey and takes a pic, sharing stories on vacations, etc. Find a common interest and interact! 4) Problem solving - if there is an issue with a project or team member, address it immediately with honesty and a solution based attitude. Keep them aware of the next deliverable and what is needed from them. Continually ask them if they need anything else. Then pick your spots to ask how we’re doing (which may be the Relationship Manager).

Depends on project and client. If new client, check in via their preferred method more frequently than if return client. Don’t overstep the PM, but figure out most effective way to check in with client on bigger picture- text, email, lunch, call, etc. Call or meet and ask for feedback on our performance. I set the premise by telling the client that BL Companies has made feedback - whether positive or constructive - a part of our culture and an essential component of our goal for constant improvement. I also think that an often overlooked opportunity is a post construction meeting. Set a meeting 10 or 11 months after completion of a project to review warrantied items, since a one-year warrantee is likely the shortest period you will encounter. Clients appreciate this because they may have otherwise forgotten and as a result miss the opportunity to make a warrantee claim. This meeting can be set up during the closeout or certification process of a job.

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HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY A NEW CLIENT?

• Research and as part of longer term market team strategic growth plan. Also leverage relationships from within (new employees), partners or general industry knowledge. • Monitor the market, real estate brokers, articles in publications, who is on panels at conferences, trade organizations, gossip on the street, etc. • You have to use a variety of methods to identify a new client. The key is to always keep your eyes and ears open for new names and companies. Then take the time to research them and develop a strategy to approach them. Ideally, you would get an introduction but even being able to use the name of a client when you reach out to a potential new client makes the call much more than a pure cold call. When you make the contact with the potential new client, you need to be ready to follow up and connect dots to a future opportunity as it will likely take time to work your way in. • Stay engaged with the market, ask questions of trusted preferred partner/ clients, monitor media, talk to brokers/LD attorneys. • Target the market sector and have a pulse on the competitors doing the work for said client as well. • I start with the market or submarket that is of interest, then research who the clients are that are established in those markets. Research is a combination of online searches, review of trade publications, industry events, and networking with contacts (brokers, clients, etc.). • For public clients, often capital improvement programs are available online. Research these and identify the ones who have upcoming needs that we can assist them on. For private clients, word of mouth is often used. • I look at organizations that represent the markets we want to be in or working in and then look at the list of attendees. Usually the bigger players in these markets are part of the organization. Another way is speaking to contractors or other sub-consultants to find out who they are working with and for, then see if they can provide contact info or provide an introduction. • Primarily through leads and tips from influencers and contacts (attorneys, brokers, etc), but also from intel gathered from networking events, email chains on existing projects, and other sources.

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HOW DO YOU COLD CALL?

• Best approach is to make contact at an event to make initial introduction and request a followup meeting, ideally in person. Worst case, you pick up the phone or email and try to set up initial meeting. Have attitude of “just ask or in this case call/email, etc. as the worst they can so is no or don’t respond and you are no worse off”. Keep trying to find your way in, other people may know them and assist, or know a different contact in that client organization and leverage that to set up first meeting or call. Don’t give up and have to try at least a few times to connect. Initial no response should not require you to move on, just try different tactic or approach. • Buck up and be ready for rejection. make the call, email, visit - follow up multiple times. Don’t assume that people read e-mails - always follow up with a phone call or visit. Cold calling is not for the faint of heart :) • Perform some research and try and find a common interest and person and then run with the call.

• Try to get a mutual touch point (via common contact)- use that relationship via a joint email to both parties introducing yourself/BL. Give them 5 days, if they don’t respond- call them. If they don’t answer, follow up voicemail with email. Wait 5 days, repeat. Drop mutual contact off chain. Wait 10 days, repeat. Continue until the respond or you get too upset to continue. :) • I will typically cold call only if I can’t find someone that can make an introduction. Most important is to find out in advance as much as I can about the client, their company, their goals, values, and needs. Clients are not interested in helping you “fish” for opportunities; they want to know that you understand them and that you believe you can help them.

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HOW DO YOU COLD CALL?

• Try to create an opportunity for a follow up such as replying to a question they ask, or sending them an article of interest regarding their market, or trying to make an introduction to someone in the industry that can be of interest or service to them.

• My cold call approach is to keep it casual. I also let them know what services BL provides and that if

they have an existing engineer that we could help deepen their bench. I usually end with offering up zoning reviews and concept plans for free to help them make decisions on moving forward with purchasing a site.

ANY OTHER INFORMATION YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE? • BD is hard and not all have desire to do or have natural skills to do. However, with persistence, and ability (and desire) to work at building relationships, most can do and contribute in BD. Have to have right (positive) attitude and keep trying, including having thick skin and short memory as there will be a good amount of opportunities that don’t go our way but can’t get discouraged. • Have fun - what a great gig - meet successful and motivated business folks, understand what drives our Country’s economy and be part of positive growth for the community. If you don’t have a personality, side interests, and have a take no prisoners attitude, Clients don’t want to spend time with you. • It takes a team to be successful. Everyone needs to be knowledgeable about clients, strategies and pursuits as you never know when or how an opportunity will arise. • Be yourself, show your passion, Recognize we are a service/commodity- put yourself in their shoes and show them we understand their needs. • Building relationships and trust is the major key to repeat customers, building a good network for referrals and industry presence.

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ANY OTHER INFORMATION YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE? • Create a personal list of contacts that you can refer to in order to keep contact. List the dates that you met or called, so you can keep track of your touches. Random calls to check in can be surprisingly productive. It’s surprising how often those calls result in opportunities just because you happened to call coincidentally when a client was exploring an opportunity. • Find a common topic. Often their office (or background if virtual) can give clues as to their outside interests - try to notice. If it’s a shared interest, they’re likely to want to talk with you about it. Otherwise, try “I’ve always wanted to learn more about ---.” Often they’re happy to oblige on the spot. Show interest even if you’re not really interested. • The majority of our BD folks are seller-doers. Only a few of us are 100% BD. Seller-doers at BL often lose focus because we have to many other demands placed on them that require substantial time. Project and staff management are very important for seller-doers because a high-performing team makes selling repeat business easier. BL obligations that distract from those core responsibilities need to be reduced and eliminated as they are counterproductive and create internal barriers to growth.

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6

MAINTAINING AND GROWING THE RELATIONSHIP

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SECTION sIX

CLOSING

T he greatest opportunity for repeat business occurs during project execution. This is the time when we have themost continuous contact with, and the greatest potential influence over, the client. Use this time to our maximum advantage to build a strong trust-filled relationship. One of the most difficult things for our PMs to do is ask for the next project. It is a skill that our PMs must be consistent with and know when the right time to ask is. Asking for more work in the middle of a project crisis, or immediately following a slipped deadline or feedback on quality IS NOT the right time. There is a knack to this, when the client seems happy with us (or life in general), or is discussing their business, program or related topics is a good time to begin those conversations. Don’t be pushy, be curious! Something along the lines of “what are your plans once we get this under construction” or, “do you have any other projects in mind that we can help you with” are appropriate ways of asking for future opportunities. the GREATEST OPPORTUNITY FOR REPEAT BUSINESS OCCURS DURING PROJECT EXECUTION.

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Business development is different than the traditional view of sales. A traditional view of sales is akin to hunting, but business development is more like farming: it’s a longer-term investment of time and energy and not always a quick payoff.

This glossary of business development-related terms has come from our team’s experience and knowledge, as well as research performed to find relevant and accurate definitions.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

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GLOSSARY

A Advance: The goal of a meeting or BD event. An advance can be any action that moved the ball closer to a signed contract. From prospect to signed contract can have many smaller “advances” along the way. ABC: Always be closing. The idea that every actions performed in business development is toward to goal of a signed contact. B Business Development: Any action or series of actions whose goal is that of a signed contract. Include strategy development, market research, prospecting, and asking for new work from an existing client. BD activities include performing research to learn more about a client, analyzing that data to find patterns of behavior, sharing that knowledge with your coworkers, helping the firm to position itself as an attractive hire, identifying differentiators that make the firm stand out from the competition, and building and maintaining a relationship with the client.

Bad Lead: A prospect that is unlikely to ever become a paying client.

Buying Signal: A verbal or nonverbal cue that show a customer is ready to make a purchase. Picking up on these signals can help sales reps better focus their attention on customers that are giving off more buying signals.

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GLOSSARY

C Center of Influence: An individual who can refer prospects, even if they will never become a client themselves. Can also include actual clients. Cross-selling: The BD practice in which professional/technical staff members offer and “sell” services provided by a discipline other than their own. Cold Call: An unsolicited call or communications to a potential client. L Lamp Posting: An internal debrief after a BD meeting or event, focused on what went well, and more importantly, how to do better. M Marketing: Activities that your firm performs that build the image of your firm in the marketplace, including public relations, press releases, tradeshows, sponsorships, advertisements, direct mail, and electronic communications. Closing: Asking for the work and securing a signed contract.

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GLOSSARY

O Objection: Objections refer to any questions or concerns from a prospect after a sales rep has performed a value demonstration. Common objections have to do with budget, authority, need, and timing (BANT). Handling these objections is a step in the sales process and a necessary skill of any sales rep. P Pipeline: Refers to the flow of potential clients which a company has started developing. Prospecting: The process of determining strategic targets in each market, which should align with the overall strategy. R Referral: Having a COI “refer” one to a contact, project, or individual/company. S Sales Funnel: The purchase funnel, or purchasing funnel, is a consumer-focusedmarketingmodel that illustrates the theoretical customer journey toward the purchase of a good or service.

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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PLAYBOOK

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