The ten rules of engagement Communication
1.Be articulate about the role of BD – continuously
2.Be concrete/always translate strategy into actionable tasks
3.Continuously emphasise benefits and long-term results
4.Anchor communication with the line early and effectively Relations
5.Ensure close relation to management
6.Establish a network internally and externally
7.Actively engage stakeholders and peers Interaction
8.Get the fingers in the dirt (be where the conflicts are/arise)
9.Act professionally and convincing – have an exit strategy when in execution mode
10.Participate in operations only when mission is critical!
B1. Communication
The first four rules of engagement concern the way in which business development issues are communicated. As mentioned when discussing the intangible competences of business developers, the ability to communicate clearly and effectively is extremely important for business developers. In the successful cases, managers recognise the pressing need for business development and establish business development units as the result of this need. From the beginning, the unit has a high priority at the management table, and it is embraced by an organisation eager to work with the unit. However, this "sense of urgency" is rarely present in all companies at all times. After the first "buzz" of business development, managers tend to prioritise other, more short-term matters, and people in the organisation "forget" about the presence and importance of strategy and business development. It is here the gap between strategy and execution widens and the crossing of the chasm becomes difficult. And it is here the ability to communicate becomes paramount. The first part of the communication process consists in being articulate about the role of business development in the organisation; people must know that it exists, what the benefits are and that they need to prioritise resources to assist in bringing business development to its best.
"After the first 'buzz' of business development, managers tend to prioritise other, more short-term matters, and people in the organisation 'forget' about the presence and importance of strategy and business development"
3. INTEGRATING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Strategy is not the "thing that you think about after the daily work is done", and the challenge for many business developers is to avoid that business development gets down- graded on the managerial agenda and drowns in the load of daily work and routines. To be successfully executed, strategy must be an integral part of the work carried out in every corner of the organisation. Business development units play an important role in translating strategy into the routines and processes of the organisation, and they are essential to ensure that strategic execu- tion does not become a series of stand-alone projects or "happe- nings" but a continuous process that penetrates the organisation. That is why business developers must make sure to engage the key people in the organisation early on, communicate the message to them and make sure that they pass it on to the others.
As the figure illustrates, the business developer is a focal point of the annual strategic planning process, ensuring that strategic priorities are aligned in the line organisation, reflected directly in annual budgets, linked to compensation and individual targets as well as communicated and disseminated throughout the organisation. As such, the unit becomes "integrated" and hence a connecting link between strategy and implementation.
In most of the successful cases we observed, the business developers, or at least the business development managers, are of a strong, uncompromising nature and have strong relations to other managers within the organisation. Building on the behaviour of the business developers that succeed in navigating as the connecting link between strategy and organisation execution, we have constructed a set of guidelines, or "rules of engagement". These may be used as a line of direction for business developers to keep in mind when executing their tasks within their respective organisations.
B. The rules of engagement
"When performing the role of being the integrative link between strategy and execution, business developers are not only carrying out a range of tasks, they are also becoming important characters in the organisation that represent an element of interest, and in many cases also interference"
When performing the role of being the integrative link between strategy and execution, business developers are not only carrying out a range of tasks, they are also becoming important characters in the organisation that represent an element of interest, and in many cases also interference. It is thus important that the business developer, as a person, is attentive to the way he or she behaves in the organisation.
3. INTEGRATING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
A2. The new strategic planning paradigm
