The value of a strong strategic plan

- So, what exactly is business development? Rarely has more of a confusing question been asked when it comes to business. Ask three directors of business development and you will most likely get three different answers. Some will tell you that business development is sales. Others will say it's relationship-building, and still others will say it's about doing what needs to be done to expand the business. In essence, they would all, on some level, be correct. Business development is a complex term that requires a holistic view and comprehensive action as it relates to the growth of your business. At its core, business development is about proactively looking for ways to expand the business, and then aligning the team and the resources to achieve the desired growth. Business development is a role that works with and across all departments in the company, internal, and external, including sales, marketing, product development, vendors, and the list goes on. The role of business development is to see the big picture, then focus all the moving parts, people and product, to move in the direction of growth. With such a critical role, it's easy to see why strategic planning is vital to the success of business development. This is high-level decision-making, and to be successful as a business developer, you need to deeply understand your business and your industry. Here are five strategic pieces every business developer should know. Number one, the vision for the company and the long-term goals. Before you can take action as a business developer, you need to understand where you are headed. Begin with the end in mind, as Stephen Covey used to say. Knowing the long-term goals will ensure you have the information you need to create the plan to get there. Number two, the current state of the company. Before you can design the plan of how to achieve the long-term goals, you need to take a long, hard look at where you are now. This is commonly called a SWOT analysis, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Take a good, hard, honest look at the condition of your company. Number three, the state of the industry. What is happening in your industry? How is it changing? How is the market impacting it? What is happening with technology, and what new products and services are being created? Understanding the industry, what is developing in it, will help you make change that will be strategically successful. And number four, how your company works. You need a good, solid understanding of how you make money. What does it take to build a product or provide a service? How much does it cost to produce a product, and how much profit do you make? What is cash flow timing and what can positively or negatively impact that? And last but not least, a good outside perspective, a holistic understanding of what is happening outside of your business. What trends do you see with society, competition, and with customers? How is the economy shifting, and what is happening politically? Getting a solid grasp on the external will ensure you make smarter moves when it comes to the internal.