How to choose a business developer, and when to do it. From business developer Lawrence Auls.

1. S
Hiring the Right Business
Developer at the Right Time

2. S
Business development is such a
generalized title these days what
does it really mean?

3. S
There are a variety of tasks that
take place in biz dev and each one
should be calculated and utilized at
the correct time.

4. S
Businesses get tripped up in hiring
the correct person at times
because they get caught up in that
person’s qualifications rather than
focusing on what is best for their
business.

5. S
Here are some thoughts that
should help employers navigate
who to hire and when.

6. S
Timing is key

7. S
If you take in a qualified dev ready
to swing with the best of them too
early you could be causing a
disaster for the business.

8. S
With three stages in the process of
commercialization (scouting,
testing, and scaling) it is vital to find
the right person for each stage of
development.

9. S
Someone who is excellent at giving
a proper path for the business with
analysis may not be the best at
gathering it.

10. S
That person would be better off
scaling your business than scouting
for it.

11. S
It’s not sales

12. S
Biz dev encompasses building
the business to succeed in all
areas.

13. S
Sales often has a strong product in
place and is simply used to drive
revenue.

14. S
Biz dev would focus on improving
the product, finding potential
buyers for it, and creating
partnerships with investors.

15. S
Managing the deal

16. S
A biz dev is someone who
understands that before a deal is
done the business will be able to
support that client for the long
run.

17. S
You are not simply out their to get
deals, something an account
manager would do, but out there to
ensure once you have the client
you can keep them happy.

18. S
Helping each other out

19. S
Biz devs will need support from
every member of the
company.

20. S
They rely on internal assistance to
create a product that lasts and is
satisfying to clients.

21. S
If biz devs cannot rely on people
from the company it is likely that
things could turn ugly (ie. loss of
revenue, blame passing, etc).

22. S
Measure the goals

23. S
Everyone in the business needs
to understand why deals are
being made.

24. S
It has to make sense for the
company on the whole.

25. S
Measuring the benefit
eliminates ambiguity with
this.

26. S
Did you make the deal to
improve revenue, introduce a
new product, or improve an old
product?

27. S
Make the right deal

28. S
Some companies have been left
in the dust because they hired a
biz dev who made deals to
simply make them.

29. S
Someone needs to weigh each
decision with the best outcome
for the company.

30. S
If it doesn’t make sense in the
long run it shouldn’t be done.

31. S
Keeping your company on the
right track is always a difficult
thing but once you see an idea
become a product and then that
product brings in revenue you
know that you have made
correct decisions in the
development stages.

32. S
Make sure you are finding the
right person at the appropriate
time to keep your business
flourishing.

33. S
Hiring the Right Business
Developer at the Right Time