Definition Myth: Business Development

Business development is a general term with different interpretation by different organizations. There’s no end to the debate to pinpoint a single definition. Generally speaking this term can be applied to any process / efforts made to advance the business by strengthening ties with existing clients as well as growing customers in new targeted market or segment.
Business development aims to grow the business by means that aren’t part of the Marketing and sales daily tasks. It requires the development and cultivation of relationships with buyers, suppliers, and competitors. In order to accomplish this goal, business development normally crosses the traditional barriers between sales, marketing, customer care, operations and management in order to promote the process of expansion on more than one level.

Categories of Business Development

• Product

Developing a new product or technology.

• Commercial

Prospecting new customers in new segments or markets or by development of new channels. The new channel includes partners, agents, distributors, licensees, franchisees.

• Corporate

Activities that are focused on mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, direct and strategic alliances.

Conclusion
It is quiet hard to set single definition of business development, the confusion in definition is caused by categories discussed briefly above. This variation of categories demands Organizations / professionals to have different competencies, skills and process resulting in deferent interpretation of the term business development.

J. Biyrouti
Marketing Manager
Meirc Training and Consulting

Good Manager Bad Manager?

Being a good manager isn’t just about what you can encourage other people to do, it’s also about managing your own performance.

• Be accessible. Come out and visit with your employees. Let them know that they can always come to you with problems and concerns.
• Be open to constructive criticism. Listening to constructive criticism gives you the chance to learn and grow from your mistakes.
• Accept responsibility. Accept responsibility for the mistakes of all that you manage, not just your own.
• There’s always room for improvement. Always be willing to learn.
• Improve your skills. You’re never too old to take Training class or ask a co-worker to help you improve your knowledge.
• Explain things simply. Don’t use big words or technical jargon just to sound smart and impress others.
• Instruct rather than order. You’ll have more success if your requests are more tactfully delivered.
• Include your staff in your plans. Let your employees know what’s going on and how they are expected to contribute.
• Know your subordinates’ jobs. You don’t want to be caught with inferior job knowledge.
• Be flexible. It’s fine to be firm in what you expect, but allow for flexibility in how it gets done.
• Get regular feedback. Your employees and superiors can give you valuable feedback on how to improve your performance.
• Know your limitations. Know the limits of your time and abilities and say no to things you know you can’t do.

Meeting Your Deadlines

No one will be happy if your team has to rush around at the last minute to complete a project. Follow these tips to make deadlines less stressful for everyone.

•  Only promise what you can realistically deliver. Don’t create deadlines that you know you can’t meet.
• Set clear goals. Once you know what you need to accomplish, you will know how and when you want to do it. Write down your goals and make everyone on your team gets a copy.
• Organize a team. Pick your team members who have the right skills to carry out the job.
• Delegate tasks. Spread work among your team members..
• Create milestones. Creating milestones for you and your team will help you keep track of your progress and also give you a sense of accomplishment as you reach each milestone.
• Keep communication open.
• Do it right the first time. Planning ahead will help prevent you from delivering a substandard product.
• Stay organized.
• Make sure expectations are clear. Be sure that each member of your team knows what their specific responsibilities are.
• Create a plan. Compile your goals and milestones into a comprehensive plan for attacking any project you are given.

3 keys to becoming a successful leader

3 keys to becoming a successful leader – http://sbne.ws/r/9onx
Looking for the coveted secret to success? The enigmatic ingredients aren’t what you might expect, says John Humphrey, co-founder and chairman of Pariveda Solutions. “You always need to be working on your value system,” he says. Certain ingredients are innate gifts, such as hard work, intelligence and tenacity, but three primary things all leaders should work on consistently are values, relationships and balance.

Huge knowledge gaps demand educational system reform.

The new global economy poses more complex challenges to workers, requiring higher levels of education, computer literacy, critical thinking, information analysis, and synthesizing skills. However, educational deficiencies have brought America to the edge of a widening knowledge gap. The U.S. is lagging behind educational levels of other industrial nations in several key indicators. U.S. students, for example, still trail students from other developed countries in mathematics and science achievement, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

Even more alarming is that the literacy proficiency of a substantial proportion of the U.S. labor force is limited.
More than forty percent of the labor force perform at the two lowest levels on government literacy scales,1 suggesting that many workers lack the skills needed to interpret, integrate, and compare information using written materials common to the home or workplace. The chasm between the higher demands of a knowledge economy and the educational status of the workforce is deep and must be addressed if the U.S.
is to remain competitive internationally. A thorough reexamination of curriculum and teaching methods as they relate to labor market preparation is needed. Academic and corporate environments must be redesigned to adequately prepare people to function in an information society.

Economy is evolving to a knowledge-based economy

In the last four decades, economic and Technological forces have transformed the U.S. economy from a production-based economy to a service based economy. In the old economy, corporate value and value creation were defined primarily through physical and financial assets. The new economy puts a premium on intellectual capital. However, the life of knowledge and human skills today is shorter than ever, increasing the pressure to remain at the forefront of education and training throughout a career. In the midst of globalization and technological revolution, four-year degrees are just the beginning of a forty-year continuing education. Life-long learning may be considered merely a buzzword today, but it is quickly becoming an imperative.

Productivity in Ramadan Study: Recommendations for Human Resource Departments

For HR departments in non-OIC countries, the challenge falls in balancing the needs of Muslim employees with organizational priorities.  There are a number of reasons why an HR department in a non-OIC country would have an interest in becoming more accommodating to its Muslims employees’ needs during Ramadan.

Productivity in Ramadan Study: Recommendations for Human Resource Departments.

Building 2012 Sales Projections in Uncertain Times | BNET

http://m.bnet.com/blog/smb-sales-advice/building-2012-sales-projections-in-uncertain-times/500 It’s almost that time of year — time for the annual “Battle Royale” of sales forecasting and planning for next year. It is usually linked to that other cherished event, annual budgeting.

I have architected, led, and suffered through these processes for 25 years of my career. During that period, I don’t know if I ever had to create a picture of the future during circumstances of greater uncertainty than we are in now. I imagine that to those either going through it or preparing to go through it, you may feel like buying lottery tickets has just as much potential of accuracy as this process.

The Six Attitudes Leaders Take Towards Social Media

The Six Attitudes Leaders Take Towards Social Media – Anthony J. Bradley and Mark P. McDonald – Harvard Business Review.: Slowly but surely, business leaders are shifting their attitude toward social media — from seeing it as a threat to discovering its very real opportunities.

 

- Anthony J. Bradley and Mark P. McDonald – Harvard Business Review

 

Diagnose and Cure Team Drift

Diagnose and Cure Team Drift – Jesse Lyn Stoner – Harvard Business Review: One of the most common complaints I hear from managers is, “I want to re-energize our team. We used to be cohesive and enjoy working together. Now everyone is focused on their own piece, and we’re so busy we hardly have time to talk with each other anymore.”

By: Jesse Lyn Stoner – Harvard Business Review