- within Corporate/Commercial Law topic(s)
- in European Union
- in European Union
- in European Union
- in European Union
This is where I am coming from: we have created a new Business Developer position in our firm, and the question came up what this Business Developer will do after he joins our company. I am addressing this question in a systematic way.
This is the starting point: a new Business Developer doesn’t “just sell”. Business Developers build the engine for growth. Their tasks fall into phases, moving from understanding to structuring to executing to scaling.
Phase 1: Understand the Business
The initial Phase 1 of understanding the business takes about 3 weeks, depending on the size of the company and the number of products and services offered. This is all about building a solid foundation before taking action. Instead of rushing into deals or partnerships, a Business Developer uses this time to deeply understand how the company creates value, how it makes money, who its best customers are, and what it can realistically deliver. This phase connects product, market, business model, and operations into one coherent picture, so that any future growth initiatives are based on reality, not assumptions.
1. Understand the product & value proposition
Before doing anything else, a Business Developer must develop a deep understanding of what the company actually offers and why it matters.
This goes beyond memorizing product features or repeating marketing messages. The real task is to uncover the core of value creation: What problem is being solved, who truly experiences that problem, and why customers choose this solution over alternatives.
This means getting clear on the target customer segments, understanding the real (often unstated) reasons behind purchase decisions, and identifying where the company genuinely outperforms competitors.
Without this foundation, every subsequent action—whether partnerships, deals, or market expansion—rests on assumptions rather than reality.
Ask these questions:
- What problem(s) are we solving?
- For whom (customer segments)?
- Why do customers buy (real reasons, not marketing slides)?
- Where does our company win vs our competitors win?
Answering these questions will align you with understanding our value creation deeply.
And one more thing: if you don’t fully understand the jargon used so far in the present article, it is highly recommended that you equip yourself with a small library that explains these terms. There will soon be a separate article about usefull literature available here on my website.
2. Map the current business model
Once the products and their value are clear, the next step is to understand how the company turns that value into money.
A Business Developer needs a clear picture of the existing business model: where revenue comes from, how pricing is structured, which channels are used to reach customers, and which partners are critical to delivery. Just as important is understanding the cost structure: what it takes to deliver the product or service and where margins are made or lost.
This step is about answering a simple but essential question: How does this company actually make money?
Without having this clarity, it is impossible to design growth initiatives that are not only attractive in theory, but viable and scalable in practice.
3. Understand customers & market reality
With the business model of step 2 above in mind, a Business Developer must ground their understanding in real market dynamics, and not on any assumptions.
This starts with identifying who the best customers are, not just the largest or most visible ones. Which customers generate the most value, are easiest to serve, or have the strongest long-term potential? At the same time, it is critical to understand why deals actually close, or why they fail. The real reasons are often very different from what internal teams believe.
Beyond individual deals, the broader market must be mapped: its size, key segments, and how demand is distributed. Equally important is understanding how buying decisions are made: who is involved, what the process looks like, and where influence truly sits.
Without a clear view of customer reality, Business Development risks chasing opportunities that look attractive on paper but don’t convert in practice.
4. Learn internal capabilities (VERY important)
One of the most critical, and also most overlooked, tasks for a new Business Developer is to understand what the company can actually deliver.
It is not enough to know what is being sold, you also need to know how it is fulfilled. This includes identifying operational constraints, capacity limits, and any bottlenecks that could affect delivery. Where does the organization struggle? What slows things down? What breaks under pressure?
Equally important is understanding the economics behind delivery. Margins can vary significantly across products, services, and customer types. Without this insight, it is easy to pursue deals that generate revenue but destroy profitability.
This step acts as a reality check. It ensures that growth initiatives are grounded in operational truth, so that Business Development builds opportunities the company can deliver, not promises it cannot keep.
In a law firm with standardized products and services, this step is less about complex operations and more about discipline around scope, capacity, and profitability.
A Business Developer must clearly understand what each standardized service actually includes—and just as importantly, what it does not include. The biggest risks are not technical limitations, but scope creep and hidden complexity. Even small deviations from the standard offering can disrupt workflows, overload lawyers, and reduce efficiency.
Operational constraints typically show up as:
- Limited lawyer capacity (especially senior time)
- Bottlenecks in review or approval processes
- Delays caused by non-standard client requests
Equally important is understanding which services are truly profitable. Some offerings may generate revenue but require disproportionate effort, especially when clients are a poor fit or demand customization.
In this context, understanding internal capabilities means knowing:
- Which clients fit the standardized model
- Which services are smooth and scalable
- Where deviations create friction or margin loss
This acts as a guardrail for Business Development. It ensures that growth comes from repeatable, well-fitting engagements, not from taking on work that looks attractive upfront but is difficult or unprofitable to deliver.
Phase 2: Diagnose Growth Opportunities
Phase 2 of diagnosing growth opportunities takes about 3 weeks time, similar to Phase 1. This phase is about moving from understanding to insight. Only after having grasped how the business works, a Business Developer analyzes where and how the company can grow. This involves identifying which parts of the business are performing well or underperforming, uncovering the most promising growth levers (such as expanding within existing markets, entering new ones, or leveraging partnerships), and assessing the key risks involved. The goal is not to jump into action yet, but to clearly define where growth should come from, and again, all this is based on evidence, and not on intuition.
5. Analyze current growth performance
Before identifying new opportunities, a Business Developer must first understand where growth is already coming from, and where it is not.
This means breaking down revenue streams to see which segments are driving performance and which are stagnating or declining. Not all growth is equal; some customer groups or markets may be far more valuable or scalable than others. At the same time, it’s essential to evaluate the effectiveness of existing channels. Which channels consistently generate results, and which consume resources without delivering meaningful returns?
Ask the following questions:
- Where is revenue coming from?
- Which segments are growing vs stagnating?
- Which channels work / don’t?
This analysis provides a factual baseline. It reveals what is already working, what is underperforming, and where attention should—or should not—be focused moving forward.
6. Identify growth levers
With a clear view of current performance, the next step is to identify where future growth can come from. This requires structured thinking about the different ways a business can expand.
Growth can come from increasing sales within existing markets, entering new customer segments or geographies, developing new products or services, or leveraging partnerships to accelerate any of these moves. Each of these paths represents a different direction for growth, with its own opportunities and risks.
You need to be familiar with the Ansoff-Matrix in order to better orientate yourself:
- Market penetration → sell more to existing customers
- Market development → enter new segments/geographies
- Product development → new offerings
- Partnerships → accelerate any of the above
At this stage, the role of Business Development is not yet to execute, but to clarify which directions are most promising. It’s important to distinguish between where the company should grow and how that growth will be achieved—because defining the direction comes first, and execution follows.
7. Map key risks
As a final step of Phase 2, and Before committing to any growth initiative, a Business Developer must assess the fundamental risks behind it. Not all opportunities that look attractive on paper will work in reality, and scaling the wrong idea can be costly.
There are three core dimensions to evaluate.
- First, demand risk: do customers actually want this, and is there real willingness to buy?
- Second, feasibility risk: can the company realistically deliver the product or service at the required quality and scale?
- Third, viability risk: does the initiative generate sustainable profit once costs are fully accounted for?
Strong Business Developers think in these terms early. They don’t just chase opportunities but they test whether those opportunities can succeed before investing in scaling them.
Phase 3: Design Growth Moves
The Phase 3 is about Design Growth Moves and it lasts about 4 weeks. This Phase 3 is about turning insights into concrete, actionable plans. After identifying where growth should come from and understanding the associated risks, a Business Developer begins to define specific initiatives, such as entering a new market, forming a partnership, or launching a new channel, and he translates them into structured growth moves. This includes shaping clear concepts, building business cases, and aligning stakeholders internally to ensure feasibility and support. The goal of this phase is to move from analysis to decision-ready opportunities that can be executed with confidence.
8. Define priority growth plays
With a clear understanding of opportunities and risks, the next step is to define a small number of focused growth initiatives. This step can also be called priority growth plays.
These are not vague ideas, but concrete moves the company can execute. For example, this could involve:
- entering a new market through a local distributor,
- forming a strategic partnership to access new customers,
- opening a new sales channel such as online or enterprise sales, or
- reshaping the offering through bundling or pricing adjustments.
The key is prioritization. Rather than pursuing many directions at once, a Business Developer selects the few initiatives with the highest potential impact and feasibility. These become the foundation for execution in the next phase.
9. Build business cases
Once priority growth plays are defined, they need to be translated into clear business cases. This step ensures that decisions are based on logic and evidence—not intuition.
A solid business case outlines the expected revenue potential, the cost required to deliver the offering, and the time it will take to reach meaningful scale. It also highlights the key risks involved, from market uncertainty to operational challenges.
The goal is not to create perfect forecasts, but to make your assumptions explicit and comparable. This allows the company to prioritize initiatives that are not only attractive in theory, but realistic and worth pursuing in practice.
10. Align internally
Even the best growth strategy will fail without internal alignment. Before execution begins, a Business Developer must ensure that all relevant teams are on the same page.
This includes working closely with sales, marketing, product, operations, and finance to create a shared understanding of the initiative—what is being pursued, why it matters, and how it will be executed. Each function brings a different perspective, and misalignment between them can quickly derail even the most promising opportunities.
Business Development is not a solo activity. It sits at the intersection of multiple functions, and its success depends on aligning them behind a common goal. Without that alignment, execution becomes fragmented, and as a result, growth stalls.
By completing this step 10, you are 2 months into your new job as a Business Developer. Up to now, your job was only about analysis und documenting what you have observed and – more important – what your current assumptions are.
Phase 4: Execute Deals & Partnerships (Months 2–6)
Phase 4 is about executing deals & Partnerships, and this phase will take about 4 months time. This is where strategy turns into real market action. After defining and aligning on growth initiatives, the Business Developer begins sourcing opportunities, building relationships, negotiating terms, and closing deals that bring those initiatives to life. This phase is not just about signing agreements—it’s about structuring partnerships and deals in a way that is commercially sound and operationally feasible. The focus shifts from planning to execution, ensuring that growth moves are translated into tangible results in the market.
11. Source opportunities
With the strategy defined and alignment in place, the focus shifts to actively sourcing opportunities in the market.
This involves identifying the right partners, potential clients, and distribution channels that can bring the growth initiatives to life. It’s not about generating random leads, but about building a targeted pipeline of strategic opportunities, ones that align with the company’s priorities and have real potential to scale.
At this stage, quality matters more than quantity. A strong Business Developer concentrates on the few opportunities that can materially impact the business, rather than chasing volume without direction.
12. Develop relationships
Next step: sourcing opportunities was only the beginning. Turning them into real deals requires strong relationship building.
A Business Developer must identify and engage the right stakeholders on the other side, understanding who influences decisions and who ultimately drives them. This involves mapping stakeholders carefully and building connections across multiple levels of an organization, not relying on a single contact.
Over time, the focus shifts to trust. Deals rarely happen based on logic alone; they happen when there is confidence in both the value offered and the people behind it. Consistent engagement, credibility, and follow-through are what turn initial conversations into lasting partnerships.
13. Negotiate & structure deals
Turning opportunities into successful agreements requires more than closing, it requires careful deal structuring.
A Business Developer must shape the commercial and operational terms in a way that works for both sides. This includes defining pricing models, setting up revenue-sharing mechanisms where relevant, and clearly outlining the scope of what will be delivered. Just as important is the allocation of risk: who is responsible for what, and under which conditions.
Well-structured deals create clarity and alignment from the start. They ensure that expectations are realistic, incentives are aligned, and the partnership has a solid foundation for execution.
13.(b) A Side-Note on “Deals” in Standardized Service Businesses
In a law firm like ours, with standardized products and services, Business Development looks different from classic deal-making. There are fewer fully customized agreements to negotiate, and much of the core offering, such as scope, process, and pricing, is already defined.
But that doesn’t mean there is no “deal.” It simply shifts in nature.
Instead of designing agreements from scratch, Business Development focuses on matching the right clients with the right services under the right conditions. The key questions are not “What can we negotiate?” but “Is this the right client?” and “Is this the right offering for them?”
There is still room for structuring, such as around scope boundaries, pricing adjustments, bundling, timelines, or long-term engagement models such as retainers. However, the real leverage lies earlier: in selecting high-quality clients, positioning the right service at the right moment, and building relationships that lead to repeatable, scalable work.
In this context, strong Business Development is less about closing deals and more about designing a portfolio of the right clients and engagements.
14. Close deals
Closing a deal is the moment where opportunity turns into commitment. It involves converting well-qualified opportunities into signed agreements that formalize the relationship and set the stage for execution.
However, strong Business Development goes beyond simply “winning” the deal. It ensures that what has been agreed is clear, realistic, and executable. This means aligning expectations on both sides, confirming that the organization can deliver as promised, and avoiding hidden assumptions that could cause issues later.
A deal is only truly successful if it can be delivered smoothly and profitably, and not just signed.
In a law firm with standardized services like ours, closing a deal is less about negotiating complex terms and more about confirming fit and formalizing the engagement.
At this stage, the focus is on converting a well-qualified opportunity into a paying mandate. And an important prerequisite is to ensure that the client clearly understands which service they are buying, what is included, and under what conditions. Because the offering is standardized, the emphasis shifts from negotiation to clarity and alignment.
Crucially, closing the deal also means ensuring that the engagement is executable. This involves verifying that the client’s needs truly match the defined service, that expectations are realistic, and that there is no hidden scope that could lead to friction later.
In this context, a “good” deal is not one that is heavily negotiated. It is one that is clean, well-scoped, and easy to deliver profitably.
Phase 5: Ensure Execution Works (Critical but overlooked)
Phase 5 is about making sure that what was sold can actually be delivered smoothly and profitably. After deals are signed, a Business Developer must bridge the gap between commercial agreements and operational reality. This is for aligning internal teams, clarifying expectations, and monitoring early delivery to catch issues before they escalate. This phase is often neglected, but it is where many growth initiatives fail: not because the deal was wrong, but because execution breaks down. Strong Business Development doesn’t stop at closing. It ensures that the promised value is truly delivered.
15. Bridge BD ↔ Operations
Closing a deal is only the beginning—the real work starts when it needs to be delivered. A critical responsibility of Business Development is to bridge the gap between what was agreed commercially and what must happen operationally.
This involves translating the deal into a clear execution plan: what needs to be delivered, by whom, and under which conditions. At the same time, expectations must be aligned internally so that all teams share the same understanding of scope, timelines, and priorities.
Done well, this step prevents overpromising and ensures that commitments made to the client can be fulfilled without friction. It turns agreements into actionable work—and protects both delivery quality and profitability.
In a law firm with standardized products and services, bridging Business Development and operations is less about translating complex custom deals and more about ensuring clean handover and strict adherence to defined scope.
This means confirming that the client engagement fits exactly within the predefined service package, clearly documenting what has been agreed, and ensuring the legal team understands the mandate without ambiguity. Because services are standardized, even small deviations or informal promises can create disproportionate friction.
The key responsibility is to prevent scope creep and misalignment. This involves making sure that nothing has been implicitly promised outside the standard offering, that timelines and expectations are realistic, and that the internal team is fully aligned before work begins.
In this context, strong Business Development protects execution by keeping deals clean, standardized, and operationally straightforward. This makes sure that delivery remains efficient, predictable, and profitable.
16. Monitor early delivery
After a deal is handed over to operations, Business Development’s role is not finished. The early phase of delivery is critical, as this is where assumptions are tested against reality.
A Business Developer should closely monitor whether the promised value is actually being delivered to the client, whether margins align with expectations, and whether any operational issues are emerging. Small misalignments at this stage can quickly grow into larger problems if left unaddressed.
By staying involved early on, Business Development can identify gaps, adjust expectations if needed, and ensure that the engagement is on track. This protects both client satisfaction and the long-term viability of the growth initiative.
Phase 6: Scale What Works
Phase 6 is about turning successful individual deals or initiatives into repeatable, scalable growth mechanisms. After validating that certain clients, channels, or engagement models deliver value and profitability, the focus shifts to standardizing them—creating playbooks, refining processes, and expanding them systematically. Instead of reinventing the wheel each time, Business Development builds structures that allow the company to grow efficiently and consistently. This phase transforms isolated wins into sustainable growth engines.
17. Standardize successful deals
Once certain deals or engagement models prove successful, the next step is to make them repeatable.
Instead of treating each deal as a one-off effort, a Business Developer identifies patterns that work, specific client types, service combinations, pricing structures, or delivery approaches, and he turns them into standardized models. These can then be documented as playbooks that guide future opportunities.
This shift from ad hoc execution to structured repetition is what enables scale. It allows the organization to replicate success more efficiently, reduce uncertainty, and grow without reinventing the process each time.
In a law firm with standardized products and services, this step is less about inventing new deal structures and more about refining and reinforcing what already works.
Standardization already exists at the service level, but Business Development adds another layer: identifying which client types, use cases, and engagement models consistently lead to smooth delivery and strong margins. These patterns can then be formalized into playbooks, for example, which clients to prioritize, how to position specific service packages, or how to structure recurring engagements like retainers.
The goal is not to standardize the legal work itself—that is already done—but to standardize the commercial approach: how opportunities are qualified, how services are matched to client needs, and how engagements are set up for success.
In this context, scaling means becoming increasingly selective and systematic—so the firm repeatedly attracts the right clients, sells the right services, and delivers them efficiently.
18. Build scalable channels
Once successful patterns are identified, the next step is to scale them through structured channels.
This means moving beyond one-off efforts and building systems that can grow over time. Partnerships evolve into broader networks, key client relationships are developed into structured account programs, and individual sales efforts are turned into repeatable channels supported by clear processes.
The goal is to shift from manual, deal-by-deal growth to systematic expansion. By building channels that are organized and scalable, Business Development enables the company to grow more efficiently—without relying solely on individual effort.
In a law firm with standardized products and services, building scalable channels is less about creating complex sales infrastructures and more about systematizing how the right clients consistently find and engage with your offerings.
Instead of relying on individual relationships or ad hoc outreach, Business Development focuses on creating repeatable pathways to qualified clients. This could mean turning a few successful referral partners into a structured referral network, developing key clients into ongoing programs with recurring work, or establishing clear go-to-market approaches for specific service packages.
Because your services are standardized, they are inherently scalable—if the inflow of clients is equally structured. The goal is therefore to move from opportunistic client acquisition to predictable demand generation, where the firm repeatedly attracts the same types of high-fit clients through well-defined channels.
In this context, scaling is not about selling more aggressively—it is about making it easier for the right clients to enter the system, choose the right service, and engage in a way that is efficient for both sides.
19. Feed insights back into strategy
As growth initiatives are executed and scaled, Business Development must continuously learn from the results and feed those insights back into strategy.
This means systematically evaluating what is working, what is not, and where the company should focus its efforts going forward. Ask these questions:
- Which clients convert and stay?
- Which services scale smoothly?
- Which channels deliver consistent results, and which do not?
The goal is to create a feedback loop between execution and strategy. Instead of treating each initiative in isolation, Business Development uses real-world outcomes to refine priorities, double down on what works, and eliminate what doesn’t. This is what turns growth from trial-and-error into a disciplined, evolving system.
Conclusion: What Separates Average vs Strong BD
Not all Business Development is created equal. The difference between average and strong performance lies not in how many deals are closed, but in how growth is designed.
Average Business Developers focus primarily on closing deals and generating short-term revenue. They chase opportunities without fully considering whether the company can deliver effectively or profitably. As a result, they often create growth that looks good on paper but breaks down in execution.
Strong Business Developers take a different approach. They design growth systems rather than isolated deals. They balance revenue potential with feasibility and profitability, ensuring that what is sold can be delivered smoothly. They connect strategy with execution, aligning the organization and building structures that enable repeatable, scalable growth over time.
In essence, Business Development is not just about selling. Business Development is about building the engine of growth.
At its core, the role of a new Business Developer is to understand how the company creates value, identify where it can grow, structure opportunities, close deals, and turn those into scalable growth mechanisms.
IP Lawyer Tools by Martin Schweiger
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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