Imagine an AEC firm that reaches the final interview on several promising pursuits and loses them all. The immediate response may be to rewrite the presentation. That might help, but it will not show whether the firm entered too late, proposed work outside its strengths, or missed a concern the client never voiced in the room.
Business development analysis looks across how a firm identifies, pursues, wins, and retains work. To turn that history into better growth decisions, trace how opportunities begin, what shapes selection, and what happens after the firm wins.
Read backward from the interview
Gather a manageable set of recent pursuits, including wins, losses, and no-go decisions. For each, record the client relationship at the outset, how the opportunity arose, the point at which the firm became involved, who influenced selection, the effort spent pursuing it, and the outcome. Keep categories consistent enough to compare, but leave room for a short explanation of what made each pursuit unusual.
An overall win rate can conceal an important difference. The firm might do well with repeat clients and poorly where it first meets an owner at the RFP. That pattern would prompt a different response from an across-the-board presentation overhaul. Before treating it as an explanation, speak with clients and partners about what influenced their decisions. A few losses can suggest a question; they rarely prove a rule.
Look at the work after the win
A successful interview is one point in a longer client relationship. Ask project teams whether the promises made during pursuit matched the experience of working together. Ask clients what gave them confidence, what strained the relationship, and what they may need next. In research reported by the SMPS Foundation in 2025, 87% of surveyed AEC firms said they expected client experience to be their most effective lead-generation tool over the following three to five years. That is an expectation reported by firms, not proof that any one practice improves win rates.
Make one change you can test
The review could lead to a clearer go or no-go process, earlier contact with priority owners, a different role for technical leaders in client relationships, or a change in how proposals are staffed. Choose a specific action and decide what evidence would show whether it is helping. If the apparent pattern rests on only a few pursuits, keep the conclusion tentative.
CMG’s marketing assessments examine strategy, processes, resources, and results. Confidential client interviews add the perspective of the people making the decision. Together, that evidence can show where a firm’s business development system and client relationships need attention.
Your pursuit record is also a record of relationships. Which loss, win, or long-standing client would teach your firm the most if you asked one better question?
If your firm is ready to learn more from its pursuit history, reach out to Larisa to discuss where the analysis should begin.
Source: SMPS Foundation, Moving Insights to Impact, August 14, 2025
Larisa Forester Gilday, CPSM, Assoc. AIA, is a principal consultant with Cameron MacAllister Group. With a background in architecture and an MS in Marketing, she advises AEC firms on market intelligence, marketing and business development, and strategic growth. Her perspective draws on dozens of market studies and hundreds of interviews with owners and industry professionals.