Business Development Metrics

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Measuring What Matters

Tracking the wrong numbers can give a false sense of progress. Effective business development metrics focus on outcomes that actually drive growth—qualified leads, meaningful conversations, and conversion rates—rather than vanity measures like the number of emails sent.

Balancing Short- and Long-Term

Some metrics capture immediate wins, like proposals submitted or contracts signed, while others reflect longer-term health, such as client retention and cross-selling opportunities. Successful firms balance both horizons, ensuring today’s activity builds tomorrow’s stability.

Creating Accountability Through Data

Metrics are most valuable when they are visible and tied to accountability. Transparent dashboards and regular reviews keep teams aligned, highlight where support is needed, and reinforce a culture where progress is measured and celebrated.

suggested KPIs for this topic

These KPIs help you evaluate how effectively your firm pursues work, allocates BD resources, and converts opportunities into profitable projects. They measure discipline, strategic focus, and the real return on your BD investments.

bd investment & return

  • Track total BD + proposal spending quarterly and annually.
  • Calculate BD investment per dollar of revenue won.
  • Monitor proposal cost by project type and client type.
  • Compare high-investment pursuits to their eventual margin and write-off results.
  • Ensure BD investment aligns with strategic client and sector priorities, not scattered interests.

capture ratio & win rate

  • Track win rate by count and by total dollar value.
  • Calculate capture ratio (pursued vs. won) across sectors and project sizes.
  • Monitor win rates for strategic clients vs. new clients.
  • Identify segments with declining win rates early and take corrective action.
  • Analyze whether losses stem from pricing, relationships, solution fit, or presentation clarity.

pursuit activity & pipeline health

  • Track number of pursuits per quarter by type, sector, and size.
  • Ensure the mix includes both near-term revenue and long-term strategic opportunities.
  • Monitor the balance between proactive pursuits and reactive RFP responses.
  • Calculate average time spent on dead-end pursuits and reduce waste over time.
  • Review pursuit quality regularly — not just quantity.

project strengths & weaknesses (profitability patterns)

  • Identify the project types, clients, and sectors with the highest margins and multipliers.
  • Identify the project types consistently producing weak results, low multipliers, or high write-offs.
  • Classify pursuits into “strength,” “neutral,” or “weakness” categories before bidding.
  • Increase pursuit focus where strengths align with strategy and market timing.
  • Reduce or eliminate pursuits in historically unprofitable categories unless strategic exceptions apply.

utilization, write-offs & financial health

  • Monitor utilization by discipline and by project type.
  • Track write-offs by project manager, sector, and client.
  • Review multiplier health for each project type regularly.
  • Measure the ratio of billable vs. non-billable BD time.
  • Use BD metrics alongside delivery metrics — not in isolation.

early awareness & capture planning

  • Track how many projects you learn about before they hit the street.
  • Measure how early you begin capture planning (months before RFP).
  • Ensure each strategic pursuit has clear early actions (intel, relationship-building, positioning).
  • Monitor which capture activities correlate with higher win rates.
  • Evaluate how often “early awareness” turns into “early influence.”

Choose a KPI from each category to strengthen your firm’s BD discipline, sharpen pursuit focus, improve win rates, and ensure your resources are spent on opportunities that produce the highest strategic and financial returns.

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