Their business is new business

These 12 centers have tools, knowledge to help teams win campaigns

BY KATHERINE SOPRANOS

At Integrated Defense Systems, putting together winning campaigns in a highly competitive marketplace, for customers with sophisticated needs, is an enormous, complex task. Where do you start? The Acquire Business Center—a one-stop shop that gives IDS capture teams the support to pursue new business campaigns more efficiently and effectively.

Established by IDS Business Development, Acquire Business Centers provide leadership, expertise, training, processes and tools, and hands-on support for IDS and Phantom Works teams pursuing new business. There are 12 centers at Boeing locations across the United States (see box below).

"The foundation for a winning proposal is laid up front in the campaign," said Mike Scholes, director of IDS New Business Acquisition, who leads the Acquire Business Centers. "We provide comprehensive support for the entire new-business campaign. We're focused on well-executed campaigns that produce winning proposals and grow our business."

The centers, Scholes said, create value by providing expertise along with proven processes and tools, resulting in more efficient and cost-effective use of Boeing resources. The current Integrated Business Acquisition Process includes more than 15 years of lessons learned from the companies that now make up IDS.

The centers are designed so teams can collaboratively work on new business campaigns, across locations if needed, and have everything they need at their fingertips. Resources include

• Industry-leading best practices and hands-on workshops.

• Archived lessons learned, including customer debriefs.

• A library of successful past proposal write-ups.

Employees tasked to lead campaigns are called Capture Team Leaders. The Acquire Business Center has established a development program to train and certify CTLs. Cindy Malawy, IDS director of Business Development Operations, said the program's vision is to identify, attract and develop experienced and skilled IDS people to become CTLs. Previously, team leaders were found by word of mouth. Now, the center has formalized CTL development to ensure these leaders have the needed training and tools.

For Capture Team Leader Van Horn, the Acquire Business Center in Philadelphia has been invaluable. "I'm not sure how you could put proposals together without a function like this," said Horn, director of Business Development for Special Operations Command–Central Command, who leads the campaign team for the Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR-X) proposal. The CSAR-X program is a U.S. Air Force initiative to replace existing CSAR platforms with a modernized and more capable platform. Boeing is proposing the HH-47 aircraft, based on the CH/MH-47 helicopter (see the May 2006 issue of Boeing Frontiers).

"We would not have as good a product if we hadn't had the resources of the center," Horn said. "They provide expertise, processes and tools that really help bring it all together."

katherine.sopranos@boeing.com