Building Winning BD-Engineering Partnerships in Defense | In The Arena

In this episode, learn how defense companies can close deals faster and build better products by getting business development and engineering on the same page. Vannevar CEO Brett Granberg explains why engineers should be in the room early, how forward deployed engineers shape both products and customer trust, and why time on-site with users drives the best results. Brett and Hayley also discuss avoiding the “services trap,” how to balance conviction with customer needs, and why cross-functional teams consistently win the largest defense deals.

Outline
00:00 What is the ideal BD-engineering relationship?
02:57 Indicators of broken partnerships
04:23 When to bring engineering into sales
05:35 BD involvement in product decisions
07:15 Balancing conviction with customer needs
09:03 Avoiding shiny object syndrome
10:36 Processing customer feedback
13:23 Forward deployed engineer model
15:06 What it means to be a "product company" vs. a "services company"
18:00 When BD goes rogue
20:20 Leadership team dynamics
22:09 Building trust across functions