AEC Market Masters Benchmarks
$50B+
Projects Built
$10B+
Client Fees Won
1,000+
Strategic Pursuits
85%
Win Rate
Market Masters Benchmarks
$50B+
Projects Built
$10B+
Client Fees Won
1,000+
Strategic Pursuits
85%
Win Rate
Continued Boom or Bust, are You Ready for Major Market Shifts?
It takes strategy, resources & time to ensure continued BD success
“It will be difficult for the U.S. to avoid a recession..." Claudia Sahm, chief economist at New Century Advisors, told TIME. “You put the tariffs together with the downsizing of the federal government, the cutting of the grants that go to government adjacent sectors, and then shutting down immigration into the country. Those all are things that will weigh on [economic] growth.”
Meanwhile, AEC companies in the U.S., Europe, and APAC have had double-digit growth and large backlogs of work under contract but were difficult to staff. Last summer it looked like four years of over the top printing of fiat currency, runaway inflation, and the push for asset-backed currency might cause a major downturn in the AEC market Since then, planning has grown across virtually all markets, but "there will continue to be headwinds to the construction sector".
So what would it look like if the 2008 recession happened again, and would you be ready ? Likely private sector markets would slow first as capital investment is curtailed. Public sector infrastructure would initially continue for one to two years and then slow, with the time to rebound dependent on tax incentives and economic stimulus policies.
And while this happens, backlogs erode, utilization drops, and overhead rates increase. Suddenly, companies that saw no need for bolstering marketing and sales investments wake up and try to figure out "who moved my cheese?"
Whether Boom or Bust, AEC Market Masters is ready to help you strengthen your business development programs, implement strategic initiatives, and coach/train your seller-doers and your full-time business development professionals.
BOSTON, MA – April 9, 2025 — The Dodge Momentum Index (DMI), issued by Dodge Construction Network, receded 6.9% in March to 205.6 (2000=100) from the revised February reading of 220.9. Over the month, commercial planning declined 7.8% while institutional planning fell 5.0%.
“Increased uncertainty around material prices and fiscal policies may have begun to factor into planning decisions throughout March. While planning data has weakened across most nonresidential sectors this month, activity remains considerably higher than year-ago levels and still suggests steady construction activity in mid-2026,” stated Sarah Martin, associate director of forecasting at Dodge Construction Network.
On the commercial side, weaker planning
activity for warehouses, data centers and retail stores drove this
month’s decline. Meanwhile, hotel and office planning continued to
accelerate. On the institutional side, planning activity slowed for
education, healthcare and government buildings. The influence of data
centers on the DMI this year remains substantial. If we remove all data
center projects between 2023 and 2025, commercial planning would be up
4% from year-ago levels, and the entire DMI would be up 12%. While
momentum decelerated for data centers this month, levels of activity
remain very high.
Full-Spectrum BD Program Evaluation, Benchmarking, and Strengthening
At AEC Market-Masters, we craft and execute comprehensive Business Development (BD) Programs tailored to your specific marketing and sales needs. Our approach spans the full spectrum of strategy and detail, ensuring alignment with your firm's objectives. Whether for the entire organization or focused on business groups, service lines, regions, or locations, we develop targeted plans that drive growth and success.
No matter if you're a budding start-up or a seasoned industry leader, we take the time to understand your company's mission, vision, values, plans, and strategies. Our approach involves assessing the strengths and weaknesses of your existing business development processes, systems, team, and resources to ensure sustained success, growth, and deeper market penetration. Additionally, we evaluate your readiness for expanding into new markets, setting the stage for future opportunities.
Driving Quantum Growth through Strategic Pursuits, Sole-Source & Must-Win Programs
AEC Market Masters can propel your firm toward exponential growth. Our Strategic Pursuit Programs are designed to significantly enhance your ability to secure larger projects and programs with consistency. Together, we define clear objectives to amplify construction or fee value by two to ten times ($2X to $10X), achieve win rates of 75% or higher, and maximize marketing return on investment (MROI) to at least 25:1—all within a targeted timeframe of one to three years.
A Strategic Pursuit Program empowers your firm to cultivate a portfolio of viable opportunities—far more than just a wish list—aligned with your strategic and operational goals. Success in individual pursuits hinges on a dedicated, trained pursuit leader who executes a structured, firm-specific capture plan. Key success factors include initiating efforts six months to two years ahead of solicitations, proactively shaping opportunities, conducting Client Analysis℠, and crafting tailored Theme Modular℠ Value Propositions.
AEC Market Masters empowers firms to win major projects and elevate their business development strategies using customized training courses and videos, including the legendary Client Account Analysis© and Theme Modular© Presentations. These two cornerstone courses have shaped the unparalleled growth and success of strategic pursuit programs for top ENR design firms including HDR, Stantec (MWH Global), Jacobs (CH2M-Hill), and Arcadis (Malcolm Pirnie).
For more details on our exclusive offering of Dag Knudsen’s complete training library visit our store at https://www.aecmarketmasters.com/slides
Accelerating Success through Strategic Training and Coaching
AEC Market Masters drives client success through business development leadership, coaching, and customized training designed to produce measurable results. We equip individuals and teams—from beginners to experienced professionals and executives—with the skills needed to excel in leading business lines, services, programs, and projects.
Our training programs, offered both onsite and online, are tailored to meet diverse needs, with options to select training bundles or individual courses. Comprehensive bundles such as Capture Planning for Must-Win Projects and Strategic Pursuit Program Management & Leadership provide hands-on strategies that enhance your team’s ability to secure high-value projects and deliver consistent results.
For firms focused on "must-win" opportunities, our strategic pursuit leadership and coaching empowers your team to significantly improve win rates. Our proprietary à la carte courses, including Client Account Analysis™ and Theme-Modular Process© presentation training, offer the keys to understanding client decision-making and crafting client-centered proposals. When combined with our "CPR Capture Plan" methodology, clients experience higher success rates in winning critical pursuits and securing sole-source contracts.
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