How to Actually Build a Growth Team (Without Hiring Too Early or Copying a 1998 Playbook)

Most companies don’t have a growth team. They have a collection of well-intentioned people working hard in different directions.

And when things get tight or the market gets weird, that cracks fast.

Building a growth team isn’t about hiring a proposal manager, a BD person, and calling it done. It’s about sequencing, clarity, and not pretending this is still a Shipley flowchart from the late ’90s.

First: What a “Growth Team” Really Is

A growth team isn’t just sales. And it’s definitely not just proposals.

And it’s not “marketing over here” either.

A real growth team is responsible for turning strategy into revenue. That includes:

• Deciding what to pursue
• Positioning the firm before an RFP exists
• Executing when the window opens
• Learning from wins and losses and adjusting

If no one owns that full arc and if positioning, BD, capture, and proposals aren’t pulling in the same direction, you don’t have a growth team. You have handoffs and finger-pointing.

Before You Hire Anyone, Get These Things Straight

This part is boring. It’s also non-negotiable.

If you don’t have these, hiring more people will just scale the chaos.

You need:

• A clear growth strategy. Not aspirational. Actual priorities. Written down.
• Defined pursuit criteria. What you say no to matters more than what you say yes to.
• Decision authority. Someone has to be allowed to make tough calls.
• A repeatable pursuit rhythm. Not a hero-based scramble every time.
• A shared story in the market so BD isn’t explaining who you are from scratch in every conversation.

If you can’t answer “what are we trying to win and why,” stop hiring.

The Order Most Firms Get Wrong

Here’s where I’ll be blunt.

Most firms hire a proposal manager first because proposals are painful. That treats a symptom, not the disease.

The smarter sequence usually looks like this.

1. Growth Leadership (Not a Seller-Doer)

Before anything else, you need someone who owns growth direction. This might be a founder, a principal, or a fractional leader. But someone has to be accountable for:

• Go/no-go decisions
• Priority accounts
• Partner strategy
• How BD, capture, marketing, and proposals fit together

That ownership has to include how the firm shows up in the market, not just who’s selling or writing proposals.

If no one owns the system, everyone just reacts to the next RFP.

What to look for:

• Comfort making hard calls
• Pattern recognition
• Zero ego about credit
• Ability to say “not now” and mean it

2. BD/Account Lead (Relationship + Discipline)

Next, you need someone who can stay in front of accounts consistently.

Not a glad-hander. Not someone to hand out capability statements at a conference.

You want someone who:

• Understands how the government actually buys
• Can hold long-term relationships without chasing RFPs
• Documents intel instead of keeping it in their head
• Is okay with delayed gratification

BD works best when marketing is reinforcing the same story in the background instead of running on a separate calendar.

If they only know how to “sell when there’s an RFP,” keep looking.

3. Capture Capability (Even if it’s Part-Time at First)

Capture is not proposals. It’s also not just BD with a different title.

Capture is where strategy turns into a winnable plan.

This role:

• Shapes win themes
• Aligns partners early
• Influences requirements quietly
• Thinks in tradeoffs, not promises

Strong capture doesn’t invent messaging. It builds on positioning that’s already been established and reinforced in the market.

Early on, this might be a hat someone wears. That’s fine. But someone has to be thinking ahead of the RFP.

If capture starts when the RFP drops, you’re late.

4. Proposal Execution (Only After the Above Exists)

Then, and only then, does it make sense to invest in proposal horsepower.

Proposal teams work best when:

• The strategy is already decided
• The win themes aren’t invented on day one
• SMEs aren’t being asked to save the day

When marketing, BD, and capture are aligned, proposal teams stop being translators and start being executors.

Hiring proposal talent without strategy upstream just turns them into firefighters.

What a Growth Team Needs From the Company

Even the best team fails without support.

You need:

• Leadership alignment. No side deals. No rogue pursuits.
• Time carved out for BD and capture. Not “when you’re free.”
• A culture that values preparation, not just execution.
• Systems that don’t rely on institutional knowledge.
• Marketing measured by its impact on growth priorities, not volume of output.

If growth is treated like extra credit, it will always lose to delivery.

Ditch the Old Playbook

This is not about color teams, compliance checklists, or process theater.

Modern growth is:

• Decision-heavy
• Strategy-led
• Integrated across marketing, BD, capture, and proposals

The old model assumed stable markets and predictable buying patterns. That’s not today’s reality.

The Real Test

If your growth team disappeared for two weeks, would the firm still know:

• What it’s pursuing
• Why those pursuits matter
• What relationships are being built
• How close you are to real opportunities

If not, you don’t need more people. You need a clear plan.

Get the foundation right. Hire in the right order. Build a system people can actually execute.

That’s how growth teams stop being reactive and start winning.