Global Diving & Salvage: Operational Consulting and Business Development Strategy for Marine Services

When Global Diving & Salvage, Inc., a leader in marine services, recognized the need to enhance their business development efforts, they sought a partner who could seamlessly integrate into their culture and drive meaningful change. OneAccord provided the expertise and hands-on leadership to transform their approach to sales and marketing.

The Challenge

Global Diving & Salvage had established itself as a reputable player in the marine industry.

However, the company faced challenges in:

Developing a structured and sustainable business development process
Overcoming internal skepticism about the value of proactive sales efforts
Implementing a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to track opportunities
Aligning marketing initiatives with operational goals
Building consensus within the management team on growth priorities

The leadership team recognized that to achieve their 2020 goals, they needed to address these areas with a strategic and culturally sensitive approach.

Our Approach

OneAccord initiated the engagement with a comprehensive assessment to identify key action items and build consensus among the management team. Following this, Principal Richard Brune was embedded into the organization as Vice President of Business Development.

In this role, he:

Conducted sales training tailored to the company’s culture
Developed and implemented a business development cadence
Managed the Marketing group and Sales Executive
Introduced and oversaw the implementation of a CRM system
Organized strategic pursuit efforts for key projects
Facilitated bi-monthly business development meetings to enhance communication and collaboration

By integrating into the senior management team, Richard was able to effect change from within, ensuring that new processes were both practical and sustainable.

The Outcome

The engagement led to significant improvements, including:

Regular bi-monthly business development meetings fostering key personnel collaboration
Active organization of strategic pursuit efforts for key projects
A consistent marketing program enhancing brand awareness and promoting core services
Improved data input into the CRM system for better tracking of revenue opportunities
Increased enthusiasm among managers regarding the business development group’s impact
A cultural shift where “sales” became a valued aspect of the company’s operations

These changes contributed to Global posting one of its top five gross revenue years in 2017, with a strong outlook for 2018 and a substantial percentage of contracted revenue secured.

From the Client

“OneAccord didn’t come in with a cookie-cutter solution. They listened, understood our business, and worked alongside our team to create meaningful change. The improvements weren’t just for the sale—they made us a better company.”

— Devon Grennan, CEO, Global Diving & Salvage, Inc.

Why This Case Matters

Global Diving & Salvage’s experience demonstrates the impact of embedding strategic business development practices within an organization. By aligning sales and marketing efforts with operational goals and fostering internal collaboration, companies can achieve sustainable growth and cultural transformation.