What if the Floodgates Actually Open? Would You Be Ready?

What if the Floodgates Actually Open? Would You Be Ready?

A while back, we wrote about bracing for a slowdown—how to stay level-headed when your core markets start softening and you’re staring down a potential dip. But what happens if the opposite starts to happen?

What if the signs start popping up that good times—seriously good times—are about to hit?

Maybe it doesn’t look like it today. Maybe you’re still working through slow-to-sign clients or stalled projects. But in this industry, the old rule applies: Expect the unexpected—or at least be prepared for it.

Because sometimes—without warning—a sector takes off. Funding gets unlocked. Infrastructure dollars hit the streets. Developers come rushing back. Clients start calling with more work, not less.

And if that happens, will you be ready?

Not “scrambling-to-keep-up” ready. Not “let’s-panic-and-throw-people-at-it” ready. But strategically ready to capture opportunity, handle the surge, and grow your firm without wrecking your operations or burning out your team.

In any case, here’s your playbook for that side of the coin:

Start listening, not just looking. If you wait until the market is obviously booming, you’re already late. The best signals aren’t in the news—they’re in your conversations:

• A long-term client quietly mentions “big plans” next year.
• A developer who’s been cautious starts asking, “How fast can you ramp up if we greenlight this?”
• A public agency that’s been gridlocked on funding suddenly floats a new bond proposal.

Your PMs, client managers, and BD folks are the best sensors you’ve got. Tune in. Ask:

• What’s changing? 
• What are you hearing? 
• What feels different?

Under-the-radar buzz often shows up months before the headlines do.

Pinpoint where you can (and should) grow. When you sense the floodgates giving way, don’t just stand in front of them. Pull out a whiteboard and map:

• Which clients are ready to move fast and big?
• Which service lines will be in high demand? Not every speciality scales equally.
• Which internal teams can stretch and which will need help? You can’t strengthen everything, so prioritize.

Don’t try to double everything overnight—just know where to focus, so when you actually do step on the gas, you’re heading in the right direction.

Address your fundamental constraints. Surges magnify opportunity—and your bottlenecks, too. So, ask yourself now: What will break first if demand spikes?

• Proposal bandwidth?
• Permit expertise?
• Contracting processes?
• Technology systems?
• Leadership decision-making?

Now is the time to unclog, simplify, and speed up the machinery—not when you’re already buried in work.

Line up scalable partnerships. Hiring is slow. Onboarding is slower. So, before you rush to post a hundred job listings, ask: Who can help you scale quickly?

• Trusted subconsultants?
• Peer firms for joint ventures?
• Strategic vendor relationships?

Pre-wire relationships before you need them so you can quickly capitalize when the tempo picks up.

Sharpen your go/no-go criteria now. When a boom starts in earnest, temptation is everywhere. Before your target markets boil over, sharpen your go/no-go filters. Decide:

• What kinds of projects and clients do you want to pursue?
• Where are you willing to stretch and for what reason(s)—and where are you not?
• What minimum margins or terms are non-negotiable?

Document your policies and share them with your leaders. Once the rush hits, the easiest mistake is saying yes to everything—only to regret it later when you’re stuck with bad contracts, thin margins, or clients who drain your team.

Align your leadership on growth strategy. In most AE firms, the conversation around growth usually goes like this:

• One partner says, “Let’s go for it.”
• Another says, “Whoa, slow down.”
• A third says, “Do whatever you want, just don’t ask me for help.”

Sound familiar?

When you sense a boom is coming, it’s time for a leadership alignment session.

• How aggressive do you want to be?
• Where are you willing to invest?
• How much risk are you willing to take on?

If you wait to hash this out when the work is already flying through the door, you’ll be back on your heels.

You can’t control if the market takes off—but you can control how ready you are when it does. So yes, keep an eye on the soft spots in your backlog. But don’t sleep on the possibility that things could flip the other way.

To prepare your firm for any kind of weather, contact Mark Goodale at 508.254.3914 or [email protected].