Dag Knudsen:
A Man Who “Walks His Talk.”

Dag Knudsen, P.E. (retired*), Fellow ACEC** is teaching America’s design and construction professionals a better way to create productive presentations and proposals and deal with price issues. As a result, practitioners experience dramatically increased win and capture rates, to wit:

“	I have not lost an interview in the last three years.” —Consulting Engineer
“	Dag, your process is a ‘winner.’ We’re now 3 for 3.” This was stated 8 weeks after the seminar. —D. M. Anaheim, CA

Your seminar leader offers extensive (40 years +) experience with business development and sales in private practice AND in private industry. He knows how to win when competition is tough. Clients have verified this, to wit:

The nations largest and most successful professional and construction organizations have benefited from Dag’s proven methods in business development. How? They have increased their win rates by training their technical staffs in the process known as Theme-Modular™ persuasive communication methodology, to wit:

Dag has over 40 years in sales of professional services, systems, software, and products.

Dag’s primary focus is on teaching effective sales communication to design and construction professionals.

Experience

Highlights show extensive engineering centered business development experience:

• Engineering graduate of Oregon State University in 1966.
• Ten years with various positions in the Marketing & Sales Department of Leeds & Northrup Company, a former major international custom systems manufacturer.
• Ten year as principal and co-owner of EMA, Inc., a management and consulting engineering firm. Held position as Sr. Vice President responsible for marketing and business development that contributed to a 10 year average annual growth rate of 35%.
• Principal owner of Dag Knudsen, Inc. since 1985.
• Licensed Professional Engineer 1977 - 2008, now retired as a PE.

Activities

Highlights show consistent contributions to the technical field:

• Water Environment Federation: Member of its National Program Committee (1979-1984) and its Technical Practices Committee (Chairman of committee producing Manual of Practice OM-6) (1982-1984).
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (Sr. Member) and its Power Engineering (past) and Communication Societies.
• Society of Marketing Professional Services, Speaker at its National (1987, 1991 and 1994) and numerous regional and local meetings.
• American Council of Engineering Companies: Moderator of the Council’s video on Value Based Compensation, speaker at National Conferences (1986, 1989, 1992, 1994, 2003), former member of its Procurement Committee. Chaired subcommittee producing a QBS informational video.
• Consulting Engineers Council of Minnesota, Member of its Board of Directors (1988-1990). Active in committees, including Committee on Qualification Based Selection.
• Chair of the Minnesota Coalition for Qualification Based Selection, Inc. 1992-1993. Board member 1992-1996.
• Presenter at the American Public Works Association’s 1998 Internationally transmitted Satellite conference on “Selection and use of Consultants.”
• Member American Council of Engineering Companies of Minnesota, American Council of Engineering Companies, National Society of Professional Engineers, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

Authorships

• “Value Based Compensation for Design Services.” Presented at the Fédération Internationale Des Ingénieurs Conseils (FIDIC) 1989.
• “Qualification Based Selection of Design Professionals,” a paper.
• Contributor to two books on Management and Automation.
• Audio cassette on Qualification Based Selection (out of print).
• Author/co-author of 12 technical papers and numerous business development papers, published in proceedings in U.S. and abroad.
• Six-cassette audio tape album on Business Development (out of print).
• Audio cassette on Pro-active Positioning, the Key to Profitable Wins (out of print).

Professional Recognition

• Elected to the College of Fellows of the American Council of Engineering Companies for his “achievement of distinction in the nations’ largest consulting engineering organization.”
• Recipient of “The Tom Roche Motivation Award” for his long term contribution to the American Council of Engineering Companies /Minnesota.
• Recipient of the Presidents Award “in recognition of the significant contribution of time and effort for the benefit of the American Council of Engineering Companies/ Minnesota”(1990-1991)

Presentations

Frequent presenter on technical and business development topics at ACEC (national and local), SMPS (national and local), APWA, WEF, NSPE (national and local), National Institute of Governmental Purchasing, FIDIC (Fédération Internationale Des Ingénieurs Conseils), and at overseas conferences.

Miscellaneous

• Native of Norway
• Member Institute of General Semantics

History of Experience and Results

Dag’s sales and marketing career is divided into learning, practicing, and teaching periods. In 1966 he graduated from Oregon State University with a BSEE. He spent 10 years in industry-to-industry sales. Customer focus was the steel, cement, manufacturing and electric utility industries. then 10 years in consulting engineering, with the primary clients being government, before he started to teach his flag-ship Winning Presentations seminar.

In his learning years Dag was faced with product and systems pricing that invariably was higher than the competition’s prices. He therefore learned how to communicate the value of the price. He also participated in achieving up to 70% market share in custom high-end automation systems. These experiences formed the foundation for his practicing years during which he participated in producing win rates in the range of 60 to 79.6% (yes, never reached 80%) and creating a new market with 60%± market share. To date, Dag’s clients continue to report outstanding results when they practice what he now teaches, as indicated by the quotes in the right hand column of the graph.

* Dag Knudsen was a Licensed Professional Engineer (1977 - 2008), now retired as a PE. He continues to deliver his flag-ship seminar.

** He was also elected to the College of Fellows of the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) for his “achievement of distinction in the nations’ largest consulting engineering organization.”

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