Parallax
Parallax Advanced Research is a 501(c)(3) research organization that delivers innovative research and provides technology, human, and business solutions via The Science of Intelligent Teaming™ for government, industry, and academic clients with critical challenges. Parallax accomplishes this by bringing together top talent with diverse backgrounds from industry, academia, and the government from across Ohio and the United States to collaboratively develop scientific and technological solutions.
Results at a glance
- Sustainable funding increases
- 4-fold increase in project pipeline through-put
- Increased RFPs and won more recompetes
The Challenge
The young scientists and engineers of the Parallax team have varying areas of expertise and are accustomed to working solo within academia and on mission critical projects led by government clients. As a result, they excelled at talking about their specific body of knowledge and ideating novel solutions within those specific bodies of knowledge but fell short when it came to connecting the dots between the client’s critical mission issues and the broader business solutions Parallax offers.
Dennis Andersh, CEO and President, set out to transform Parallax into one of the most collaborative and innovative research corporations in the country. His vision is to connect the right people with the right skill sets to develop a pathway to the best solutions that address the most pressing government and industry needs.
Like team sports, industry and academia are team-oriented sectors. His players needed to master the game. Dennis and the leadership team chose the ValueSelling Framework® as a structured approach to boost conversational skills and build better working relationships.
Business issues
- Develop a sustainable business model with long-term growth across a diverse set of clients
- Facilitate partnerships to connect federal government, academia, and industry
When a ValueSelling Associate brings their own experience and explains how they won deals in similar situations, it adds a lot of credibility to what they are saying. The fact that they have walked in our shoes and can weave stories into the training is extremely valuable and instructive.
The Solution
Virtual training connected geographically distributed teams across Parallax, many of whom were new hires.
Internally, teams now share a common language and vocabulary that facilitates greater understanding and more results-oriented collaboration. Externally, the entire team—from marketing to business development leaders to engineers and scientists—are empowered to have value-focused conversations with clients.
By focusing on active listening and questioning techniques, the engineers and scientists at Parallax Advanced Research help clients further define the issues—enabling more robust solutions that truly address and support the mission issues. By talking with clients, aggregating information, and asking better questions, client-facing teams can produce quality proposals in response to large-scale RFPs.
Meanwhile, senior leadership can focus on strategic initiatives that drive sustainable growth.
The Results
This value-based approach to managing conversations brought the Parallax Advanced Research teams together during the COVID-19 pandemic, facilitated greater customer engagement, and kept projects in the pipeline alive in an increasingly competitive market.
- Sustainable funding increases
- 4-fold increase in project pipeline through-put
- Increased RFPs and won more recompetes
