Here you will find a series of articles dealing with key strategic issues affecting professional services firms.

The articles have been published in a broad range of specialist journals and magazines.

Hed2Head, the blog of Hedley Consulting available at www.hed2head.com, may also be of interest. Complementing our longer articles, master classes and knowledge pieces, Hed2Head provides regular snapshots and opinion on the latest market developments and emerging trends.

The Challenges Of Leadership Are Different To The Challenges Of Management
Published in Managing Partner magazine
March 2016
Law firm leaders face many challenges and carry huge responsibilities. Decision making that will define the future of their firms, for better or for worse, rests on their shoulders. They must develop, evaluate, shape, and articulate a vision and strategy in ways which engage and motivate others. They need the ability to build a broad and deep consensus so that the mandate they carry out is robust.
PDF version     HTML version

The Cultural Dimensions Of Leveraging Institutional Knowledge
Published in Managing Partner magazine
December 2015 / January 2016
Many law firms position themselves as having a client-centred strategy but fail to embrace knowledge sharing about clients and relationships. Generally, it is not a paucity of systems which prevents firms from capitalising on their client knowledge. Whilst systems will drive speed and efficiency, it is attitudes that drive effectiveness and enable firms to fulfil the potential of their client base. The term ‘knowledgeability’ best describes the attitudinal and cultural shifts that are needed. Knowledgeability is a collective term for the many techniques by which a firm’s latent knowledge can be transformed into business assets. The key to realising this opportunity is to shape culture to prioritise the sharing of knowledge and relationships.
PDF version     HTML version

Team Morale Is Directly Linked To The Ability To Deliver Differentiated Client Services
Published in Managing Partner magazine
November 2015
In previous articles, I have written about how the lack of any meaningful differentiation between law firms on criteria that are of value to clients leads inexorably to price-driven competition. When we can see no difference between the services on offer, we buy the cheapest available. The same psychology plays out in the employer brand arena. Firms with only the blunt instrument of the salary cheque in their differentiation armoury are ill equipped to attract, secure and retain the best talent.
PDF version     HTML version

Horizon Scanning To Identify And Capitalise On New Growth Opportunities
Published in Managing Partner magazine
October 2015
Ted Levitt, the economist and business thinker who penned the game-changing Marketing Myopia in 1960, commented that “the future belongs to people who see possibilities before they become obvious”. His words capture the essence of the challenge faced by many legal professionals. In a world where the pace of change is quickening and the future appears uncertain, how can firms identify the new markets that will define their sustainability and success?
PDF version     HTML version

A Strategic Perspective On Winning More Business Through Pitches
Published in Managing Partner magazine
September 2015
Law firms are being subjected to evermore demanding pitch and tendering processes. Larger firms have teams dedicated to the winning of such business, whilst smaller firms tend to have a client partner who leads the firm’s response to such opportunities. Across the spectrum, there are some overall guidelines which, if followed, can help to improve win rates.
PDF version     HTML version

A Knowledge-led Approach to Business Development is Key to Law Firm Resilience
Published in Managing Partner magazine
July / August 2015
There is a nexus between business development and knowledge management that few firms exploit to the maximum; indeed, in many cases, they do not actively exploit at all. When boiled down to its base elements, all that a law firm does is leverage knowledge and relationships. The key strategic question is how to unearth and use the latent knowledge embedded in the relationships between the firm and its clients, prospects, contacts, intermediaries, people and wider stakeholders.
PDF version     HTML version

Using Scenario Planning to Map Your Firm’s and Your Clients’ Risks and Opportunities
Published in Managing Partner magazine
June 2015
We live in an increasingly uncertain world. In order to survive and prosper, firms must be nimble and adaptive. They need to develop the capability to anticipate the future in a dynamic way in order to shepherd their resources to maximum effect and select the best-fit markets on which to focus. An acid test of the efficacy of any strategy is the way in which it is able to accommodate and respond to uncertainty and unforeseen risks as they emerge over time.
PDF version     HTML version

Becoming Change-able is the Key to Law Firm Success
Published in Managing Partner magazine
May 2015
I am often asked ‘what is the most important capability that any management team should focus on developing in its people?’ My answer is always the same: it is the means to bring about change – to behaviours, to practices, to systems and structures. Having the ability to adapt to a new set of opportunities or challenges places a law firm in a position to control its environment. An inability to change means that the organisation is beholden to the market.
PDF version     HTML version

Using a Competitive Perspective to Chart Your Law Firm’s Strategy
Published in Managing Partner magazine
April 2015
The core purpose of any strategy is to create sustainable competitive advantage. A critical strategic discussion centres on the choice of markets in which to compete and the kinds of activities which are involved in such markets. Several models exist to chart market attractiveness and these tend to map the size and future potential of a market against the firm’s relative competitive strength (i.e. its ability to take advantage of latent opportunities). What this means in practice is that the strategy team needs to be building a picture of the firm’s ability to perform in the context of others targeting the same markets.
PDF version     HTML version

Using Proxies to Differentiate and Build Confidence in Your Law Firm
Published in Managing Partner magazine
March 2015
Choosing between law firms is difficult. For many clients, even those with in-depth knowledge of the profession, the decision to appoint a firm is laden with risks. These centre on three factors in the client's mind; that the service being procured is complex; its costs are potentially high; and the consequences of things going wrong may be very significant. Research indicates that reducing risks and building trust between a firm and its clients are critical. It follows that the types of client relationship development activities which work well are those that directly address these concerns.
PDF version     HTML version

Use Strategic Focus to Dominate a Market
Published in Managing Partner magazine
February 2015
High performing firms share one characteristic. They all have focus - they know what they are in business to do and not do. Their unwavering focus is expressed through a defined group of target clients or industries, legal practice areas, jurisdictions or market places.
PDF version     HTML version

Investing in the Partners of the Future
Published in Managing Partner magazine
December 2014 / January 2015
There was a time when, in order to be invited to join a UK partnership, the prerequisites were good lawyering skills, a long tenure at the firm and to be seen as a "good egg" by the other partners. An aspiration for partnership was assumed and firms ran themselves profitably with minimal management intervention. This model was founded in a world with no price competition, minimal client pressure and limited requirements for efficient operations.
PDF version     HTML version

Answering the Big Strategic Questions with Honesty and Objectivity
Published in Managing Partner magazine
November 2014
There are a small number of key strategic questions which any firm must be prepared to discuss, honestly and objectively, if it is to best equip itself to address future opportunities and mitigate threats. This will mean engaging in a partnership-level dialogue, which will be uncomfortable for many and threatening for some. It has been my experience that the very best firms have one common characteristic – they have an unwavering focus; they know what they are in business to do and what not to do.
PDF version     HTML version

Succession Planning Is Vital to Building A Sustainable Future For Your Law Firm
Published in Managing Partner magazine
October 2014
As the legal industry finds itself once more on an expansion track, one consequence of a long period of recession and low growth is that the partnership age profile now appears somewhat imbalanced. Few firms have been able to offer partnership promotion to those who, in the past, would have been credible candidates. In some cases, only truly standout performers have been offered the keys to the partners’ dining room while, in others, the door has remained firmly bolted for a number of years.
PDF version     HTML version

Future Proofing Your Law Firm
Published in Managing Partner magazine
September 2014
This is the first instalment of a new monthly Managing Partner column in which I shall examine how law firms can position themselves to create a future that is both profitable and sustainable – the concept of ‘future proofing’. Achieving this future will mean being prepared to take decisive actions today (which some may regard as being unnecessary or overkill) to ensure that we are able to cope with that which is appearing on the distant horizon, as well as whatever is just around the corner.
PDF version     HTML version

Aligning Performance Management with Strategic Objectives
Published in Managing Partner magazine
July / August 2014
‘What gets measured gets done’ is a universal truism that law firms regularly ignore when designing and implementing their performance management and reward systems. It is crucial that everything is aligned with the organisation’s strategic objectives. Many firms have moved (or are moving) towards using a series of interrelated metrics that are combined into a ‘dashboard’ that drives investment priorities and forms the basis through which individual performance is measured. For an effective approach, the starting point is to decide what to measure and to ensure that these factors will deliver the desired strategic outcome.
PDF version     HTML version

Using Scenarios to Explore Strategic Options
Published in Managing Partner magazine
June 2014
In order to respond to fast changing and dynamic markets, any strategy needs to be able to accommodate unpredictable changes to future market and economic conditions. It is curious, therefore, that while most would accept that we live in an increasingly non-linear world, many strategies are still constructed using a surprisingly one-dimensional model.
PDF version     HTML version

Aim to Dominate a Market, not The Market
Published in Managing Partner magazine
May 2014
Much of modern marketing strategy is based around the principles of an approach based on segmentation, targeting and positioning (STP). Segmentation is the process by which an apparently heterogeneous market is divided into a series of homogeneous sub-groups or segments, each of which shares a set of distinct characteristics that make the members distinctive in a strategically significant way.
PDF version     HTML version

The Law Firm Merger: A Leader’s Guide to Strategy & Realisation
Published by ARK Group
April 2014
This report is a guide for law firm leaders on merger strategy and realisation. It provides in-depth advice on the merger process, starting with an outline of why a merger might be considered an appropriate strategic option and identifying what the profile of an ideal merger candidate firm might look like, through to initiating discussions, identifying issues in the negotiation process, the building of the merger business case, and creating opportunities to realise merger dividends with a particular emphasis on the client opportunity. To read the executive summary and index click here or to order a copy click here.
PDF version     HTML version

Leading a Shared Vision For a Law Firm Merger
Published in Managing Partner magazine
April 2014
In a strategy which is merger based, it is important that there is a clear vision of the future, which is easily understandable and provides a strong rationale as to why merger is the best option – illustrating both the opportunities that will be created as well as the threats and risks which will be reduced or eliminated. The development of this vision is at the core of the leader’s role, but research shows that it is the process by which the vision is created and agreed that is likely to be fundamental to its successful realisation.
PDF version     HTML version

Merger Chrysalis
Published in Managing Partner magazine
March 2014
If you are tasked with delivering a merger, you have a huge amount of leading, persuading, cajoling and encouraging to do in order to realise your objective. Your audiences are both internal and external. Within your firm, you are responsible for understanding the mood of the wider partnership group and persuading others of the merits of the proposed action (along with the non-viability of the status quo). You then need to lead partners, lawyers and business support personnel on a journey which a number will approach with trepidation and resistance.
PDF version     HTML version

Outward Bound
Published in Managing Partner magazine
February 2014
Many law firms are operating across increasingly large geographic footprints in their domestic markets. As they seek new growth opportunities, a question that will inevitably arise is whether national borders should be crossed. Before doing so, firms must first carefully analyse the reasons for such a move. They should then look to build an international strategy which balances future opportunities with current demands on resources and senior management time.
PDF version     HTML version

Engaging the Wider Partnership in The Merger Process
Published in Managing Partner magazine
December / January 2014
The manner in which the leadership team engages, communicates and builds consensus with its wider partner group is one of the most important opportunities and challenges in any merger. Without a strong collective will, focused on achieving a positive result and overcoming the inevitable challenges that will be encountered, any merger becomes significantly more difficult.
PDF version     HTML version

A Merger can be a ‘Trojan Horse’ Opportunity to Transform Your Firm
Published in Managing Partner magazine
November 2013
“Don’t worry about the implementation, that’s tomorrow’s problem. Just focus on getting the deal done” figures high on the list of comments which betray the naivety of those negotiating mergers.
PDF version     HTML version

Management Opportunities and Challenges in a Merged Firm
Published in Managing Partner magazine
October 2013
Firms won’t become more commercially successful by being better at the law but, rather, by running a better legal services business. More proficient strategic thinking and better management, team working and communication are vital to ensuring sustainable performance enhancements, improved efficiency and increased revenues and profits.

It should be clear to everyone in the management team and wider firm that, while incremental improvements in technical expertise are important (since these capacities sit at the very core of any proposition), they will not significantly influence the success trajectory of the business in the short to medium term. Strategic, structural, technological, operational and client service improvements can, however, be transformative and have the potential to quickly deliver a step-change in performance.
PDF version     HTML version

Rightsizing Your Merged Law Firm
Published in Managing Partner magazine
September 2013
A merger provides a host of opportunities to right-size. Some arise directly from the merger itself. Others will be realised because ‘all bets are off’ in a newly-merged firm, providing a window to implement efficiencies that were previously denied.

Right-sizing is generally assumed to mean moves to reduce costs and therefore increase operational efficiency in order to improve profitability. However, right-sizing should also consider the introduction of new structures, modern practices and innovative approaches. Through this combination of sustainable structural and operational efficiency improvements, net profitability can be boosted further.
PDF version     HTML version

How to Win Partners’ Hearts and Minds for a Proposed Merger
Published in Managing Partner magazine
July / August 2013
An interesting point is reached in any merger discussion, at which the negotiating teams must set aside issues of market dynamics, strategy and positioning. Plans for operational change, efficiency improvements and rationalisation must also be side-lined. Even the development of compelling propositions to attract new clients and expand existing relationships must pause in order to answer one question. This question is, when looked at through the eyes of the common or garden partner, “what’s in it for me?”
PDF version     HTML version

Develop a Strategic Framework for Merger Communications
Published in Managing Partner magazine
June 2013
It is all too easy for those focused on the consummation of a merger (and with a deep knowledge of the transaction) to assume that its strategic logic will be self-evident. It is always wrong to presume that the benefits flowing from the union will be apparent to the combined firm’s client base.
PDF version     HTML version

The Power of Using Values to Drive Post-Merger Integration
Published in Managing Partner magazine
May 2013
Ignore the importance of cultural fit and strong shared values at your peril when merging firms. Cultural dissonance is one of the most common reasons that mergers fail to deliver their expected returns. Within law firms, for which common values and behaviours are crucial to creating cohesion, getting these aspects of a merger wrong can be disastrous.
PDF version     HTML version

Fit For Purpose
Published in Managing for Success, the magazine of the Law Society’s Law Management Section
May 2013
The legal services market is witnessing an unprecedented level of merger activity. The legal press is full of news of firms eitheer in discussions or announcing a deal, but there is also a swell of activity behind the scenes of firms just starting to consider the value of merger as a strategy for their firm, or in early discussions with potential merger partners. So how can firms get from those early stages to concluding not just any deal, but the right deal? The aim is to find the right partner for the individual firm to help it achieve its strategic goals. But this is very challenging. Firms may play ‘fantasy football’ in private, envisaging the ideal scenario of what the firm wishes to become and the nature of its merger partner, but the reality is that choices in the real world are somewhat more limited, candidates less alluring, and mutual attraction more difficult to find. This article is designed to help provide a framework for firms facing this process.
PDF version     HTML version

Plan Ahead To Get Ahead (Part 2)
Published in Professional Marketing Magazine
May 2013
Alongside the setting of the firmwide strategy, planning should be conducted at the next level of detail whilst still considering issues in broad terms. These second tier plans will nest within the overarching strategy framework, both aligned with and subservient to it. Planning at this level allows the broader leadership team to consider inter-relationships, identify resource pinch points and assess the critical paths which may affect both the sequencing and timing of any project implementation.
PDF version     HTML version

Dealing with Deal Breakers in Merger Discussions
Published in Managing Partner magazine
April 2013
In any merger discussion, there will be a limited number of areas which have the potential to be deal breakers. These range from issues of strategic significance to those of timing. In the first category are questions which challenge the longer-term logic of a deal which has few tactical obstacles. The second is concerned with significant tactical challenges which appear insurmountable despite a strong strategic rationale.
PDF version     HTML version

Plan Ahead To Get Ahead
Published in Professional Marketing Magazine
April 2013
The means by which a strategy may be developed – the range of models or approaches adopted and the process by which strategy-making can be effected within the culture of a professional partnership – is a huge subject area and one which has been covered extensively. Less focus, however, has been given to the role of planning in the delivery of the strategic vision. Yet, it is self-evident that, without a clear and robust approach to implementation, even well-crafted strategic plans will founder. A continuous longer-term planning cycle is required and this article considers how such an approach may be developed.
PDF version     HTML version

Strategies to Unlock the Merger Dividend
Chapter 11 of The Law Management Section Merger Toolkit
(Published August 2012. Posted on hedleyconsulting.com in April 2013)

Panjat Pinang is one of the most popular traditions in Indonesia. It is a unique way of celebrating the country’s Independence Day and involves, quite literally, climbing a greasy pole. Tall nut trees are felled, denuded of all branches and bark, and placed vertically in the ground. A wheel containing prizes is placed at the top of the pole and the bare trunk has grease applied. Since the poles are both high and very slippery, one person working alone would have no chance of reaching the top. People combine into teams with an agreement to share any prizes that they secure. Teams climb the poles by creating human pyramids and clambering on each other’s shoulders in order to reach the top. Of course, many fail and simply slide down the greasy pole to start again.

In some respects, many law firm mergers are remarkably similar to a corporate game of Panjat Pinang. The allure of the prize at the top of the greasy pole drives combinations, sometimes unlikely ones, with firms being subsumed within a new corporate mass. At the same time, competitors are pursuing similar strategies. Whilst progress may be initially promising, over time most firms slide back down the greasy pole to a point which, in relative terms, is akin to where they first started. This is because many mergers achieve little more than creating a larger-scale version of the pre-existing firms. The merger is seen as a means to improve efficiency and reduce unit costs but little else.
PDF version     HTML version

Unlocking the Client Dividend in a Merger
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(March 2013)
Any merger should seek to build a sustainable competitive advantage. What this means in practice is that vision is needed to create a client proposition which is more compelling than either firm could offer before and, crucially, better than other firms competing for the same work.
PDF version     HTML version

Organic Growth Strategies: Back to Basics
Published in The Cambridge Marketing Review
(Issue Five, March 2013)
The challenging market conditions of the last four years mean that organic growth is a significant issue for many organisations. The professional service sector has suffered from the pincer squeeze of economic recession together with the deregulation of the legal services industry (as a consequence of the Legal Services Act 2007). Increased competitive pressures created by new (non-law firm) entrants and the rise of substitute products have combined with sluggish market conditions to create the perfect storm. One consequence has been an increase in law firm failures and a sharp upturn in merger activity as forces for market consolidation come fully to bear. This consolidation activity means that some firms are achieving scale very quickly through inorganic means. However, the need for strategies to deliver genuine organic growth remains high across the market.
PDF version     HTML version

Getting Profit-Sharing Arrangements Right in a Merger
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(February 2013)
A merger makes sense if the new firm is better able to compete than either of its antecedents. For some firms, ‘compete’ means that the merged entity simply has a better prognosis for long-term survival, while for others it will be characterised by more opportunities, an improved market position and a reshaped business model.
PDF version     HTML version

Why merge? Forces driving consolidation in the UK legal services market
Chapter 3 of The Law Management Section Merger Toolkit
(Published August 2012. Posted on hedleyconsulting.com in February 2013)
A merger is a means by which a strategic objective may be achieved; it is not a strategic objective in itself. This is, perhaps, an obvious statement, but one which seems to elude many management teams when discussing strategy and the options available to them. A statement by any law firm leader that ‘our objective is to merge’ is worrisome unless it is simply a shorthand way of expressing a thought process which has led to the merger option as the best of those available to realise a strategy.
In this chapter we will consider reasons why firms may choose to merge, examine the compelling forces that are driving many to consider the merger option very seriously and discuss the key issues driving consolidation in the UK legal services market which are creating the perfect storm (or, in some cases, the perfect opportunity) to build a compelling business case for law firm mergers.
PDF version     HTML version

The Innovation Advantage
Published in The Future of Legal Services – Expert Analysis
(December 2012)
This article is concerned with the ways in which innovative approaches have already changed the nature of law firm practice, and how they will continue to do so at an accelerating pace in the future. In particular it will consider service innovation and how firms might develop processes to improve their creation of innovation opportunities and the execution of those which they choose to pursue.
PDF version     HTML version

A Merger is an Opportunity to Bring about Positive Cultural Change
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(December 2012 / January 2013)
A firm’s culture is both one of its core defining characteristics and, for better or worse, a driver of its longer-term performance. Changing a deeply-embedded culture is one of the most challenging and transformational opportunities for any leadership team. At a time of merger, it is one way in which real synergies can be realised.
PDF version     HTML version

Service Quality and Reputation Management Strategy
Published in Business Continuity Planning and Management for Law Firms
(November 2012)
As Benjamin Franklin so wisely said: ‘It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it’. His words should be a wake-up call for managing partners that have placed their trust in the fingers-crossed method of reputation management, rather than adopting a more thoughtful and measured approach. In the world of professional services there are a relatively small number of universal truisms.
PDF version     HTML version

Mergers can be Effective in Moving Partners out of their Comfort Zones
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(November 2012)
Many merger business plans talk about creating a firm which is better than the sum of its parts by taking an external view. While a market perspective is crucial, it is but half of the challenge. It is enticing for the merger team to create a compelling external narrative, but this should accompany what will often be a rather more difficult sermon about the need for internal change.
PDF version     HTML version

How to Identify the Ideal Merger Candidate that Fits into Your Firm’s Strategic Jigsaw
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(October 2012)
Absolute clarity is crucial at the outset of any search for a merger partner. Do you know what you are looking for? How you will know when you find it? While the firm’s overall strategy will have identified merger as the best means of achieving its vision, creating a clear picture of the sort of firm that will deliver these objectives requires more work and a detailed appreciation of the dynamics at play.
PDF version     HTML version

Horizon Plan
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(October 2012)
It is self-evident that, without a clear and robust approach to implementation, even the most well-crafted of strategic plans will founder. A continuous longer term planning cycle is required. This article considers how such an approach may be developed in law firms. When thinking about strategy, there are some ‘big issue’ questions that should be considered. These are all forward looking and implicit in each is the notion of change, adaptation and dynamism. These big issues are not fixed in time; they are moving continuously, dynamically and unpredictably.
PDF version     HTML version

Where Did All the Fun Go?
Managing Partner Magazine BLOG
(October 2012)
In the brave new world of Six Sigma, LPO and BPR it is all too easy to forget that, for the vast majority, this approach to legal service delivery isn’t what was signed-up to when entering the profession. However, with pricing under pressure and a fixed-fee basis increasingly the norm, better management is needed. But modern business practices, information technology, knowledge management and the rise of artificial intelligence are widely viewed as the enemies. They are seen as disruptive forces altering a comfortable status quo forever.
PDF version     HTML version

Are You Clear About Why Your Firm Is Seeking A Merger?
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(September 2012)
A fundamental question is why it might make sense for your firm to merge. Put most simply, a merger makes sense if the result is a better opportunity to compete together than alone. Becoming more competitive can mean a number of things – creating an ability to grow revenues faster than costs, to reduce costs and so utilise assets better, to open up new markets, to improve financial strength or to reduce risks. Creating competitive advantage also means improving profitability and shareholder returns in ways that are sustainable. It is through these lenses that any opportunity should be viewed.
PDF version     HTML version

Taking the Inside-Out Perspective
Published in PSMG Magazine
(September / October 2012)
In devising their marketing and business development strategies, firms tend to focus on being 'client-led' and 'competitor-aware'. I term this an outside-in approach, founded in the belief that the organisation should configure itself to present the best possible fit with current and emerging opportunities whilst simultaneously nullifying competitive threats. Whilst not incorrect, a competition-based approach only addresses part of the strategic challenge.
PDF version     HTML version

Consensus is Not a Synonym for Unanimity
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(June 2012)
There is much talk about the importance of achieving partner consensus on the big decisions which will define a firm’s future direction. Consensus is a worthy objective and one which, as research shows unequivocally, is likely to lead to a more cohesive firm. There is less clarity, however, over what consensus means in practice and how it should be reached. What is clear is that consensus should not be a synonym for unanimity - firms have, for too long, been forced to the point of making the "decision of least offence" or the taking the lowest common denominator option by this misconception.
PDF version     HTML version

It’s Time to Compromise on Merger Candidates:
Start Looking for a Doable Deal
Managing Partner Magazine BLOG
(June 2012)
Over the past four years, the ‘perfect storm’ of deregulation and economic downturn has crystallised issues for managing partners. Having drawn comfort from the belief that they had a strong and profitable business, albeit protected by regulatory barriers and driven by an exceptional period of bull market activity, firms have come back down to earth with a deafening thud. There is now an emerging and stark realisation that current trading conditions are, at best, the new normal. Worse still, it is not inconceivable that, even in the short term, competitive pressures will intensify, making the current climate appear relatively benign. We are witnessing, in real time, the end of law as a cottage industry and the industrialisation of the legal sector. It is inevitable that significant consolidation will occur in all segments of the market.
PDF version     HTML version

Firms should Focus on Doing the Simple Things Well
Managing Partner Magazine BLOG
(March 2012)
It never fails to surprise me how consistently firms fail to adequately prioritise their time and efforts to doing the simple things well. Surely putting one’s own house in order would deliver the most returns most quickly, whether by securing existing client relationships, expanding those that are nascent or providing a catalyst for the introduction of new service lines.
PDF version     HTML version

Client Service and Relationship Strategy
Published in Best Practices in Legal Marketing
(December 2011)
Despite having been centre stage for almost two decades, it remains the case that the effective management of client relationships and the delivery of quality and consistent levels of client service are two of the key management challenges facing many firms. These obstacles are multi-dimensional since the practice of client relationship management (CRM) contains facets which are simultaneously both internal and external, as well as reaching across departments and involving both legal and support teams.
PDF version     HTML version

The Role of the Partner in Delivering a Marketing Strategy
Published in Best Practices in Legal Marketing
(December 2011)
While it may be self-evident that the law firm partner has a central role in the creation, development and implementation of a successful marketing and business development strategy, the nature of this role is less well articulated. This chapter considers the nature of this role and the relationship between the individual partner, the business development department and the firm as a whole. It takes a holistic view of business development and the numerous interactions that are needed for effective delivery of a strategy.
PDF version     HTML version

Emerging Opportunities
Published in the Emerging Markets: Taking the Plunge review
(December 2011 / January 2012)
An effective strategy for capitalising on emerging market opportunities is a standing agenda item for the boards of internationally-minded firms. Indeed, the topic is so enduring that some markets have moved from emerging to emerged in the time that the subject has been under consideration. It has become clear that a range of options can be adopted, each with merits as well as potential drawbacks.
PDF version     HTML version

Market Changes – Dealing with Uncertainty Using Scenario Planning
Published in Best Practices in Legal Marketing
(December 2011)
In the turbulent business environment faced by modern law firms it is imperative that any strategy is robust. By this I mean that it has inbuilt flexibility, enabling it to respond appropriately and quickly to changing circumstances, as well as having sufficient resilience to allow firms to cope with more transient market fluctuations. It is incumbent on the management team to put in place systems and measures to mitigate any potentially adverse developments (as well, of course, to maximise any opportunities which may arise).This can be achieved by ensuring that the firm has good ‘horizon gazing’ capabilities and through the use of scenario planning techniques.
PDF version     HTML version

Effective Business Development = Low Risk + High Trust
Managing Partner Magazine BLOG
(November 2011)
The best approaches to law firm marketing and sales share two characteristics: they aim to minimise perceptions of risk and to maximise feelings of trust between the decision maker and the firm.
PDF version     HTML version

Client Strategy in a Changing Market
Published in Professional Marketing magazine
(November 2011)
Client strategy sits at the heart of all strategy. Without the ability to attract and retain clients, at a price which delivers an acceptable level of profitability, no business can be viable in the longer term. A firm’s client strategy should be under constant review in order to ensure that the emerging needs of the client and the firm’s competitive capabilities remain aligned. In a market that is undergoing fundamental and far reaching change, this requirement has never been more pressing.
PDF version     HTML version

Live to Serve
Published in Managing for Success, the magazine of
the Law Society’s Law Management Section.
(November 2011)
Along with the other ‘traditional’ professions, law firms have witnessed real transformational changes in the last 25 years, in some cases willingly, but in many, as a response to market demands. One of the most significant changes has been in lawyers’ attitudes to their clients.
PDF version     HTML version

Have we Forgotten about Clients in Merger Discussions?
Managing Partner Magazine BLOG
(October 2011)
Law firm mergers are fascinating things. They mix high drama and Greek tragedy as courting parties – initially with uncharacteristic coyness and latterly with a disregard to sensible decision making – waltz towards ultimate consummation. However, much of the discussion is tangential to the real issues at play.
PDF version     HTML version

Resourcing Strategy
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(September 2011)
For most law firms, a successful strategy must blend the concept of opportunity-fit with that of resource-stretch. This is because, having identified new client or market opportunities, it is often not a simple task to reengineer the firm to provide an alluring competitive fit. Firms are constrained by relative inertia in introducing new business units, working practices or product lines.
PDF version     HTML version

Playing for Keeps
Published in Managing for Success, the magazine of the Law Society's Law Management Section (www.lawsociety.org.uk/lawmanagement)
(August 2011)
Long-standing, high-value clients are invaluable to a business, because they become more profitable over time. And a key client programme can help you make sure they stay put. Programmes designed to support better management of a law firm's most important clients have three distinct stages - acquiring, developing and managing.
PDF version     HTML version

Chasing Scale For Its Own Sake Is Not A Strategy
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(July 2011)
If much of what has been written is to be believed, it could easily be assumed that strategic success simply hinges on the achievement of scale. Simply by being bigger, planting more flags in the map, increasing purchasing power over suppliers and improving the gearing ratio, all will be well. The reality, of course, is not so straightforward. Scale may be a necessary precondition to achieving strategic objectives but, in itself, will not define a firm in the eyes of intelligent purchasers. Scale may be necessary but it will not be sufficient.
PDF version     HTML version

Hardwiring Values
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(March 2011)
In law firms of all sizes, managing partners are keen to position their firms as having a clear set of guiding principles by which they conduct business, engage with teams and serve clients. However, there is often an underlying misconception that a values-led approach is altruistic or, worse still, simply a public relations exercise. Nothing could be further from the truth. When developed properly and deployed effectively, a values programme is a powerful management tool for changing behaviours, aligning people across a diverse business with a common sense of purpose and creating a competitive advantage.
PDF version     HTML version

A New Approach for a New World
Change Management for Law Firms
(February 2011)
Law firms continue to grapple with a number of shifts in their competitive environment as difficult market conditions show little sign of abatement. These issues create a maelstrom that will tax the skills of any leadership team to the limit. Here we consider some of the core drivers in this dynamic environment, offer insights to assist firms in better understanding these issues, and provide some possible strategic options.
PDF version     HTML version

Client Strategy in a Changing Legal Market - Executive Summary
Published by ARK Group
(February 2011)
Client strategy sits at the heart of all strategy. Without the ability to attract and retain clients, at a price which delivers an acceptable level of profitability, no business can be viable in the longer term. A firm's client strategy should be under constant review in order to ensure that the emerging needs of the client and the firm's competitive capabilities remain aligned. In a market that is undergoing fundamental and far reaching change, this requirement has never been more pressing.
To read the full Executive Summary click here for PDF or click here for HTML.
To read more about the Client Strategy in a Changing Legal Market report, or to purchase it, click here for PDF.

A Strategic Perspective: Why strategy matters most in the 'New World Order'
Chapter One of Client Strategy in a Changing Legal Market
Published by ARK Group
(February 2011)
Since the collapse of Lehman Brothers at the end of 2008 which sparked the worst global recession in recent history, law firms have been reeling from a combination of the economic pressure that has been created compounded by wider structural and competitive changes. An industry which had become accustomed to year-on-year growth, firms which had expanded to become large corporates in their own right and individuals whose personal wealth had amassed to levels which would have seemed impossible only a generation earlier, all had to recalibrate - and quickly.
To read the full chapter click here for PDF or click here for HTML.
To read more about the Client Strategy in a Changing Legal Market report, or to purchase it, click here.

Global Firms Should Worry More About Brand Experience Than Single Profit Pools
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(February 2011)
The rise in international mergers over the past two years has raised a number of interesting issues about the way in which law firms can best service clients on a global basis. One of the more introspective questions asked by some in the profession is whether these unions are real mergers or not. If we take merger to mean the sharing of profits from a common pool on a global basis, the answer clearly is no. However, if the measure of a merger is the effective delivery of a unified brand and consistent client experience, a different yardstick applies.
PDF version     HTML version

Power of the Crowd
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(October 2010)
The latest issues of the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners directories have been published recently, while Waterlow’s Solicitors’ and Barristers’ Directory is out in February. Firms and partners will either laud them as erudite works or dismiss them as misinformed – the key determinant being their individual showing. The cycle is endless, with marketing departments even now gathering information, confirming client credentials and building their knowledge bank for the next submission. Is it all worth it? Just how important are the legal directories in terms of client decision-making?
PDF version     HTML version

Game Plan
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(October 2010)
Alternative fee arrangements are here to stay. A combination of increased competitive sophistication and recession economics mean that clients of all hues are increasingly unwilling to pay their lawyers on the basis of hourly charges. Client demand means that legal services must be delivered better, faster and cheaper. Firms must enhance delivery, increase transparency, provide fee certainty and, importantly, a reduction in overall spend year-on-year if they are to prosper.
PDF version     HTML version

Competitive Force
Managing Partner magazine
(September 2010)
The book Blue Ocean Strategy challenges the primacy of competitive strategy theories. While originally developed to support longer-term corporate strategy, the principles of a Blue Ocean approach can be adapted to create new value propositions and strongly differentiate a law firm. Rather than simply dominating existing markets, it argues that strategy should be about creating new markets and focusing on value creation through innovation. A business should concern itself with “how to create uncontested market space and make the competition irrelevant”, rather than simply trying to overcome current competitors in ways which are often profit eroding.
PDF version     HTML version

Land of Promise
KM Legal magazine
(August 2010)
The enduring market for legal services, with supply significantly exceeding demand, means that law firms are being challenged by their clients to deliver their services better, faster and cheaper than ever before. Impending deregulation seems set to be a further catalyst for this now established trend. A wide range of conversations with managing partners reveals that increased activity is not being commensurately matched with increased revenue. Firms are running harder to stand still and the long term prognosis for profitability is bleak, unless a different operating model can be introduced.
PDF version     HTML version

The Role of Competitive Intelligence
in Shaping Strategy
Competitive Intelligence: Improving Law Firm Strategy
and Decision Making
(July 2010)
Having a clear understanding of the role that competitive intelligence plays in the strategy process, coupled with a determination to unearth insights that will serve to enhance strategy and create advantage, will help all law firm leaders increase their certainty and confidence in the outcomes of their deliberations. In short, there is a clear opportunity to create competitive advantage through the acquisition and use of high quality competitive intelligence.
PDF version     HTML version

Merging Cultures
Managing Partner Magazine
(June 2010)
The principle drivers behind law firm mergers are fundamentally economics and sustainable competitive position, but at the core of their long-term success is the ability to create a unified culture and shared sense of purpose. Even in the most unbalanced of law firm marriages, it is a foolhardy managing partner that ignores levels of cultural fit and doesn’t take action to resolve deep-seated cultural differences. Dealt with early, such idiosyncrasies can be resolved quickly and effectively. Left to fester, they become all pervasive and difficult to purge.
PDF version     HTML version

Fit for the Future
Legal Week Student
(Spring 2010)
What sort of world will the law firms of tomorrow inhabit? How will firms respond to changing client demands? What will the fundamental economics of a legal services business look like in ten years? What skills will be needed to succeed and where will they be acquired? These are some of the core questions which the leaders of major law firms consider regularly and which guide their strategies.

They are also crucial issues for individuals who are ambitious to succeed in the profession over the next decade.
PDF version     HTML version

A New Model of Partnership
Managing Partner magazine
(April 2010)
Being a partner isn’t what it used to be! The economic climate, impending deregulation, ever rising client demands, attitudinal changes (both in society and among young professionals), the apparent obsolescence of the historic charging model and the impact of IT on process efficiency are all catalysts forcing change in many firms. As leaders of the firm, partners must be in the vanguard of this change process.
PDF version     HTML version

Walking the Talk
Legal Marketing Magazine
(March 2010)
Perusing law firms’ corporate communication materials and browsing their websites is a pretty mundane pastime. In truth there are only so many ways in which even the most eloquent of wordsmiths can say the same thing over and over and over again. Taken at face value we live in a world inhabited by lawyers who are businesspeople in disguise, wholly commercial in their approach and clear communicators, getting to the core of the issue immediately, charging transparently and delivering to deadlines. All of this is surrounded by a ‘service wrapper’ that promises an experience like no other; indeed, one so good that the client will look forward to engaging their lawyers on a regular basis!
PDF version     HTML version

Virtually Reality
Managing Partner Magazine
(February 2010)
Virtual Law Partners (www.virtuallawpartners.com) was established in May 2008 with eight attorneys and now has around 50. It describes itself as a “virtually connected and geographically distributed firm that provides excellent legal service at very competitive rates”. By looking at the fundamental costs of a law firm through a different lens, and by being prepared to challenge all of the taken-for-granted assumptions about what a firm needs to be credible in the client’s eyes, a new, still nascent model had been created.
PDF version     HTML version

Out of this World
Managing Partner Magazine
(January 2010)
The past year has seen unprecedented turbulence for the legal profession, but is perhaps simply a portent of what is to come. Longstanding rules of competition and client relationship management have been cast to one side. A new, resolutely commercial, approach is to the fore, which is an anathema to those steeped in the longstanding traditions of the gentleman solicitor. For the vast majority of firms, it is a truism that future prosperity will be derived from being better at running a legal services business rather than by being better at the law.
PDF version     HTML version

Pitch Perfect...
PSMG Magazine
(January 2010)
When business is tight, maximising the opportunity afforded by pitches, presentations and proposals is quite rightly an area of intense focus for firms. But what are the simple guidelines which, if followed, can help to improve win rates?
PDF version     HTML version

“The Road is Long” Merger Masterclass
Managing Partner Magazine
(December 2009)
The strategy for embarking on a merger need not be overly sophisticated, but it must be founded in reality and supported by some testing of the assumptions on which it is based. Many managing partners regard the delivery of a successful merger as their gold-standard achievement. In one act they see themselves able to demonstrate, for the entire world to see, that their firm is going places, has ambition, and is prepared to move decisively and determinedly to achieve its goals.
PDF version     HTML version

“Hitting the Ground Running”
Business Development Masterclass
Managing Partner Magazine
(October 2009)
Many firms are coming to terms with a very uncomfortable truth: that growth is the only way out of the perilous position in which they find themselves. In many cases, costs have been pared to a point at which any further marginal reductions will have limited impact. Furthermore, the extended timescale over which such measures will take effect will not meet current demands to balance the finances. Indeed, further cost cutting may well ultimately damage the business in the longer term.
PDF version     HTML version

Changing the Game Plan
Legal Marketing Magazine
(October 2009)
In these challenging times, the need to be more effective at managing strategic client relationships is ever more important. Those clients that continue to deliver revenue (albeit perhaps at significantly reduced levels) need determined focus, care and attention. Competitors are more desperate than ever to capture a share of their legal spend and are prepared to go to extraordinary lengths, in terms of both reduced fee levels and enhanced service promises, to secure the work.
PDF version     HTML version

Developing Business on a Shoestring
PSMG Magazine
(October 2009)
Forget the logic about counter-cyclical investment, when cash is in short supply discretionary budgets feel the pain. This is even more the case in businesses with high fixed and semi-fixed cost bases like professional service firms. It can therefore be no surprise that business development and marketing budgets across the professional services sector are pared to the bone. For marketers, the challenge shifts from grand plans to doing more with less – developing business on a shoestring!
PDF version     HTML version

Outsourcing the Core
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(September 2009)
On 15 June 2009, The Times predicted that the next two years will see a reduction in the number of lawyers employed in private practice in the UK by 10,000 (or over ten per cent). On 13 July 2009, the London Evening Standard carried a feature ‘Mumbai Law: 1000 City staff “will lose jobs” as legal work goes to India, outlining Indian law firms providing outsourced services to UK law firms and corporates.
PDF version    HTML version

Primus Inter Pares
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(August 2009)
Observation and experience over the past 20-plus years have led me to formulate the ‘First Law of Professional Firm Management’. It can be simply stated and I have found it to be true in firms of all sizes, shapes, hues and colours. It is most strikingly accurate among partners neither tasked with current management responsibilities nor with any historic experience of such roles.
PDF version    HTML version

Profiting from Key Clients
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(June / July 2009)
It is widely accepted that the 'Pareto effect' applies to most businesses, with 80 per cent of turnover coming from 20 per cent of the client base. Indeed, my experience of many professional-service firms operating in the commercial sphere is that the numbers are even more compelling. It is not at all unusual for 90 per cent of revenue to emanate from the top ten per cent of client relationships.
PDF version    HTML version

One Year or Two, the Choice is for You… but be Quick!
Published in PSMG Magazine
(May 2009)
Changes to the CIM syllabus could mean that the minimum overall period for completion of the Professional Diploma for some delegates will increase from one year to two.  From 1st June this year, the new syllabus means, unless you have a degree with at least 30% marketing content, you will have to complete the CIM Professional Certificate course as a foundation before moving onto the Diploma.
PDF version    HTML version

Work Smarter not Harder
Published in PSMG Magazine
(March 2009)
It’s that time again! Students studying for the PSMG Cambridge Marketing College CIM Professional Diploma are approaching the ‘crunch’ as assignment first drafts are completed for discussion with tutors. Requests for study leave have been lodged and social events cancelled. But life need not be this difficult! There are a few guiding principles which, if followed, make the passage to qualification much more straightforward.
PDF version    HTML version

Brave in the New World
Published in 'Legal information in a recession:
A restructuring opportunity'
(May 2009)
In the current recession, managing partners have a great opportunity to overhaul their information and knowledge-management functions for long-term growth and profitability. To succeed will require addressing critical information and knowledge-management issues, but the results will fundamentally re-shape legal business creating the profitable next-generation law firm.
PDF version    HTML version

Risky Scenarios
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(May 2009)
An acid test of the efficacy of any strategy is the way in which it is able to accommodate and respond to uncertainty and unforeseen risks as they emerge over time. While we live in an increasingly non-linear world, many strategies are still constructed using a surprisingly one dimensional model.
PDF version    HTML version

Crystal Ball Gazing
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(April 2009) When marketing guru Ted Levitt said: “The future belongs to people who see possibilities before they become obvious”, he captured the essence of the challenge faced by those in fast-changing environments. How do firms cope with a world in which the pace of change has never been greater and the future is so uncertain?
PDF version    HTML version

Opening Up
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(March 2009)
Every firm has huge untapped potential in the form of hidden knowledge about clients, relationships, experience and technical issues. If unearthed and shared, this could create a step-change improvement in business performance.
PDF version    HTML version

Learning through Life
Published in PSMG Magazine
(January 2009)
“What matters more, qualification or experience?” was the question posed to me recently. This got me thinking about the impact of formal education versus on-the-job experience on career development. The honest answer is that both are vital, situation specific and, in many respects, one is a catalyst for the other. By this I mean that, in some situations a through theoretical understanding will be vital to the resolution of an issue whilst, in others, the experience forged from years on the front line will be what is required.  
PDF version    HTML version

Learning to Succeed
Published in PSMG Magazine
(January 2009)
When the PSMG collaborated with Cambridge Marketing College to create the world’s only CIM endorsed Professional Diploma for Professional Services Marketing it had two clear aims – to create a bespoke programme that addressed the particular needs and issues faced by marketers in our sector and to put in place a dual qualification recognising the requirement for a transferrable CIM diploma as well as a focused professional services award.
PDF version    HTML version

Thought Leader: Competitive Strategy
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(December 2008 / January 2009)
“If you are ignorant of both your enemy and yourself, then you are a fool and certain to be defeated in every battle. If you know yourself, but not your enemy, for every battle won, you will suffer a loss. If you know your enemy and yourself, you will win every battle.” When SunTzu penned The Art of War in the sixth century BC, the issues at stake were those of life and death, not business gain or loss. However, the principles of his advice are also applicable to those concerned with charting a course through the increasingly choppy waters of commerce in the 21st century.
PDF version    HTML version

The Devil in the Detail
Published in Legal Marketing magazine
(December 2008 / January 2009)
When asked by managing partners to stress-test the revenue growth projections in the business plans of practice groups my approach is straightforward. I ask group heads to explain, in detail, where their revenue will come from based on four segmentations – by geography, by sector, by service line and by key client. When viewed through a structured lens, the gap between what is on the books (or planned for) and what is in the ether is apparent. Generally, the cause of the gap is a lack of realism together with a naive belief that if you want something hard enough it will come to pass.
PDF version    HTML version

“What Gets Measured Gets Done”
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(November 2008)
‘What gets measured gets done’ is an old adage of management. It is also a universal truism that many firms ignore when designing and implementing performance management and reward systems. It is crucial that these are aligned with the organisation’s strategic objectives. Many firms are now moving towards a series of interrelated metrics, which are then combined into a ‘performance dashboard’ – which drives investment priorities and forms the basis by which performance is measured.
PDF version    HTML version

Some Observations on Law Firm Leaders
Published in Leadership Development in the Legal Profession
(November 2008)
Over the past 20 years, I have observed a range of leaders and leadership styles in professional service firms. Over this same period, there has been an exponential increase of interest in the subject of leadership, and the crucial role that it plays in the success (and occasionally the failure) of law firms. This case study consolidates these observations and suggests a descriptive framework aimed at increasing understanding and effectiveness in this area.
PDF version    HTML version

Mind Over Matter
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(October 2008)
Ignore the importance of cultural fit at your peril when merging firms. Culture clash is one of the most common reasons mergers fail. Within professional services, where the importance of common values and behaviours in creating cohesive firms is indisputable, getting the cultural aspects of a merger wrong can be disastrous.
PDF version    HTML version

The Law Firm of the Future: A perspective on what is in store for the profession over the next decade
Published in Law Firm of the Future supplement report by Managing Partner and Legal Marketing magazines
(September 2008)
Views on the shape and focus of the law firm of the future are widely divergent but, invariably, pessimism is expressed by many as to how the profession as a whole will fare over the next decade. The common view is that the quality of work (and life) for the median lawyer will continue to be eroded.  Why is this so and what can be done to improve fortunes?
PDF version    HTML version

Talking With One Voice
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(September 2008)
Integrated marketing communications is the name; clarity and consistency is the game. Students of marketing communications are inculcated with the need to create compelling, consistent and clear messages that can be directed at an array of targeted delivery channels. In considering communications (whether internal or external) it is crucial to ensure all potential mechanisms and materials, their impact and inter-relationships, are considered and aligned.
PDF version    HTML version

Leading the Edge
Published in KM Legal magazine
(August / September 2008)
If law firms are to be effective in building a competitive advantage through knowledge management (KM) they need to  invest in both their infrastructure capabilities and the influencing skills of their knowledge leaders and advocates. The impact of KM leadership has two dimensions; Creating a better understanding of how a firm can create competitive advantage through adopting a leading position together with a wider recognition of the importance of personal leadership skills by senior KM professionals, accompanied by ongoing investment in developing these capabilities. These will be at the heart of delivering ultimate success.
PDF version    HTML version

For What It’s Worth...
Published in KM Legal
(August / September 2008)
One of the hot topics of the moment (and, in all likelihood, the foreseeable future) is the impact of external investment into the profession as a result of the Legal Services Act. The knowledge strategist will recognise that any assessment of their firm for investment appraisal purposes will involve thorough due diligence of the KM function and a view being taken of its ‘value added’ contribution and potential.
PDF version    HTML version

Crunch Time!
Published in Legal Marketing
(August / September 2008)
A downturn sorts out the wheat from the chaff! It’s not a nice thought, either for those affected or even the bystanders, but it’s largely true. A coherent argument can be made that a period of recession is a necessary part of the creation of a healthy market. Those that have a strong underlying business will survive and take advantage of the opportunities that such a climate inevitably throws up, while those who have lived with the illusion of a great business during bull market years, when making a profit is relatively easy, will be found out.
PDF version    HTML version

Decisions, Decisions...
Published in Managing Partner magazine
(July 2008)
“Why else does a managing partner exist if not to make decisions?” This was a comment recently made at a conference I was chairing. Three things immediately struck me. Just how much autonomy do managing partners have in their decision making? What issues affect decision making in professional firms? And how will managers cope with ever-decreasing time windows within which to make decisions – especially when the impacts of those decisions grow increasingly critical for the firm’s future prospects?
PDF version    HTML Version

The Role of Competitive Intelligence in Shaping Strategy
Published in Competitive Intelligence for Law Firms
(June 2008)                  
There are many models in use that help decision makers better understand their competitive position and to guide their strategy formulation. They range in complexity from the intellectually impenetrable through the overwhelmingly obtuse to the stunningly simple.
Pdf version    HTML version

Powers of Persuasion
Strategy series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine
(June 2008)
When Dale Carnegie said: “There is only one way to get anybody to do anything. And that is by making the other person want to do it”, he struck at the essence of the art of persuasion. In Verbal Judo George Thompson reinforced this view: “The goal of persuasion is to generate voluntary compliance… The great communicators have that art. They somehow get people to do what they want them to do by getting them to want to do it.”
Pdf version    HTML version

Driving Growth As the gravy train grinds to a halt...
Masterclass article published in Managing Partner Magazine
(May 2008)
Following a number of years in which revenue growth has been achievable without too much effort, there will be many management teams with the misplaced belief that they have a strong business model. In truth, during the bull years, the volumes of work available means that all can feast. A period of recession will provide evidence of those businesses with underlying strengths, as opposed to those that were simply in the right place at the right time.
Pdf version    HTML version

You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know:
How to use superior knowledge to drive business development
Strategy series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine (April 2008)
When boiled down to its essence, what does a professional-services firm do if not manage knowledge and ideas (in the broadest definition of these words) and develop relationships. Indeed, from a business-development perspective, one of the most interesting areas to explore is the knowledge embedded in client relationships, both individual and systemic, that can be used to shape better ways to build a strong client franchise.
Pdf version    HTML version

The White-Knuckle Ride of Reputation Management
Strategy series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine (March 2008)
As Benjamin Franklin so wisely said, “It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it”. His words should be a wake-up call for managing partners that have placed their trust in the fingers-crossed method of reputation management, rather than adopting a more thoughtful and measured approach.
Pdf version    HTML version

I’ll Tell You What I Want, What I Really, Really Want...
Article published in Legal Marketing Magazine
(February 2008)
The return of the Spice Girls and their Wannabe anthem offers a timely reminder to professional services marketers of the requirement to understand and deliver the needs of their clients. This is best achieved by listening instead of telling and by acting on the basis of a deep understanding rather than a range of self-serving suppositions.
Pdf version    HTML version

Avoiding a Cultural Cacophony
Strategy series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine (December 2007)
Everyone accepts that we live in a multicultural society and operate in a world where barriers to business across national frontiers are dismantling at an ever increasing rate. There is positive potential for firms in their response to these cultural challenges and opportunities.  Culture is a key driver for professionals. The overriding cultural norms of any profession govern the behaviour of its members and the unique culture of any firm is also a huge potential source of differentiation.  
Pdf version    HTML version

Is Anybody Listening?
Strategy series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine (November 2007)
Technology has enabled mass communication at a level never before experienced. With over 12,000 specialist publications in the UK, enabled by improved technology and ever-reducing production costs, the ability to talk in a highly focused way is at a new threshold. This promise of highly targeted messages together with the compelling propositions they can carry has enticed many professional firms into the brave new world of direct marketing communications with their clients and prospects.
Pdf version    HTML version

Moving from Technical Excellence to Business Nous
Case Study published in Professional Development Strategies for Law Firms
(October 2007)
Ambitious firms recognise that being excellent at their core legal skill is simply not enough – creating an enhanced commercial understanding of their clients’ needs and building the business development skills of their people are two ways in which the firm can create a strong and enduring brand position.
Pdf version    HTML version

Time to Wake Up and Smell the Coffee
Feature published in Legal Marketing magazine
(October / November 2007)
The best businesses have an insatiable hunger to make things better for both their clients and themselves. For those law firms which have adopted a less ambitious approach to marketing and business development strategy, it is time to take a long hard look at their existing processes and how these can be strengthened for business success.
Pdf version    HTML version

Sometimes You Must Burn Your Boats
Strategy Series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine
(October 2007)
Keeping your options open is a philosophy to which many management teams subscribe, either overtly or by their actions. This isn’t to say that unwavering dogma is a good thing, but rather that a clear sense of direction, being prepared to say ‘no’ to ideas that don’t fit, and a commitment to achieving objectives, are crucial components of a successful firm.
Pdf version    HTML version

Do you Judge a Book by Its Cover?
Strategy Series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine
(September 2007)
For professional firms too much emphasis on the cover and not enough on the content has heralded the demise of many a branding initiative. Moreover, firms’ inability to walk the talk of their brand promises has sadly done more than waste oodles of money. It has actively disenfranchised clients and confused the market.
Pdf version    HTML version

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes (Turn and Face the Strain)
Strategy Series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine
(July / August 2007)
The trepidation with which David Bowie’s lyrics approach the topic of change is mirrored by the behaviours of management teams in professional firms everywhere.
Pdf version    HTML version

Horses Choosing Courses – How Refreshing!
Legal Marketing Magazine Cover Feature
(Volume 2, Issue 2, June / July 2007)
Every horse can win a race, but selecting the right race to run in is key. Law firms should choose the arenas best matched to their capabilities for differentiation and competitive advantage.
Pdf version    HTML version

Balancing the Business
Strategy series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine
(June 2007)
The ‘balanced scorecard’ has taken its place in the glossary of management terminology to such an extent that it is easy to assume all managing partners are fully conversant with the theory and are applying it to their firms on a daily basis. Neither of these assumptions is necessarily true, however.
Pdf version    HTML version

Opportunity Knocks?
Thought Leader article published in KM Legal Magazine
(May / June 2007)
The support departments in major law firms have proved as effective as their practice group counterparts at building edifices and creating silos.
Pdf version    HTML version

More Than Embossing The Wallpaper
Published in Professional Marketing Magazine
(June 2007)
The twelfth annual PM Forum Global Conference in September will address one of the biggest challenges facing professional service firms today; how does a firm create an environment in which innovative thinking can flourish, that allows clients and firms to create deep bonds and where the best ideas are used to create compelling marketing propositions?
Pdf version    HTML version

Birds of a Feather
Cover feature of Legal Marketing Magazine
(April 2007)
A perplexing question: Are business development and knowledge management strange bedfellows or birds of a feather? The insightful answer: When boiled down to its base elements, all that a law firm does is leverage knowledge and leverage relationships.
Pdf version    HTML version

It’s My Ball and You Can’t Play with It
Published in Legal Marketing Magazine
(April 2007)
“It’s my ball and you can’t play with it!” is both the mantra of the incorrigible infant and the modus operandi of the petulant professional. Behind the phrase lies an implicit understanding, “we can play together, perhaps even playing the game that you want to play, but only if ultimately I’m in control. Take away my control and I’ll take away my ball!”
Pdf version    HTML version

Is Unqualified Success Possible in the 21st Century?
Published in Professional Services Marketing Group Magazine
(January 2007) The credibility of marketing and marketers within professional services is a perennial issue.  Many marketers in the sector find the low esteem in which they are held by the firms that employ them both frustrating and demotivating. However, credibility and the opportunities to do stretching and challenging work are not birthrights but must be earned. One of the foundations is a solid grounding in marketing theory coupled with its application to professional services.
Pdf version    HTML version

Innovate or Die!
Opinion Piece
(September 2006)
Innovation is like managing a football team, everyone thinks that they can do it, a few people actually do it, but only a handful make a success of it.  It is also widely recognised as being one of the most important pre-requisites for building a sustainable business in the 21st Century.  But what is it? Why is it so important and how can we foster an innovative climate within the professional service sector?
Pdf version    HTML version

What can Knowledge Management Contribute to
Business Development?
Published in Know-How in the Legal Profession, Managing Partner Best Practice Management Series
(April 2006)
What about the knowledge embedded in the relationship with the client or contact? Why isn't this seen as being and integral part of knowledge management by many law firms?
Pdf version    HTML version

Differentiation: Developing the right approach for you
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(April 2004)
The strategic approach that you adopt for your firm is unlikely to provide a complete solution to the differentiation challenges that you face. This is because you will have to decide a practical path that reconciles your strategic theory with the reality of your firm and all of its idiosyncrasies, personalities, politics and taken-for-granted assumptions about the way that it operates.
Pdf version    HTML version

Differentiation: Choosing the battles to fight
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(March 2004)
In any business situation, it is crucial to make active choices about the battlefield on which you wish to compete. These choices also direct the investment of scarce resources within a firm, which need to be prioritised and aligned with clear strategic objectives.
Pdf version    HTML version

Differentiation: Why does it matter?
Published in Managing Partner Magazine
(February 2004)
There must be a clear framework that allows coherent decisions to be made about the future direction of the business. These decisions will not just guide marketing and sales activity but will also influence recruitment policy, IT strategy, working practices and indeed the whole shape of the business going forward. If the strategy fails to do this, then it isn’t a strategy, it’s just window dressing.
Pdf version    HTML version