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 […]
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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, […]
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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 […]
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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. Focus matters and […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 ‘futureproofing’. Achieving this future will mean being prepared to take […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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Driving for Growth

My Editorial Advisory Board blog for Managing Partner magazine http://www.managingpartner.com/blog/driving-your-law-firm-towards-more-aggressive-growth Activity levels are on the increase in the UK legal market. Has the corner been turned? Can we now be more confident that the much-vaunted green shoots of economic growth have finally taken hold? For the past twelve months, a growing swell of firms have […]
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Engaging the wider partnership in the merger process

Published in Managing Partner magazine December 2013   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 […]
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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. Of course, it is also fair to say that such sentiments are understandable given the context of the […]
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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 […]
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Right-sizing your merged law firm

Published in Managing Partner magazine   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 […]
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Plan Ahead To Get Ahead (Part 2)

Published in Professional Marketing Magazine 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 […]
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Fit For Purpose

Published in Managing for Success, the magazine of the Law Society’s Law Management Section The legal services market is witnessing an unprecedented level of merger activity. The legal press is full of news of firms either in discussions or announcing a deal, but there is also a swell of activity behind the scenes of firms […]
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Unlocking the Client Dividend in a Merger

Published in Managing Partner magazine   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. A characteristic of […]
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Why merge? Forces driving consolidation in the UK legal services market

Chapter 3 of The Law Management Section Merger Toolkit 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 […]
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Organic Growth Strategies: Back to Basics

Published in The Cambridge Marketing Review   The challenging market conditions of the last four years mean that organic growth is a significant issue for many organisations. My own practice is focused on the professional service sector and commercial law firms in particular. This particular market has suffered from the pincer squeeze of economic recession […]
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A merger is an opportunity to bring about positive cultural change

Published in Managing Partner magazine 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 […]
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Mergers can be effective in moving partners out of their comfort zones

Published in Managing Partner magazine   Many merger business plans talk about creating a firm which is better than the sum of its parts by taking an external view. They wax lyrical, for example, about new markets, additional revenue streams, sweating the client base through broader and deeper practice capabilities and a strengthened brand. The […]
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Horizon Plan

Published in Managing Partner Magazine Andrew Hedley discusses how continuous planning can help you to improve the implementation of your firm’s strategic vision. 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 longerterm planning cycle is required. This article considers how […]
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Are You Clear About Why Your Firm Is Seeking A Merger?

Published in Managing Partner Magazine   This is the first of my regular Managing Partner columns on law firm mergers. Over the coming year, I will be exploring mergers as a strategic option from a range of perspectives. Beginning by understanding the drivers that suggest merger as the best means of achieving objectives, I will […]
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Taking the Inside-Out Perspective

Published in PSMG Magazine   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 […]
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It’s time to compromise on merger candidates: start looking for a doable deal

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 […]
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