Advances in Law Firm Business Development©

The law firm business model continues to adapt to competitive pressures. Marketing (mar com) and/or business development (BD) programs are under pressure to help keep the pipeline of potential new work full.* The days of law firms counting on new business to come in the door mainly from broadcast-type marketing communication and branding (mar com) tools, a few rainmakers, the existing referral stream and/or other primarily reactive client development efforts with little formal measuring of return on investment (ROI) are gone. Now that the severity of the recession is dissipating, many law firms are continuing to strategically review, revise, restructure and/or upgrade their investments in the entire business development pipeline-continuum to maximize the return on the limited available time and budget of any single firm. To fuel growth and remain profitable, more firms are keeping up with the rate of change. Recent advances include:

1. Mar com and BD budgets are being re-directed towards select growth areas and high probability opportunities, whether by practice area, industry, type of case or client. As some "Magic Circle" firms have known for decades, ROI from business development investments is highest for law firms when they strategically support one-to-one/small group communications that are appropriately organized, planned for and followed-up on over time. Most U.S. firms have come full circle now, with many re-dedicating larger percentages of total budget towards these efforts rather than broadcast-type marketing tools such as branding, newsletters, events and advertisements. While BD coaching has become the new branding, and great coaching can yield measurable ROI, some firms continue to spin their wheels due to a lack of a consistent, defined and well-supported pipeline-continuum approach. Over the past 20-plus years, we have helped many firms to establish and upgrade their pipeline approach/system and also provide the renowned, proven training and coaching course entitled "Mastering the 'Sales' Process for Lawyers©"** which includes actual GC-level clients as instructors and CLE credits.

   
   a) Many key client team efforts are working to increase revenues (see December 2010 article in The American Lawyer). However, in most AmLaw 200 firms where key client team programs are established and operating, the incremental annual revenue growth resulting from them is flattening. So, now more firms are focusing on growing the second tier of existing clients/contacts – those for whom the firm is doing some limited amount of work, but that have the potential for more. We now have a formal program to assist entitled "Growing Select, Existing Client Relationships." To support these efforts in an organized, proactive manner that will yield results, some firms are institutionalizing a process to further develop these client relationships – led by internal personnel and in some cases, with outside expert assistance. Such programs often consist of: creating a way to periodically and strategically identify these clients/opportunities, building and supporting a database and tracking function, offering multi-disciplinary training sessions on the key steps in the sales process, and providing on-going coaching to ensure implementation, follow-up and results.

   
   b) To remain in a competitively responsive posture and win RFP opportunities as they come into the firm, various alternative, creative and/or aggressive pricing/billing options and more specifics on legal project management need to be included in the majority of RFP responses. Due to this prevalence of demand for alternative fees arrangements and project estimates, there are now dedicated pricing/budgeting/estimating specialists and project scoping/bidding specialists working closely with partners, practice groups and the firm's RFP/RFQ response group. For example, one mega-firm hired a director for global pricing, while boutique and smaller firms have hired analysts that serve this function along with other business development-related financial planning and reporting tasks. As a result, our time-tested and highly rated program entitled "Winning Proposals, RFPs and Client Competitions - " is back in vogue and has been upgraded to include instruction on how to create successful AFA's and project scope bids to win pitches. We have also helped several firms to analyze and build standardized, profitable alternative fee option databases and project management templates that can be easily tailored and re-used as appropriate.




2. But, pitching the firm’s/lawyers’ capabilities when asked is no longer enough to keep the pipeline full and remain competitive. Job #1 for most mar com and BD departments is to quickly respond to requests from key partners and leaders in order to support key existing efforts. But, to keep "up with the Joneses" and to keep the pipeline full, increasingly strategic, select proactive efforts need to be undertaken as well. Each is a full-time job in and of itself in most law firms and unfortunately too many law firm business development personnel are stretched too thin, where they are unrealistically expected to do both well. With budgets and staff under increasing pressure, more firms are upgrading their internal and external vetting processes (see blog article dated August 2, 2010).



3. Many firms recognize the need for more support because mar com/BD positions within law firms continue to grow and multiply (since 2010, new job postings on the Legal Marketing Association's website http://www.legalmarketing.org/ have continued to increase rapidly). However, finding appropriate, qualified and proven specialists and/or personnel that get the job done remains challenging, and turnover remains high and expensive. Common obstacles and hurdles to successful BD in and for law firms have not changed much (in our 1999 benchmarking survey, law firm respondents reported the #1 greatest challenge/hurdle to effective business development as "effectively focusing our efforts;" to see other survey results click here). Constant re-hiring of mar com/BD staff in the hopes that a "new" person will fix or overcome these common hurdles and challenges has proven unrealistic, as has over-loading expectations on any one, single staff member.

   
   
   a) Several firms are re-defining and re-organizing their support for business development, expanding/adding to the roles and positions that support the pipeline-continuum and creating more sophisticated, centralized BD templates and tool kits. New hires are increasingly being sought for specialized mar com and/or BD support roles. New positions increasingly in vogue are either by function (such as Events Manager, Client/Competitive Analyst, Technology Manager or RFP Coordinator) and/or by practice area/industry group (such as Litigation Manger-Biotech, or BD Manager-Employment Litigation). Some BD staff members are assigned/dedicated to two to five of the most profitable practice/industry groups and/or most productive rainmakers and their teams.

   
   
   b) Since lateral hiring is a significant source of new business, some firms have created "inside sales" support positions to assist with insuring lateral acquisitions are integrated over time and to support viable cross-selling efforts, especially those opportunities where the firm may be doing some, limited work for the client, and there is opportunity for more. Unfortunately, firms are also making the mistake of separating lateral integration, skills training, mar com and/or their BD departments, which can waste efforts and resources and create unnecessary internal 'turf' wars.

   
   
   c) Other new hires are focused on solely on "outside sales," i.e. developing new work from new clients. Some are being tasked with getting the firm on RFP lists from select Fortune 500-1000 companies, others are hired to coordinate and track pipelines of all external efforts. Some firms have hired full time personnel to serve these roles; others are outsourcing either the development of the systems and processes needed to ensure success of these efforts, and/or are also outsourcing the outreach efforts, tracking and follow-up as ethical and appropriate.




4. The law firm business model continues to experience competitive pressures and change. One problem re-emerging is the need for another round of formal revamping of the overall law firm organizational structure since too many firms currently still operate under an outdated, multi-matrix approach which causes operating inefficiencies at several levels. However, there is a marked increase in internal administrative “cross-functional collaboration” to support the new business pipeline-continuum. Traditionally, most law firm mar com/BD departments operate as stand-alone departments or silos within the firm. Now there is increased emphasis on formalized cross-collaboration between the mar com/BD department and other staff areas such as technology support; accounting and finance; collections; library, research/competitive intelligence analysts; legal project management and management; and/or human resources and professional development.

*New business pipelines ideally should be built, estimated and maintained on a pro forma basis for 18 months to 3 years out.

LOOKING FOR PROVEN, QUALIFIED ASSISTANCE? Our nationally renowned professional services including: audits/assessments; consulting; outsourcing solutions and training/coaching programs are commissioned privately by firms themselves. If you or your firm would like any professional assistance, consultation, training, coaching or other support, please consider our significant qualifications and track record. Please see What Law Firms and In-House Counsel Say About Us for more information and/or contact Julie Savarino, telephone (734) 668-7008, email: Julie@BusDevInc.com. Here is an example of one of our popular training and coaching programs:

**"Mastering the "Sales" Process for Lawyers©" - this renowned training and coaching program is taught by Julie Savarino and one or two actual General Counsel and is eligible for CLE in many jurisdictions. This program can be tailored for:

• Income Partners


• Interested Equity Partners


• Litigators


• Labor & Employment Lawyers


• Tax Attorneys


• White Collar Lawyers


• Intellectual Property Lawyers


• And/or other types of lawyers and/or industry-specific practitioners.

AUTHOR, STRATEGIST, MASTER TRAINER & COACH: Julie Savarino, Esq., Managing Director, Julie@BusDevInc.com, (734) 668-7008

P.S. For the past year, we have been honored to help military families pro bono undertake every legal avenue possible to fight harassment at funerals. Recently, 12 retired U.S. Air Force Generals filed a complaint with the Kansas State Bar to seek appropriate discipline of 13 lawyers who are members of the Westboro Baptist "Church" based in Topeka, Kansas. The objective of the complaint is to compel a formal inquiry into allegations lawyers tied to the "church" failed to maintain standards of professional conduct required to hold a law license in Kansas. For more information, click this link: http://cjonline.com/news/2011-02-28/generals-complaint-targets-phelps-lawyers. If you would like to support this grievance by signing the petition, please click here: http://www.gopetition.com/petition/43822.html. Please feel free to share this information. Thank you.

© Copyright 2011, Business Development Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Mastering the 'Sales' Process for Lawyers¨ - nationally renowned client development training and coaching program

To be held Friday, December 10, 2010 in New York City at the offices of Linklaters LLP, 1345 Avenue of the Americas

To remain competitive, lawyers and law firms need to continually upgrade their efforts to generate a consistent pipeline of new business. "Mastering the 'Sales' Process for Lawyers©" is a time proven program that helps lawyers develop more business from existing clients and convert various contacts into new clients by learning and applying the science, skill and art of the most effective client development techniques. New and experienced partners gain from attending and participating in this renowned program (see What Clients Say). Participants learn, practice and master both the art and science of the 'sales' or client development process as it applies to lawyers and law firms.

Why attend? Or, why offer this program for interested partners in your firm? Each attendee will receive the following benefits:

• Develop intimate familiarity with each step of the 'sales' cycle and process for lawyers.


• Identify and apply what works as 'best practices' when selling legal services.


• Learn how to prepare for and analyze new business opportunities and take client development skills to a 'master level'.


• Learn how to make the most out of personal contacts and convert them into clients.


• Pitch real-life clients Peter M. Jennings, Assistant General Counsel, The Dow Chemical Company and Thomas Ball, Vice President, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary, Online Resources Corp. To view what other in-house counsel have to say about this program please visit: What Clients Say.


• Learn how to generate a personalized Money Book© and 'sales pipeline' to methodically and systematically develop profitable new business.

Registration fees for this public enrollment session are $2,495.00 USD for the first attendee. Discounts are available for subsequent attendees from the same firm. Registration fees are non-refundable, but are transferable within the same firm. Registration fees include a breakfast, lunch, an optional post-program reception and a copy of the course materials. Personalized, one-to-one coaching is available as an option after this NYC program for an additional fee.

For more information or to reserve a spot(s) for you firm at the December 10, 2010 NYC program, or to commission this program privately for a group of interested partners at your firm, please contact Julie Savarino.

Firms Are Upgrading the Hiring & Vetting Process for Marketing & Business Development Staff and Outside Consultants, Trainers and/or Coaches

Whether you are searching to fill an internal position or to find a temporary or project-based external consultant/vendor, taking the time to create a formal assessment/vetting process to evaluate the experience, capabilities and deliverables you can expect from any/all marketing/business development support will go a long way to insure that you obtain the return on investment that you want.

As is true in any profession, mar com and bus dev candidates come in varying sizes, shapes and (most importantly) skill sets and competencies. Unfortunately, in the law firm marketing and business development profession, there is a low barrier to entry – in that virtually anyone can "say/claim" they can do this work. That is a major reason why bona fide capabilities and true talent vary widely. Over the last 25 years, hundreds have claimed to do this work, many of whom are no longer in the field. In addition, many consultants offer themselves up as both marketing and business development experts. But these are two very distinct and different disciplines. Just like lawyers, some consultants are generalists and some are specialists, while some have a combination of skills. Not all are created equal, nor are they all credible or even legitimate.

With increasingly limited funds available to invest and the high cost of turnover and attrition, it is important for firms to utilize a more formal vetting process beyond the old-school "throw a person at the problem" approach to hiring. Too often, the old school approach consisted of trying to sense if the candidate “seemed likely to fit” – i.e. using more subjective selection criteria. Common choices included hiring: a paralegal who already got along with everyone; a recent college graduate related to a partner; a person who had done PR in the community; or a candidate recommended by a client – all with minimal emphasis on assessing deliverables. Now, more firms are considering more sophisticated, objective criteria as part of the selection and vetting process, asking questions such as:

1. As precisely as possible, exactly what is the problem your firm wishes to solve? What are your goals and objectives for this hire? What do you hope to accomplish? Exactly what results do you want to achieve and in what time period? To answer these questions, work with the candidate to establish realistic, attainable and measurable objectives.


2. What criteria are most important to you/your firm - credibility, ensuring results, fit within your firm culture? List and rank them. Then, consider a process to create a "short list" based on the following and other considerations unique to your firm/situation.


3. Does the person have the expertise to do the exact type of work you need done - i.e., law firm business development?


4. What is the person's level of experience - i.e. for how long have they done this exact type of work, for which firms and with what outcomes? Do they talk the talk and walk the walk? Is this a person who simply says what you want to hear, could they be an "empty suit" or motivational-type "talking head"?


5. What are your expectations (as precisely as is possible) and can they be met by this person? And their expectations - are they in alignment with yours?


6. What exact results do you want and can you expect to receive? What is the endgame/outcome you desire? How will you measure whether you have gotten there? Will you receive a "cookie cutter" solution or one designed/customized for your firm? What demonstrable experience does this person have getting these exact types of results?


7. Does this person the credibility/credentials you want, with a proven track record of gaining the respect of the kinds of audiences he/she will be working with/communicating with in your firm?


8. Does the consultant have the integrity & character to say up front if they will be doing the actual work, or will they substitute another consultant(s)? If so, vet them too. What do others, especially clients say about them?


9. Do their communication style, work style and track record show that they can work well with lawyers? How responsive are they? What is their formal "personal style type" and how does that compare with those with whom they will be working? Are they self-centered or can they subjugate their ego to lawyers and others with whom they work? Are they a good writer? Will they "represent" your firm well?


10. What differentiates this person, making them different from or better than other options/competitors?


11. Have you been given written references? Plan to talk personally to at least three at organizations that are most like your firm. Ask about the prospect’s strengths and weaknesses because no one is perfect.


12. Have you defined the work product and agreed in writing to the scope, timing, work plan and deliverables?


13. Have you developed a contract that includes confidentiality and other appropriate terms?


14. What other considerations are unique to your firm and situation – have you thought through all the questions you want to ask before you start doing interviews? If new questions emerge as a result of the interview process, be flexible and add them to your list.

Matthew Snyder Fund re: U.S. Supreme Court Case - Snyder v. Phelps

Tragic Case Going to the U.S. Supreme Court - Please Consider Helping the Family

This fall, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case involving a dead Marine, privacy rights at funerals and the 1st Amendment. Case is: Snyder v. Phelps, a very very tragic story for the family, see this link for more info - www.matthewsnyder.org . In a nutshell - the case involves the picketing at a deceased Marine's funeral involving the defendant Phelps of Westboro Baptist Church. The plaintiff, Albert Snyder, the father of a U.S. marine killed in Iraq, won a $10.9 million jury verdict for invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress against the Phelps clan as a result of their picketing his son's funeral carrying offensive, unpatriotic, and antigay messages, as well as their publication of "The Burden of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder" on the church's website.

Here is a link to the Good Morning America piece that aired yesterday morning: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/; CNN's coverage on March 30: http://www.cnn.com and the Baltimore Sun's recent story: http://themoderatevoice.com/

The family needs our help! They need to raise money because the 4th Circuit mordered them to pay the defendants court costs in the amount of $36K. In addition, the family also needs $20K for printing the Supreme Court brief and are facing a demand for an additional $97K because of a cost petition at the District Court. So, we are trying to get the word out to as many people who may want to donate/help, because every donation - no matter how small - will help will all the costs needed to take this to the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, because this is not a non-profit, donations are not tax deductible. But donations can be sent through the website - www.matthewsnyder.org or made payable to "Al Snyder Fund" and sent to the family's lawyer, Sean Summers - law firm at the following address: Barley Snyder LLC , 100 East Market Street, York, PA 17401. The family's lawyer is working pro bono so all funds donated will go to cover costs and not attorney fees.

Additionally, you can show support for the effort by posting an entry and joining the Facebook group by clicking here.

Mr. Snyder's daughter has also started a Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/

Two New articles for the New Year and New Decade

As a service and a "thank you" to our valued clients, referral sources, partners and friends - I have written two new articles you may find of interest.

One entitled "The Evolving Law Firm Business Model - Changes in Market-Driven Strategies to Increase Revenue" can be found at www.BusDevInc.com under About Us, Articles, scroll down the page to the Strategy, Profitability & Compensation Section and it's the first article posted there.

The second article, entitled "Important Distinctions Between Marketing, Business Development, Client Development (a.k.a. "Sales") and Client Service for Law Firms & Lawyers" can be obtained by e-mailing me: Julie@BusDevInc.com.

The Perils & Opportunities of Generating Revenue Using Chief Business Development Officers and/or Professional Business Developers©

As a lawyer and proven professional business developer with over 25 years of experience, I am concerned that too many law firms are trying to solve "the problem" of the need to generate more revenue in this tough economy by deciding to "hire a person to solve the problem" without providing much-- if any-- focus, buy-in, support, resources, authority and/or back-up. Unless responsibilities, expectations and deliverables are clearly defined and matched with capabilities, simply creating a new position as a solution does not work in the vast majority of cases. It is eerily similar to when law firms first started hiring marketing directors about 30 years ago. Back then, many firms did the same thing - hire a person to solve "the problem" without laying the proper foundation... simply hoping it would work. The negative effect of that approach is still with us, as unrealistically high law firm expectations and unrealistically minimal support and resources create the kind of mutual frustration and disappointment that cause the counterproductive turnover of marketing professionals the legal industry continues to experience.

Currently, more firms are hiring or contemplating hiring a high end "sales" professional as an internal business development staffer, and/or are retaining the services of an external business developer (outsourcing the function). In either case, before hiring or retaining such a person, it is essential that: 1) the role/responsibilities of the position are carefully and narrowly defined; 2) the reporting structure and coordination with the marketing department and other key support functions is carefully mapped out; and 3) the sales professional's direct track record, true capabilities and deliverables are vetted carefully. In some firms, the C.M.O., director or equivalent already services/supports the sales function, so an additional employee (increasing head count) is not necessary except to provide additional support, leverage, training and/or coaching to assist the existing efforts.

Hiring one professional to simply "get the 'job' done - generate new work for us" is not very realistic (unless it is a small firm). If it was so easy to do, law firms would not be in this situation. Firms are most successful when they approach the sales "job" from a holistic point of view - that is, embracing the fact that almost all employees and firm owners need to have basic client communication/client relations skills... whether or not they want to or will actually engage in the "sales" process itself. A top-down driven, shared understanding that every employee of the firm has some role/responsibility within the business development process, even as the roles vary, is essential to success for the sales function within law firms.

One of the key roles for sales professionals that law firms hire should be to develop the appropriate level of skills for the internal team - i.e. those that will be most active in the firm's business development program - lawyers and support staff. This requires directed resources and effort. It is ethically prohibited for law firms to use non-lawyers to solicit business for lawyers/firms. However, there are numerous tasks that are appropriate for non-lawyers including: conducting market/industry/client research to identify needs; conducting client satisfaction interviews/surveys; helping analyze and prepare information/pitches; coaching and preparing lawyers for client/prospect meetings/communications; helping coordinate business development efforts internally; helping set up and (as appropriate) attending prospect meetings along with the lawyers to take notes; organizing a method of tracking and reporting sales development efforts; and performing similar support activity.

Over the past 25 years, a few firms have been successful by having senior partners, partners and/or external professionals with significant external relationships devote a large percentage of their otherwise billable time to "sales" or relationships development, where they are the "face of the firm" in a specified community/industry. In this role - if they are lawyers - it is appropriate for them to meet with clients/prospects, help arrange for introductions and referrals, and set up/follow-up on meetings. The problem with this approach - in the past and even today - is that unless these efforts are internally coordinated and organized with solidly a supported tracking and follow-up system (which requires staff and resources), results can vary and have varied.

Bottom line, with the accelerated rate of industry and economic change, most firms benefit from a formal, annual review and upgrade of their overall, entire business development program (both the marketing and sales components). This is true whether they have a "sales" person or not, or are contemplating hiring one; whether their program is 100% internally supported; whether outside support is utilized; whether the review is conducted internally or externally. The ability to generate and report results is what matters.

2009 Year in Review - Business Development Trends in Law Firms©

Overall, in the global economy and within the legal industry, investment is no longer at a stand-still as it was earlier this year. But to keep their houses in order, many law firms have made and are continuing to make significant cut-backs, changes and upgrades in the manner and methods by which they are investing in business development. Some key trends in 2009 and into 2010:

1. The year-end collection process gets more challenging as firms experience reductions in the total percentage of receivables collected at 100% realization/standard rates.


2. Competition is at an all-time high, causing attorneys to change their thinking, mind-set and habits.


3. Upgrades to traditional marketing efforts/support -
   
   
   • Investments are tightening up in the traditionally most-utilized marketing tools.
   
   
   • Train-the-trainer, train-the-coach and train-the-leader programs are being commissioned for lawyers and staff.
   
   
   • Business/client development and/or "sales" pipelines are being employed to a greater degree.

To read the entire article, please visit: www.BusDevInc.com > Complimentary Resources > Trend Reports