Changing the Game Plan

Published in Legal Marketing Magazine   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 […]
Read More

Risky Scenarios

Published in Managing Partner magazine   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 onedimensional model. […]
Read More

Crystal Ball Gazing

Published in Managing Partner Magazine   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 […]
Read More

The Law Firm of the Future

Published in Law Firm of the Future supplement report by Managing Partner and Legal Marketing magazines   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 […]
Read More

Leading the Edge

Published in KMLegal magazine   A key component of building the bridge between theory and realisation in the utilisation of knowledge assets lies in improvements in a broad range of leadership capabilities within the KM function itself, according to Andrew Hedley. If law firms are to be effective in building a competitive advantage through knowledge […]
Read More

For What It’s Worth…

Published in KM Legal   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 […]
Read More

Crunch Time!

Published in Professional Marketing   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 […]
Read More

Driving Growth – As the gravy train grinds to a halt…

Masterclass article published in Managing Partner Magazine   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 […]
Read More

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   For many firms the term knowledge management has become synonymous with the technical know-how embedded in their core professional skill. It is owned by the professional-support and information-management communities and runs the risk of becoming yet another silo in the multi-compartmentalised structure that afflicts many organisations. […]
Read More

Time to wake up and smell the coffee

Feature published in Legal Marketing Magazine   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, […]
Read More

Sometimes you must burn your boats

Strategy Series opinion piece published in Managing Partner Magazine   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 […]
Read More

Moving from technical excellence to business nous

Case Study published in Professional Development Strategies for Law Firms   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 […]
Read More

Horses choosing courses – How refreshing!

Published in Legal Marketing Cover Feature   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. We frequently hear that sophisticated purchasers of legal services are, more and more, choosing ‘horses for […]
Read More

Balancing the business

Opinion Piece published in Managing Parner Magazine   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 […]
Read More

More Than Embossing The Wallpaper

Published in Professional Marketing Magazine   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 […]
Read More

Birds of a Feather?

Cover feature of Legal Marketing Magazine   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. What about the knowledge embedded in the relationship with the […]
Read More

Innovate or Die!

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? […]
Read More

What can knowledge management contribute to business development?

Published in Know-How in the Legal Profession, Managing Partner Best Practice Management Series   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. What about the […]
Read More

Differentiation: Developing the right approach for you

Published in Managing Partner Magazine   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 […]
Read More

Differentiation: Why does it matter?

Published in Managing Partner Magazine   The theme of this series of articles is the role that differentiation and positioning plays in the development of successful strategies within professional-service firms. Much of the series will concentrate on the importance of a clear framework in allowing coherent decisions to be made about the future direction of […]
Read More