You didn't sign up for sales duty when choosing your career.

No lawyer or accountant ever went to school so that they could sell services. Those that do (Rainmakers) are considered ‘unicorns’ by their industries. But here’s a little secret. No matter how much you don’t want to sell services, might be an introvert, and would like to review briefs or financials rather than engage people, selling IS part of a successful and profitable practice. That being said, it doesn’t have to be complicated. No cheesy calls. No shaking sweaty hands and kissing babies. 90% of success for professionals in their business development activities is clearly articulating what you do, why it matters, and who cares. When you can introduce yourself effectively and to the right people when opportunities present themselves, you’ll get 90% of the business. With that said, we segment our niche markets within professional services into three groups:

• Senior Associates/Managers wanting to make partner.
• Newly minted partners needing to originate files for themselves and their reports.
• Single shingles and small boutique practices who need to build and sustain a profitable practice.  

Market #1: Senior Associates & Managers

Sometimes firms need to be more clear on what partnership requirements look like. They might tell you to meet your billable targets. Continue to develop your expertise. Tag along to meetings with clients to make connections. Then the magic happens. You get called into the board room, and the partners, with big smiles, show you letterhead with your name on it.

Just kidding...

Here's what your firm might need to be telling you. Partners need new partners to buy out old partners. Partners need new partners who can bring in business and contribute to the pool of money that they all take from. Most firms promote partners because they need new blood and someone that can handle the debt to buy in so others can be bought out. Since 1999, we have worked with thousands of Senior Associates and Managers. We have cut the time to partnership in half by focusing clients on three core abilities within their practice: 1) The ability to originate profitable files and grow existing accounts. 2) The ability to transfer knowledge to others so that you can move up and find/train your replacement. 3) Have technical expertise. We work with clients on the first two; they need to do the third independently. When you can figure out how to develop a trapline of opportunities from your existing and growing professional network, your billable hours become less critical to the existing partnership group. Your ability to bring in profitable files and grow clients is a unique skill set that can be taught. We have worked with the most hardcore introverts who wanted to make partner; their firm wanted them to be a partner, but they were stuck on the origination side. Within the first year, we will get you to do basic activities to get the market's attention; your firm will start the partnership process with you in the second year. Please don't wait and hope it happens. Take matters into your own hands and force the process through delivering something to your firm that few do.

Market #2: Newly minted partners.

Assuming you just read the above and it speaks to you, but you have already ‘jumped the shark,’ you might find yourself as a name partner looking to become an equity partner. Or even an equity partner that now needs to sell to fill up your practice with the types of files you want to work on, generate additional income to pay off your partnership loan, and probably feed your underlings who are now contributing to your bottom line through their efforts (delicious, right?).

We can work with you to establish a primary business development system that you can implement in your daily activities to uncover opportunities and leverage your network. It can be done in just 10-15 minutes a day or an hour a week. Having credibility in the market is one of the hardest things to establish, and you already have that. Now we bolt on a couple of strategies that activate people and opportunities for you and your firm.

Market #3: Single shingles/ boutique firms

Now to the most entrepreneurial of the legal and accounting professions. The individuals and small partnership groups deciding to hang out their own shingles and be business owners simultaneously. This is like taking on two major projects at once. During the day, working in the profession. Evenings and weekends are spent figuring out the best way to run the practice profitably.

For clients in this niche, we work on the basics of business development as with the two groups above but also layer in different management skills and strategies so that being a business owner and a practitioner can be complementary rather than competing for your time and attention. Having proven tools and structured systems takes the guesswork out of growing and managing your practice and will serve you throughout your career and your business life.

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