PETER%20SCOTT%20CONSULTING%20%20Briefing%20Note%20May%202007

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PETER SCOTT CONSULTING Briefing Note May 2007
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Developing clear and realistic strategy
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Adapting to change

• It is not the strongest of the species that
  survive nor the most intelligent, but the ones
  who are most responsive to change
• Charles Darwin
• Origin of species

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• Challenging
• your thinking

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• Challenging everything
• about your firm as it is
• today

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Your Firm?
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Do you recognise any of these?
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Are you forever pushing at a closed door?
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Is this one of your major problems?

• This will happen to your talent unless

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Do you have partner behaviour issues?
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Thats a great idea for the rest of you!
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Heavyweight gorilla

• You cant manage me.Im a big biller!

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Ahhonly five more years to go
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Can you answer YES to the following questions?
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Is your firm firing on all cylinders?Answer
Yes / No
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Are all your partners hungry?Answer Yes / NO
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Do you have the right partners on board to
help you achieve your goals?

• Answer Yes / No

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Are all your partners prepared to be
managed?Answer Yes / NO
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Are all your partners prepared to be
accountable?Answer Yes / NO
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Do your partners have sufficient financial
discipline?Answer Yes / NO
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Can you say your firm has no under performing
partners?Answer Yes / NO
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Should all your equity partners really be equity
partners?

• Answer Yes / No

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Are there sanctions on a partner who refuses to
comply?Answer Yes / NO
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Is it clear who is running your firm?Answer
Yes / NO
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Are you prepared to change every NO to a
YES?Answer - ?
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Are you prepared to provide the LEADERSHIP
required for change?
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Developing your strategy

• Understanding the process

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Strategy is a continuous journey
focus on BIG ISSUES
make decisions
bank progress move on
implement decisions
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We need to understand the meaning of strategy

• A realistic plan or course of action to gain
  competitive advantage
• Which has clear and achievable objectives and
• Uses available (but scarce) resources (existing
  or to be generated)

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What should be our realistic objectives in.

• 2008 / 9?
• 2009 / 10?
• 20010 / 11?

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For example.

• Which parts of our firm are we
• going to
• Grow / invest in?
• Dispose of?

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2008 / 9?

• WE ARE GOING TO earn PEP of
• K
• Is this realistic? must be tested
• Do we all want this?

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Differentiate strategy from

• An unrealistic and unachievable wish list
• Implementation of plans the making it happen

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Strategic thinking should not be routine or
superficial

• Thinking based upon sound
• knowledge

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Where to start?

• Strategic planning is a process of
• Logical analysis of internal / external forces
• Planning and decision-making based upon that
  analysis

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In partnerships there is a particular need to
focus on

• Internal attitudes
• External perceptions
• in order to formulate a realistic plan

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However something needs to be present first

• Leadership

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Leadership

• Thinking and visionary
• Challenging
• Inspirational
• Ability to take partners with you
• A determination to implement change

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Challenging leadership

• That challenges everything
• Above all leadership that is prepared to face up
  to a firms SACRED COWS

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Internal attitudes

• Culture
• Values
• Behaviour
• What kind of firm do we REALISTICALLY
• want to be?

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Take an internal reality check

• Issue a confidential partner / staff
• questionnaire to find out what your
• people REALLY think about your firm.

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External perceptions

• Do you know what your clients think about your
  firm?
• Do you know what they want from your firm?
• Often a perception gap

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Take a reality check

• Commission an external survey of
• Client/referrer opinions
• Client/referrer reasons for using others
• Analysis of firms performance viewed by
  clients/referrers
• Benchmarking against competitors

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What can a law firm learn from a client
perception survey?

• Highlights issues that need to be addressed
• Partners should not go into denial
• they are not talking about us!
• or
• its not true!

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Value Clients Care About

• Your clients perspective
• Not your own perspective
• Is there a gap?

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Some client perceptions

• I dont think they show adequate interest in our
  business
• They are not proactive with their own clients
• They dont think laterally
• They never visit, and they should if they want
  to increase the quality of the relationship

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How well do you communicate with your clients?

• Out of sight, out of mind. They must ensure
  regular communication
• I am not convinced I have their message or why
  they are different
• Their profile is very low they need to create
  more noise in the market
• They must not assume that people know what they
  do

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Is lack of resource making you uncompetitive?

• Some of your clients may think so -
• I dont believe they have the resources
• Sometimes they lack polish and quality in depth
• Depth of expertise I have only one partner to
  contact on a day to day basis, which is a little
  limiting
• City firms have greater depth of expertise

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The value gap

• It is the clients perception of value that
  matters
• Too much emphasis on service attributes
• Not enough on helping clients achieve results

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You will add value if

• You provide clients with what they want and
  more
• At prices they perceive to be value for money
  and
• you do this better than the competition

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Each part of your firm needs to position itself
High
Client Perceived Value
X
Ave
Suicide Zone
Low
High
Low
Ave
Client Perceived Price
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Groups doing volume work

• Where should they position themselves?
• How should these groups work to add
• value?

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Each part of your firm needs to position itself
High
Client Perceived Value
X
Ave
Suicide Zone
Low
High
Low
Ave
Client Perceived Price
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Volume / Low Value Added Services
Low value added groups will compete on processes
and price technology driven services with
minimum professional input

• Value enhanced by
• - driving down cost
• - facilitating implementation of
• solutions

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Issues in providing volume / low added value
services

• Understand the need to move north to hold
  position - must constantly squeeze out more
  value for same cost
• Invest in standardising processes
• Ensure financial strength to stay the course
• Avoid creating the perception of reduced quality

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Other work types

• Where should these groups position
• themselves?
• How should they add value?

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Each part of your firm needs to position itself
High
Client Perceived Value
X
Ave
Suicide Zone
Low
High
Low
Ave
Client Perceived Price
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High Value Added Services
High value- added services strategic impact on
client generally wisdom/experience driven

• Need to
• Nurture wisdom/experience within the firm
• Ensure added value is perceived as valuable

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Moving to High Value Added Services

• Focus on specific client types / work types
• Seek leadership in a few, cohesive segments
• Understand how brand influences PAV
• - brand is about differentiating yourselves

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Moving to High Value Added services

• Do not add too much PAV especially in a price
  sensitive market
• Focus cost reduction only where it will not
  jeopardise value added
• Ensure added value is always perceived as
  valuable

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Above all

• Be realistic

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A final thought

• Change before you have to
• Jack Welch

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Any questions?