July 2013 Prepared by Anusuya Sheena Sarkar Director, Prospero Consulting Prospero Consulting An introduction
Consult Prospero Prospero Consulting provides strategic business development and marketing support to the professional services sector. My past experience as a practising lawyer and global in-house business development roles at leading international law firms sets me apart. I understand the time and cost pressures facing those working within the professional services industry, and the need to deploy resources in the most efficient way possible. Prospero Consulting, 49, rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris, France T: +33 1 70 23 72 47 M: +33 6 21 34 13 68 sheena@consultprospero.com www.consultprospero.com N o SIREN 791 175 441 Member d une Association Agrééé, le réglement des honoraires par chéque est accepté
Reach further From start to finish, I help clients work out a strategy to obtain most value from their business development efforts, build their personal profiles, improve client relationships, and enter into new markets and sectors. My approach is both personalised and practical. I aim to arm lawyers and other professionals with the tools, knowledge and confidence to maintain and grow their business profitably, anywhere in the world.
Prospero Consulting Presentation July 2013 Prospero Consulting July 2013 Page 2 Consult Prospero... for your CRM needs Good client relationship management (CRM) is the cornerstone of business development within professional services firms. Clients are demanding a more comprehensive, personalised and coordinated service with identified points of contact. They seek a trusted advisor, someone who understands their business, provides commercial advice, and alerts them in advance when issues arise that might affect their business. For a professional services firm, the need from a risk perspective to institutionalise client relationships is more important than ever. Effectively managing these relationships also assists the firm in servicing their key clients better and reaching the holy grail of becoming a regular trusted advisor to those clients and obtaining more of their high-value work. But, on a day-to-day basis, how do you look after your key clients? How do you keep in touch with them between matters? How do you cross-sell your client relationships? And, how do you prioritise your limited business development time? Good CRM is partly process and partly substance. I have successfully set up, managed and developed CRM programmes at two major law firms. In both cases, I set up the programme from scratch. Having tried a number of different techniques, I have discovered the hard way what does and doesn t work! If you are serious about wanting to manage your client relationships more effectively, I can help you with the following: Selling the idea of a CRM programme into your firm s management and/or partnership. Determining which clients to target. Determining a strategy, objectives and action plan around each client. Choosing client relationship partners. Forming client teams. Tracking activity. Internal and external communication. Targeted value-added services. Client feedback programmes. Leveraging client secondments. Measuring ROI. Training business development support personnel.
Consult Prospero... to train your lawyers on business development One of my passions is working with talented professionals to hone and focus their business development & marketing skills. These skills can be learned, although each person must find their own way and what they are most comfortable with. I believe that everyone right from the most junior member of your firm up to senior partner should be able to contribute to developing the business. But, they must be given the right tools, techniques and confidence to be able to do so. My training programmes are tailored to the firm and the level of experience of the people being trained. I have run group programmes for juniors, intermediates and seniors, as well as individual one-on-one coaching sessions for partners and senior associates. Depending on your training needs, I develop bespoke programmes using real-life examples and case studies whenever possible. to raise your profile in new markets Law firms continue to expand and establish themselves in new markets. Emerging markets are of course key, but many firms are still expanding into Western European markets such as France. Such markets can be daunting particularly when language and cultural issues come into play. If you are a firm looking to expand, I can help you with: Research into target markets, whether they be geographic or sector-based. What the hot topics in those markets are right now. How expansion, establishment and profile-raising should be approached in the chosen markets. Formulating and implementing a strategy and plan of attack. In particular, my experience of being based in France for almost 10 years while working for international firms has given me deep experience of the French market and the differences in doing business there as compared to Anglo-Saxon cultures. I speak the language, understand the ways of working, and know the people. to better leverage social media Social media is becoming an increasingly important element of the marketing mix. Firms that are not taking advantage of the influence and reach of social media tools such as LinkedIn and Twitter are missing a key business development & marketing channel to raise their profile. However, social media can also be daunting for law firms. Many of us don t really understand what these tools are and how to use them. We are also wary of using them in a business context. I regularly train lawyers on how to better leverage social media tools as another channel of communication, and use them to position themselves as an expert across a wider range of clients and prospects.
What I will bring to your firm A global perspective on the professional services market today. Extensive experience of launching and imbedding a real client service culture into a firm. A tried and true methodology for expanding your practice into new markets and service lines. Experience of bringing cohesive teams together, even if spread geographically, to work towards the same goal. Leveraging existing client information to gain more business. Business development & marketing training and coaching for professionals. Leveraging social media tools to raise your profile and penetrate a wider target market. My promise to you To listen to and understand your needs and then tailor an appropriate solution for your firm. Business development & marketing is not about one size fits all. I use my past skills and experience to guide thinking and strategy, but I do not offer an off the shelf product. To work well with people at all levels in your firm, from juniors up to firm management and business development & marketing personnel, no matter where they are located in the world. To return all phone calls and emails promptly. After all, that is what your clients expect from you. To keep you informed of progress in the way that suits you best. To raise any problems or issues immediately with the relevant person in your firm, as far as possible with a suggested solution. To be absolutely transparent about billing, pricing and estimates. To deliver service with a smile. My LinkedIn profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/sheenasarkar I look forward to hearing from you.
Consult Prospero to reach new markets