I’m Making Some Big Changes and I Couldn’t Be Happier

I’m in the midst of making some major changes to my life and my work… and I’m feeling very fortunate.

I’ve built a career that I’m very proud of. I recently spent nearly two decades at one of Canada’s largest law firms, including nine as its Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer (CMBDO). There I redefined its practice and industry structure, spearheaded two major brand refreshes, and built its first-ever client service excellence program.

During that time, we won many awards, both in marketing and business development and as a firm. We assisted many lawyers in achieving tier-1 and other top rankings. I built an exceptional team with above-industry-average tenure, and its members continue to progress in their careers and within the firm. I also held multiple roles at the Legal Marketing Association (an international association with 4,000 members across the globe), including as its President, over a six-year period.

At the start of 2024, there was a change in leadership, and my role at the firm was no longer required. The time was right at that point in my life to explore some other goals. Since then, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about what is important and how I want to make an impact in the world. I’m feeling fortunate that I now have the opportunity to embark on several new and exciting professional paths.

Driving Client Service to New Heights in the Legal Field with New Professional Endeavours

The first avenue I’m taking centres on the fact that I have a lot more to give to professional services industries. I’ve been putting in the work to figure out what that will look like—above all, exploring how I will continue to further and share my passion for and expertise around client service.

To that end, I’m launching an advisory business. I have a number of collaborations in the works with other organizations and leaders—stay tuned for more details as they develop. But above all, I will be working with professional services firms to help them establish a comprehensive approach to client service. Clients are demanding more from their firms and loyalty is no longer a guarantee. Building an incredible service experience is a key way for firms and the professionals in them to distinguish themselves.

The Best Professional Services Firms Build a Deliberate Approach to Client Service Excellence

Buyers are becoming more discerning than ever. In one study across all industries, respondents said that 51% of the time, a single negative interaction is enough for them to never do business with a given company.

That hasn’t been the case for law firms. A study conducted by DCM Insights, cited in a Harvard Business Review article titled “What Today’s Rainmakers Do Differently,” found that as recently as five years ago, 76% of legal buyers were simply loyal to the firms they had always used. Today, however, the percentage of clients that are unquestionably loyal to their traditional law firm has fallen to 53%, and it’s expected to drop to 37% over the next five years.

Having a historical relationship is no longer enough to ensure a law firm retains a client. At a certain level, there’s a basic expectation that you will have great lawyers. But high-quality legal services are widely available from a range of sources, from premium-priced law firms to boutique firms, online services, and even AI. Clients know they have choices, and they’re not afraid to walk away from a long-term relationship. Law is a highly competitive field, and historic client loyalty can now be much less depended on as a source of business.

It’s always been clear to me that delivering an exceptional client experience can help set a firm apart and retain clients for the long term. In Thomson Reuters’s 2024 Marketing Partner Forum Survey, respondents were asked how a company can differentiate itself. While they did cite other things like industry expertise, practice-area specialization, and brand or prestige, they ranked client service far above any other element; it was listed by nearly twice as many respondents as the next-highest-ranked category.

But a great client experience doesn’t just happen—the best firms build a deliberate approach to client service excellence that has buy-in at the highest levels of leadership.

A Set of Principles Must Guide a Firm’s Service Excellence Program

The core of a service excellence program is a set of principles that become the guiding light for teams as they work with their clients and with each other—their raison d’être. Establishing that list involves a thorough assessment across the firm, to understand what high-performers do for their clients as well as how they work internally. This can involve dozens of interviews and extensive data collection, all rolling up after careful analysis into a set of tenets that define the firm’s essence.

These principles should be simple, straightforward and easy to recall and follow. They might centre around concepts like collaboration, trust, honesty, and integrity. They should include how members of the firm will communicate and interact with clients, as well as how they will treat and respect each other.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to get buy-in on this, to ensure the program is sustainable for the long term. Buy-in starts with the managing partner or executive committee, but it must also be sought at all levels, including partners, associates, leadership team members, department heads and staff. These core principles will ultimately be embedded into the culture at every level, which will only work if they resonate with everyone. Without investing in the work to build buy-in, starting with the leadership, the program can become a short-term fad. Building a culture of service excellence is a long-term journey.

Embedding a Service Excellence Program Into a Firm’s Culture Ensures It Lasts for the Long Term

The rest of the program springs from there. It involves tools and protocols to enable teams to put the principles into action, as well as communications and web materials to promote the approach externally. ?

One of the most impactful methods of holding people accountable is to integrate the program into the firm’s measurement system. This will differ from firm to firm, but ideally it involves infusing it right into the compensation and/or performance management system.

For instance, one of a firm’s key principles might be to promote internal collaboration—a smart move, since collaboration has been shown to increase revenue by bringing multidisciplinary services to a client. According to the HBR “Rainmakers” article mentioned above, switching to a collaborative approach helped global law firm Baker McKenzie increase its North American revenue by more than 40%. Yet many firms don't push people to collaborate, and a lack of trust can sometimes prevent partners from bringing others in to work with their clients.

However, if a partner knows they’ll have to give examples of collaboration at their performance reviews, they are more likely to do it. They will quickly catch on that collaboration is a big part of what makes a successful lawyer, and the concept will gain traction. As described in Heidi K. Gardner’s article Collaboration in Law Firms, “When partners collaborate, they form bonds of trust that allow them to work together more efficiently to produce high-quality outcomes. Collaboration gives them the opportunity to observe and understand one another’s capabilities—and it is these firsthand experiences of one another’s work that builds competency trust.”?

To ingrain the program across a firm’s culture and make sure it sticks as a long-term change, not just a fad, it’s important to then design a comprehensive training program. As part of a firm’s continuing development program, training should help people at all levels understand how to apply the principles in their day-to-day roles.

?Grateful for the Opportunity to Walk New Paths

I’m excited for the next chapter in my professional journey. And that’s not all I have up my sleeve.

The other major new direction I’m taking involves my passion for gardening. I’ll tell you all about it in another article, but the highlight is that I’ve started a flower farm and business called Floralies Market. Our grand opening was last weekend on October 5.

When I embarked on this journey in March, my team sent me flowers with a heartfelt note of thanks, and without knowing I was a fan of Ralph Waldo Emerson, they included one of his quotes on the card: “Dare to live the life that you have dreamed for yourself. Go forward and make your dreams come true.”

Over these last six months, I’ve worked hard to figure out who I am as I restructure my work and my life. As an intensely loyal employee, I always had my head down, focused on what was best for the firm and my team. Now, for the first time in a very long time, I finally have the luxury to focus on what’s best for me. And for that, I am truly grateful.