What can you do to help make sure your star recruits don’t misfire?

First, apologies for the sporting references in this edition of BD Tips Wednesday.

Last weekend marked the end of the English Premier League season 2025-2026 and, surprisingly or unsurprisingly depending on your loyalties, West Ham United were one of the three teams relegated.

What caught my attention though wasn’t the result. It was the economics behind the result.

According to recent reporting (including in the Financial Times), since 2021 West Ham’s net transfer spend has exceeded £318 million. That places them among Europe’s biggest net transfer spenders during this period — despite selling their star player Declan Rice to cross town rivals Arsenal for a sizeable fee.

Think about that for a moment.

A club with a 62,000-seat stadium, one of the strongest supporter bases in England, and transfer spending north of £300 million in less than five years has been relegated from the world’s richest football competition.

Meanwhile, a club with a significantly smaller budget — AFC Bournemouth — came within touching distance of qualifying for European Championship League football.

How does this happen?

You would think the answer has to be down to a combination of two things: (2) Bad lateral recruitment; and/or (2) Bad management (on which point, several managers of West Ham have been released from their contract over the past two years).

And that got me thinking about professional services firms. Because law firms, accounting firms and other professional services firms have been on a similar gouge of lateral recruiting – often offering sizeable guaranteed incomes (in Australia the guaranteed amounts have been as high as $7M but overseas these numbers have been swamped), with no guarantee of income being given (i.e., results).

So what can you do to help make sure your star recruits don’t misfire?

The first 12 months matter more than the recruitment process

Most firms spend enormous amounts of time and money on recruitment, followed by almost no time onboarding and integrating the lateral into the team. A strong onboarding plan for senior lateral hires should answer practical questions such as:

• What skill gap is this lateral plugging?

• Who are the internal relationship builders?

• Which partners are responsible for introductions?

• Which existing clients create the best cross-selling opportunities?

• What support will business development be providing and is there an integration plan in place?

• How will momentum be measured in the first 90, 180 and 365 days?

• How will success be measured?

• What internal blockers might slow momentum?

Because if a senior lateral sits waiting for work to emerge organically, momentum disappears quickly. Confidence drops. Relationships with clients you are hoping to bring over will stall.

And eventually both sides will quietly admit: “This hasn’t worked.”

Beware the transfer fee mentality

Football clubs often assume expensive recruits will automatically change results. Professional services firms often think the same way.

Higher salary + Better title + Big Press Release = Problem solved.

Except growth rarely works like that. Because a lateral hire is not a growth strategy; it is part of a firm-wide growth strategy for previously identified shortfall areas.

In fact, pay the lateral too much and the existing partners might delight in seeing them fail.

The better question

When a star recruit underperforms, firms often ask:

“Did we hire the wrong person?”

When more often than not the better question is:

“Did we give the person the right conditions and support to succeed?”

Because occasionally the issue is not the lateral recruit but the support system around them.

West Ham will probably spend next season asking how so much investment delivered so little return. To avoid having to ask the same question, professional services firms should be asking themselves what due diligence have we done to ensure this lateral integrates with our firm and what support structure are we putting in place to help them achieve success?

And the answer to that will not come from the recruitment agent. It’ll come from the business development person you have in the room when you first discuss the need to hire the lateral…

Takeaway

Star performers rarely succeed alone. The rainmaker with the enviable client list will have exceptional internal support, strong cross-referral pathways, a trusted delivery team, or simply a brand that opened doors more easily.

If you hire the star individual, without the rest of the support structure, even exceptional people will struggle.

Need Help With Your Business Development?

Get in touch if you want to talk about any of this. We also offer a very affordable BD Audit and Training package.

With AI, Clients Won’t Buy Big: They’ll Buy Better

I have been in the legal industry since 1996. And for all of those 30 years, size has been treated as a proxy for value:

Big firm + Big team = Big fees

But that way of thinking is starting to wane. And AI is only going to accelerate this shift.

So for this BD Tips Wednesday post, I'm taking a high-level look at what client access to better tools, faster information and more delivery options, will likely mean for law firm pricing as clients focus more on precision than scale.

In a new world order, the real drivers of price will be...

As AI becomes more and more imbedded in the delivery process of legal services, there are likely to be three main factors that will shape how much a firm can charge. No prizes for guessing this, but none of them are going to be determined by headcount!

1. Perceived expertise and relevance

Pricing power will come from being seen as the right choice, not the biggest one. A smaller firm with a strong reputation in a narrow area will be able to command more than a larger generalist competitor. A firm known for being subject matter experts will hold more pricing power in that niche than a national firm offering broad capability across dozens of practice areas trying to cross sell its services.

Why? Because proven expertise reduces risk. Clients will pay more for a provider who feels tailored to their problem than for one who simply looks impressive on paper.

2. Client experience and accessibility

Most clients have no idea what their legal problem is about. So they are not really buying legal advice. What they are buying is the confidence you provide that you have their backs.

• Human-touch responsiveness will matter.

• Plain English clarity will matter.

• Commerciality over legal precision will matter.

And so will direct access to the person actually leading the matter.

For many clients, a direct relationship with a senior lawyer who understands the context of their problem, communicates clearly and moves quickly will be worth far more than a prestige brand supported by layers of delegation.

With AI, a smoother, more transparent experience will create more value than a bigger team ever can.

3. Outcome certainty and risk management

Clients don't buy your time. The buy the outcomes you can provide. Without necessarily knowing it, they are looking to reduce risk.

They want:

• fewer surprises.

• clearer pathways.

• confidence around what is likely to happen, what it may cost and how the matter will be managed.

That is where real pricing power will sit in the future. Firms that can frame their offer around certainty, risk reduction and outcomes will always be in a stronger pricing position than firms still talking mainly about hours, effort and technical inputs.

Why niche firms will have pricing advantage

This is where AI is going to make things interesting. Niche firms are often far better placed to adapt their pricing model than larger ones. They are usually less constrained by legacy systems, internal politics and entrenched billing habits. They can move faster. They can test new approaches. They can price in ways that reflect how clients actually want to buy.

Subscription models, staged fees, fixed fees, retainers and outcome-linked pricing will be easier to implement in a smaller, more agile, niche environment. Unlike in large firms where Finance dictate the pricing terms, in niche firms the decision-maker is closer to the client, closer to the work and closer to the economics.

That matters.

Because, in a laggard industry like law, innovation (including pricing innovation) rarely fails because the market is not ready. It fails because the firm is not ready to let go of the old ways of doing things.

Takeaway

Being small will no longer mean being the cheaper option. Phrases like: "Top-tier experience at an affordable price" will be a thing of the past.

Firms that are able to command stronger fees will:

• define a clear niche.

• build trust-based relationships.

• communicate value in terms of outcomes, not effort.

• price around certainty, not just time.

In a market that has long confused scale with strength, AI is going to sharpen the distinction between the firms that are merely bigger, and the firms that are genuinely better.

Need Help With Your Business Development?

Get in touch if you want to talk about any of this. We also offer a very affordable BD Audit and Training package.

Tips on How to Reframe Your Business Development Efforts

‍In a recent BD Tips Wednesday post, I wrote that if your team mentality is “We just need this one win” you need to take time out to Pause, Rethink and Reset.

I subsequently received a message asking me for some tips and how you might go about reframing your business development (BD) efforts. And I thought to myself: "That would make an excellent BD Tips Wednesday post!". So here we go.

I. Align Business Development with Firm Strategy

First of all, your business development efforts should not operate in a vacuum. Rather they should support, and be supported by, the firm’s broader goals.

Reframe alignment: BD is a strategic function, not a standalone activity.

Action tip: Align BD goals with your firm’s growth plans, client segmentation and brand positioning. Ensure marketing, pricing and service delivery all reinforce your BD efforts.

II. Focus on Relationships, Not Transactions

Many firms make the mistake of viewing BD as a series of one-off deals.

Reframe the goal: Build long-term relationships, not just short-term wins.

Action tip: Revisit and develop the relationship plan for your key contacts. Add value through regular check-ins, industry insights and personal touches. Track interactions in your CRM to ensure consistency.

III. Redefine What “Client” Means

Traditional BD often focuses solely on new clients. But the best opportunities often come from those who already trust you.

Reframe the target: Your current and past clients are fertile ground for new work.

Action tip: Reconnect with dormant accounts, introduce additional services to existing clients and ask for warm referrals. Use account mapping to identify whitespace opportunities across divisions or geographies.

IV. Shift from Selling to Solving

Many professionals approach BD with a "pitch-first" mentality. But clients today aren’t just buying services, they’re buying outcomes.

Reframe the mindset: Move from "What can I sell?" to "What problem am I solving?"

Action tip: Spend more time asking insightful questions, listening to pain points and co-creating solutions. This consultative approach builds credibility and positions you as a trusted advisor, not just a vendor.

V. Prioritize Value Over Volume

Chasing every opportunity can dilute your energy and brand. Not all prospects are worth pursuing.

Reframe success metrics: Focus on high-fit, high-value opportunities.

Action tip: Create a qualification matrix to assess fit, profitability, and strategic value before investing time in a pitch or proposal. Say no to work that doesn’t align with your firm’s direction or values.

VI. Modernize Your Tools and Tactics

If your BD strategy still relies on cold calls and golf days, it may be time for an upgrade.

Reframe the toolkit: Use data, digital and automation to enhance impact.

Action tip: Implement CRM systems to track engagement, leverage LinkedIn for social selling, and invest in content marketing (blogs, webinars, case studies) to build visibility and trust at scale.

VII. Tell Better Stories

Facts and figures alone rarely win clients. Stories connect, persuade and stick.

Reframe your messaging: Don’t just share credentials, share impact. Share stories.

Action tip: Equip your team with compelling case studies that demonstrate how you’ve solved problems like theirs. Use narrative techniques to make your pitch memorable.

VIII. Embed Business Development in Everyday Work

In many professional environments, BD is siloed to a few partners or senior leaders. This limits growth potential.

Reframe the responsibility: BD is a team sport, not a solo act.

Action tip: Involve junior staff in client meetings early, encourage subject matter experts to contribute to proposals, and empower all employees to share success stories or ideas from the frontlines.

IX. Make Business Development a Learning Practice

Too often, firms repeat the same tactics without examining what’s working and what’s not.

Reframe your process: BD should be agile, data-informed and iterative.

Action tip: Hold regular BD reviews, capture win/loss insights and experiment with new outreach strategies. Use failures as learning opportunities to refine your approach.

And Finally

Reframing your BD efforts isn’t about doing more with less or more with more, it’s about doing better. By shifting your mindset, updating your methods and aligning efforts across the firm, you’ll move from sporadic wins to sustainable growth.

Need Help With Your Business Development?

Get in touch if you want to talk about any of this. We also offer a very affordable BD Audit and Training package.

‍ ‍