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Business Development Clinic: why even the best networkers don’t win business from networking
In this Business Development Clinic, we consider what you need to have thought about and researched, BEFORE you go networking – even if you are meeting the right people. Let me tell you a true story of a good friend of mine. Let’s call him Steven. He took the decision to move from the relative…
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What size of client portfolio will I need to build as a partner in the Big 4?
It is now extremely rare for a partnership to make someone up to partner who does not have the potential to be a work winner for the practice. After all, no partnership wants to dilute it’s profits by promoting people to partner who are technical specialists and can’t win work. Therefore, regardless of whether you…
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3 lessons that being in the gym can teach you about successfully going for partnership (& it’s nothing to do with your physical fitness)
I was in all sorts of pain – and I’d only been sitting on the erg for 5 mins. (Erg = rowing machine) This wasn’t good… And I shortly gave up, 4 minutes short of my target of 10 mins on the erg. The thing was, I knew I was unfit. I also knew that…
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3 people you MUST have in your corner if you have a fighting chance of making partner
Can you relate to this scenario…. your workload is high – not just high, but stupidly high your client work is getting in the way of your business development and networking efforts …BUT you still have to do both. Then someone wastes a day of your precious time. Yes, a whole (beep, beep, beep –…
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Business Development Clinic: 7 signs that a prospect is interested in using your services
The question that I was asked recently – How do I spot the signs that a client is interested in working with me? When are they just being polite and taking an interest, and when are they serious about working with me? In this blog post we explore how to spot when you have a…
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11 speaking tips from the pros for when it really matters
Recently, I had the ‘pleasure’ and honour at presenting at CIPD HRD2013. This is a massive event, and any speaker at this event had earned their stripes. I.e. it is reserved for the creme de la creme of the HR profession. Well, and little old me. There is nothing as daunting as presenting to…
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A great tip to get the quality thinking time you need to plan your career
A month ago I had one of the best days I had ever had at work. So much so, it didn’t feel like work. In fact I was lucky on a few levels… firstly, I had the pleasure of a 3 hr working session with great client to work with, who is very focused and…
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Business Development Clinic: 7 options to avoid lowering your fees for a client
Even if you have qualified your lead correctly, there are still times when your prospect is asking for a reduction in your fees. In this blog post we examine, how to avoid lowering your fees, so that you maintain your profit margin and STILL sign up the client. Unless you are in a competitive bidding…
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3 tips to help you decide on whether to focus on a niche
In many of our previous blogs we have discussed how to find your niche. (See 5 steps to finding your niche – part 1 and part 2, business development time savers: have a niche – part 1, part 2, part 3) You could say that we have examined the sixty million dollar question of helping…
