Expertise Marketplace - Professional Service Firm Marketing Blog

My "fight" with Ford Harding

About 18 months ago, Ford Harding and I had a "fight."

Well, we agreed to disagree in public, in advance. 

Our disagreement was real; it was our bickering that was trumped up. Once we got started, we both got into it with spirit and good humor, and had fun doing it.  We were hoping we could stimulate some important discussion. We didn't really get any comments on our blogs. But recently I learned there had been a significant amount of behind-the-scenes chatter about our "tiff."

People thought we didn't like each other.

Today, Ford and I are laughing about this. But we are also a bit surprised that our "fight" would be remembered, not the points we were trying to make. 

Cyberspace conversations do indeed take on a life of their own, even if it doesn't appear that way at first. I knew this, intellectually, but even I was surprised by perceptions I never thought we could set in motion.

People are naturally intrigued by "public" disagreement. While Ford and I may have been unsuccessful at stimulating conversation in the blogosphere, we certainly did so in people's real lives.

What does this situation say about the power of opposition?  By expressing our opposing views, can we help others learn, clarify their own perspectives, or make changes? Could expressions of alternative perceptions actually be useful to marketers and business developers? 

Could we use our unique viewpoints to help break down the silos that exist in professional firms' marketing and business development?  

Marketers should start leading PSF change!

In my “Big Question #2” post, I asked my blog readers who should start leading forward-thinking change first – the practitioners or the marketing/BD professionals?

The question pertains to an audience survey I posed at a law firm annual conference recently; it relates to the notion that marketing and business development professionals sometimes experience challenges when leading autonomous professionals to accept forward-thinking marketing and business development changes. Here are the answers again, in case you missed it.

• General resistance to change = 36%
• My function is marginalized (i.e., viewed with skepticism) = 20%
• An atmosphere of short-term thinking = 17%
• Unrealistic expectations for what can be done = 27%

I offered this same poll to this blog's readers. One of the early respondents picked "general resistance to change," but commented that he could have chosen all four answers. 

Click here if you'd like to add your own vote, and I'll blog about the responses separately.

Not surprisingly, asking this question is like asking which came first – the chicken or the egg? And of course these answers relate back to the orientation of the responder. 

Here’s my opinion: Using facts and armed with examples, Marketers and BD pros should lead their revenue-generating professionals toward forward-thinking changes. In doing so, they will indelibly change their practitioners’ understanding of the meaning of marketing and business development for the whole enterprise, and ultimately its real value as the engine for growth. Simultaneously, they’ll change practitioners’ expectations for marketing and BD, and make them more realistic about the optimal functional purview of marketing and business development. Inevitably, this leadership will help many practitioners (especially those in older generations whose belief in tradition fuels their resistance to change) feel a greater sense of shared accountability.

My Big Question #2

I've posted a few times  here and here about the first of two audience polling questions on the biggest barriers to improving marketing and BD effectiveness. I introduced these questions at a recent panel discussion featuring CMOs at an annual conference of law firm senior marketers and marketing partners. I’d estimate there were more than 150 people in our session.   

The second audience polling question was: What is the most difficult barrier you face in leading autonomous professionals to accept forward-thinking marketing and business development changes? 

(You may wonder why this question was posed as if marketers and business developers are not themselves autonomous professionals! But that’s a discussion for another day…)

Here are the conference's “Leading Autonomous Professionals toward Change” answers. 

• General resistance to change = 36%
• My function is marginalized (i.e., viewed with skepticism) = 20%
• An atmosphere of short-term thinking = 17%
• Unrealistic expectations for what can be done = 27%

What would your responses be to this same survey?  If you'd like to add your own voice to this poll, click here to answer these questions.  Once I get enough responses I'll blog about it.  

PSF and B2B marketers and BDers are under continual pressure to improve their firms’ effectiveness. But they are also under extreme pressure to overcome people’s general resistance to change and practitioners’ sometimes unrealistic expectations for their work. Clearly any kind of forward-thinking change -- even one toward effectiveness -- must be a collaborative effort, with shared accountabilities and co-leadership.

My big question to you is this: who should start leading forward-thinking changes first –- the practitioners or the marketing/BD professionals? Add your comments to this post and let us know.

I’ll share my own opinion on Monday April 20.

Maintaining marketing morale in the face of layoffs

There's a solid piece about this issue in today's WSJ. Especially since PSF marketers are working with practitioners whose intellectual capital is the product! If they're depressed, it becomes doubly hard to motivate them to face the market. And if it's marketers who are laid off, it's no surprise if the remaining marketing team members have low morale.

It's called "Boost the Troops' Morale After a Round of Layoffs." You might need a subscription, but here's the link anyway.

PSFs should fix technology barriers first!

In my “Big Question #1” post, I asked my blog readers to tell me which PSF marketing and business development effectiveness barrier(s) they’d address first if they were their firm’s executive managers. Here’s the conference's polling results, in case you missed it.

• None/Not enough measurement of programs or people = 25%
• None/Not enough incentives and rewards = 25%
• Poor/less than optimal systems capabilities (i.e., contacts database, intranet) = 21%
• None/Not enough communication,training and/or professional development = 29%

I offered this same poll to this blog's readers. Watch for my upcoming post on the answers. 

For blog readers who took this survey, your biggest barrier appears to be "None/Not enough communication, training and/or professional development." Here's an actual comment from a respondent:

"Leadership....our leaders are not in tune with M&BD activity, needs, etc, they are focused laser like on short term financial numbers. Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!"

Which PSF marketing and business development effectiveness barrier(s) would you fix first if you were your firm’s executive manager?  Take the survey and add your own voice to these findings.

I’d fix the technology barrier first. It’s the most obviously structural barrier, and its improvement could help shape new cultural norms. Its overhaul would be unambiguous -- quite non-ignorable (a good thing). Its improved capabilities could be incrementally rolled out. The improvements would be highly conducive for internal communication and training, and perfect for introducing new measurement processes and rewards programs.

I'll keep this survey open for another week or so, and then report again on the issue.

My Big Question #1

Recently I moderated a panel discussion of CMOs at an annual conference of law firm senior marketers and marketing partners. We surveyed the 150+ attendees on the following question:

What is the most difficult barrier your firm faces in improving Marketing and Business Development effectiveness? Their answers spoke volumes!

• None/Not enough measurement of programs or people = 25%
• None/Not enough incentives and rewards = 25%
• Poor/less than optimal systems capabilities (i.e., contacts database, intranet) = 21%
• None/Not enough communication,training and/or professional development = 29%

Are you surprised at how evenly these “Barriers to Effectiveness” answers stacked up? What does it mean, that no one answer was foremost among these four?  

What are your own opinions about the most difficult barrier your firm faces in improving Marketing and Business Development effectiveness? Add your votes to our poll here. I'll report back as soon as we get enough responses.

My big question to you is this: If you were the executive manager of your firm, would you fix all these barriers at once? Or would you pick one to start with first? Which one?

I’ll share my own opinion on Monday.