Whether you are currently a Managing Partner at your firm, aspire to be one, or just want to be the best at what you do, getting into the mindset of a Managing Partner has an important bearing on the firm.
Think through the qualities needed to become a Managing Partner, and you'll quickly spot the difference between a good leader and a great leader, and, by extension, understand the difference between a good and a great firm.
We've divided Managing Partner Mindset priorities into four main topic areas, and have included a checklist of questions that each firm should ask of its future leaders.
Below you'll find the areas of Marketing & Business Development and Personnel. The other two, Productivity and Profitability, can be found here.
Marketing & Business Development
How deep is our pipeline of opportunities?
Are we filtering for the profile of our ideal client? In other words, are we pursuing what we say we should be pursuing?
How do we bring value to clients? Are we confirming our value – whether by client feedback or other measurements? What happens if we aren’t bringing the most value? Is there a system in place to correct that?
Do we have insight into firm reputation? This is related to number three above, but goes deeper than satisfaction, and can help your firm correct reputation disadvantages to build a more solid base for future sales and marketing efforts.
What is our batting average for closes? Do we have that data broken down by industry and by pitch group?
What measurable and meaningful achievements are being delivered by the marketing professionals, either on staff or external? Are we setting the bar high enough?
Personnel
Are team members taking ownership of their job descriptions, and how do we confirm that job descriptions are living documents?
Are career path plans in place for all of the employees? How are we doing with meeting expectations?
How responsive are staff members overall to clients and potential clients? Is that measurement tracked or simply observed?
What ways are staff being motivated so they are adding the most value? Where can we do better?
