Managing the Professional Service Firm

The central issue, I have learned, is that, in most firms, billable time is carefully monitored, but marketing time is considered “extra.” Marketing activities represent an investment, requiring nonbillable time to be spent with uncertain, long-term results, and few firms are well organized to manage their investment activities. Billable time has a

charge-ability and realization reports are circulated more frequently and more broadly than reports showing how well partners leverage themselves.

Top producers shouldn’t be attempting to become managers to increase their pay and status.

FIGURE 8-1 CLIENT FEEDBACK QUESTIONNAIRE

The conflicting economic, behavioral, and managerial requirements of different practice areas are sufficiently great to create severe internal tensions and stress as firms struggle to establish firmwide management philosophies to accommodate these diverse needs.

The professional service firm that is adept at projecting a caring image, and that backs the image up with a substantive reality, will do well in the marketplace.

Democracies flourish when the nation is at peace and the harvest is bountiful—as, historically, was the environment of the professions in the post-World War II era. However, when war is declared or the crops fail, even the most ardent democracy selects a government that will direct the troops and tell factories what to produce.

I have observed more firms get into trouble by attempting to hire too many people than by hiring too few.

This analysis clearly leads us to the conclusion that scheduling decisions need to be truly managed. And managed by someone in a position to make sound strategic trade-offs.