Client Growth Manager

About the Role

At Barnes & Thornburg, our Client Growth and Marketing team serves 900+ lawyers across 50 practices in 26 markets with energy and commitment. The Client Growth team focuses on establishing, enhancing, and enabling meaningful client relationships, significant sector visibility, and optimal market share for the firm and its attorneys. This role collaborates with the Client Growth team and Practice leadership to identify key practice priorities, craft and align client development strategies, and execute those plans.

Responsibilities

• Works proactively and collectively with the Real Estate department and assigned practice areas to develop and support initiatives to cement and expand existing client relationships.
• Identifies and supports business development efforts with prospects and within relevant industry sectors.
• Collaborates with CGM colleagues to implement and adopt marketing and business development best practices across the team.
• Serves as the primary point of contact for assigned practice leaders with respect to client development efforts. Plays a critical role in determining important projects that require additional department/firm support and advocates as necessary for appropriate strategic initiatives.
• Responsible for having a robust understanding of supported department and practice groups, including the products and services they offer, to effectively relay this experience and identify potential synergies where existing experience can be applied to other clients and prospects.
• Consistently provides business development advice and guidance to attorneys, including coaching (holistically and for specific leads).
• With help from the Senior Client Growth Manager, drives business development goals of assigned groups, including support in identifying business leads and opportunities, expanding existing client matters, and identifying and pursuing cross-selling.
• Participates in the creation of practice-specific business development plans as required by firm leadership and serves as the primary point of contact for the execution of all objectives and key results identified within that plan.
• Annually and as needed, helps guide attorneys in setting strategy for increased exposure on the national stage, including conference participation, speaking engagements, panel appearances, and in-house client programs with clear directives and methods for measuring return on investment.
• Invests significant support time in onboarding lateral attorneys to ensure access, resources, and coaching are provided, ensuring immediate production of revenue by the new attorney. This includes participation in the direct interviewing of potential lateral candidates as deemed appropriate by practice leadership.
• Responsible for having a robust understanding of law firm operations, business models, and best practices, and developing a deep understanding of the supported practices, the firm’s relevant services and products, and the industries and geographies in which their clients operate.
• Applies industry, practice, geographic, and services knowledge to craft effective internal and external positioning and pitches, identify opportunities for business expansion, and align and introduce key practitioners able to meet niche needs.
• Owns continual gathering and cataloguing of key experience, categorizing by type of work, firm role, jurisdictions, industries, and other key data. Collaborates with the Communications and Proposals teams to ensure practice data is shared and accessible to the department.
• Creates and edits presentations, graphics, and pitches for assigned practices and offices in collaboration with CG managers.
• Liaises with the Proposal Team on complex projects, ensuring deliverables demonstrate fluency in the requisite practices, reflect the firm’s differentiators, and showcase best-in-class experience. Contributes to pitch and RFP response strategy and helps identify and gather relevant information. Executes RFP responses and provides post-response coaching on closing and panel awards.
• Regularly prepares pitches, frequently working with the Legal Operations department to incorporate pricing proposals.
• Collaborates with department teams—communications, media relations, events, business intelligence, proposals, graphics—to identify creative ways to package practice experience, differentiators, and thought leadership to maximize impact and influence with key audiences.
• Strategizes and counsels on marketing and client development expenditures to ensure optimal impact and best use of firm resources. Works closely with the client growth team to accurately track ROI on spend and make recommendations.
• Coordinates industry and practice relationships in collaboration with Client Growth Manager peers, lead attorneys, and external sales professionals. Develops and executes thoughtful, consistent strategies for thought leadership, events, and sponsorships. Oversees activities required to produce lawyer ranking submissions.
• Leverages business intelligence and BD tools for basic research in support of attorney marketing and BD efforts, including compiling and succinctly presenting data on prospects, clients, industries, and legal/sector trends.
• In conjunction with Client Growth and Marketing (CGM) colleagues, coordinates planning and execution of on-site and off-site business development and marketing events and activities, including substantive programs, CLEs, webinars, networking and social events, trainings, roundtables, conferences, and exhibitions.
• Performs other duties and projects as assigned.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of increasingly responsible, directly related experience during which the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities were attained. Experience in an AmLaw matrixed marketing and BD department is highly preferred.
• Bachelor's degree, preferably in a writing-intensive or research-heavy discipline.
• Strong oral and written communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills to interact successfully with a broad range of individuals at all levels of the organization, effectively liaise with clients and prospects, and develop strong relationships with attorneys, colleagues, and professionals at key outside organizations.
• High-level service orientation, consistent resourcefulness, an ownership mentality, and agility in managing shifting and multiple priorities in a fast-paced, high-expectation environment. High level of responsiveness, robust work ethic, and commitment to accountability are crucial.
• Ability to produce quality work product and “think beyond the ask.” Candidates possessing intellectual curiosity and ability to connect the dots within the practices and across the firm, as well as the external business landscape, to issue spot and horizon scan will be a good fit for the role.
• Fluent in MS Office Suite and standard technical proficiency expected within legal marketing and BD (e.g., experience and/or understanding of CRMs, ERMs, CMS systems, and basic database platforms).
• Demonstrated project management experience is an asset.
• Demonstrated ability to build strong working relationships across all levels of the organization and work effectively both independently and with others in a cooperative, enthusiastic, and friendly manner to accomplish position functions and participate in team efforts.
• Ability to adapt to changing priorities and maintain a productive and committed work effort, meeting deadlines, and managing workload.
• Ability to leverage research and competitive intelligence to identify business opportunities and support go-to-market strategies.
• Strong knowledge of, and familiarity with, legal and business environments.