AFRGA1 S001

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

www.afr.com | Wednesday 9 March 2016

Special Report

Big four want ‘more opinionated’ staff● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Celebrity Profile iseverything in selling abusiness’s product.

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Claire Stewart

Prospective clientsincreasingly tenderwith a specificA-team in mind.

Business chiefs Mike McGrath, top, and Ben van Delden, right, see value in addinghigh-profile David Morrison, left, to their business hierarchy. PHOTOS: JESSE MARLOW,ANDREW MEARES, LUIS ASCUI

Celebrity endorsements have been apotent lure for thousands of companieslooking to make their brands attractiveto a more diverse range of consumers.But the challenges of aligning an indi-vidual and their past or future foibles toa business product – think TigerWoods and Accenture – are real.

As social media creates an immedi-ate and accessible platform for indi-viduals to publicise their own personalbrands, professional service firms arelearning how to trust and encourageemployees to become their own ver-sion of celebrity spokespeople.

‘‘Clients no longer buy projects, theybuy outcomes. If they can align and getexcited about an iconic personal brandthat has a reputation for delivering aspecific outcome that adds value for thebusiness ... it gives us a competitiveadvantage in a competitive bid processevery single time,’’ Pricewaterhouse-Coopers managing partner, clients andmarkets, Mike McGrath says.

Simultaneously, lateral hires ofprominent individuals who come fromoutside the professional services sec-tor, such as former army chief DavidMorrison, or former AWU boss PaulHowes, are driving publicity andcachet.

Managing the downside risk thateither can trigger, in an era whenKPMG demographer Bernard Salt sees‘‘individual ascendancy’’ as a mega-trend, is critical.

KPMG Australia head of marketsBen van Delden says while the brandpower of the big four is still critical inopening doors, the firm is increasinglycoaching its people to be ‘‘less conser-vative and more opinionated’’, to helpthem build their own brand.

He says there is an implicit agree-ment between the firm and its people todo the right thing: danger lurks for acompany trying to ‘‘police-state’’employees and close down that type ofindividual thinking, because it risksthem disengaging.

‘‘If it’s a strong personal opinion,backed by solid professional ground-ing, then that’s one thing. If it’s off themark, then we’ll need a bit of a chat,’’ hesays.

The power of the internet to create asocially connected world and power-practitioners with global recognitionmeans prospective clients increasinglytender with a specific A-team in mind.

‘‘Sixty-five per cent of the decision [toselect a firm] has been made before the

tender comes to market. What doesthat mean? I think there’s a link in theAustralian market to the rise of the pro-curement officer, particularly for largecorporates and government agencieswho have people thinking about a vari-ety of things before going to market,including who the specialists are.’’

It also means the expectation ofclients is for access to global specialistpractitioners, no matter the location.It’s a benefit for firms that can becomea rod for their own back.

‘‘We feel that by bringing peopledown to Australia, we perpetuate thebrand. It means that clients become alittle more hopeful that when theycome to market, they’ll get access tothat UK or US thought leader. We try tomake that happen, but it’s not alwayseasy,’’ van Delden says.

The other challenge is translating thebenefits of a practitioner’s personalbrand to the business and, at a time

when people change roles an averageof seven times, keeping them in thefirm.

‘‘In the social media context, hier-archy doesn’t exist,’’ van Delden says.‘‘What we have to think about at anorganisational level is how we capture,when we onboard people, that client orsocial network they have, so we canintegrate it into the broader offeringsKPMG has.’’

PwC’s McGrath says iconic individu-als have always had a crucial signific-ance in professional services, claiminga premium in the market and attract-ing like-minded individuals.

Part of keeping them is to ensurealignment of purpose. ‘‘They continueto be attracted to us because we sup-port them to do what they’re best atdoing. It brings together the deal, so tospeak.

‘‘We build great practices aroundiconic individuals and they can give

firms like PwC entry into new marketsand stretch our brand even further,’’McGrath says.

Investment in iconic lateral brands isa more complicated story, with ahigher risk of complications, but it canbring a point of difference that givesfirms an edge.

KPMG hired senior unionist PaulHowes as a director in 2014, to consulton superannuation and workplaceissues in business transformationcases, and has since been called as awitness in the controversial TradeUnion Royal Commission.

Deloitte Australia chief executive

Cindy Hook supported the firm’s asso-ciation with David Morrison, despitecontroversy over his selection as Aus-tralian of the Year in January. Her sup-port raised some eyebrows inside theorganisation, where people are con-scious that high-profile personalitiescan bring problems, as well as benefits,to businesses they join.

But McGrath says the benefits of hir-ing external iconic brands can be capit-alised if managed properly and alignedwell. PwC hired David Smorgon in 2014to lead the firm’s strategic pursuit of thefamily wealth sector.

‘‘We focus more on the opportunityto differentiate, to win in a new market.But we hold our culture very close sothere are other factors that help guideus making the right decision. If therewas an iconic person in the market-place that didn’t fit our culture, wewouldn’t think it would be successful,’’McGrath says.

AFR

Client Service ExcellenceEdited by Agnes King: aking@fairfaxmedia.com.au

AFRGA1 S002

AFR Wednesday 9 March 2016www.afr.com | The Australian Financial Review

3SSpecial ReportClient Service ExcellenceAFR

S2 S3Wednesday 9 March 2016The Australian Financial Review

www.afr.comSpecial Report

Innovation thrusta boon for listedIP law firms

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Patents● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Claire Stewart

Brett Lunn says FB Rice is focused onlocal market share PHOTO: DANIEL MUNOZ

David Hughes says Griffith Hack is diversifying its services. PHOTO: PETER BRAIG

The Turnbull government’s innovationbonanza is expected to produce a muchneeded windfall for intellectual propertyconsultants and patent lawyers.

Local patent filings have been flat forsome time and firms have looked outsideAustralia for growth.

FB Rice managing partner Brett Lunnsays while most firms in the IP space are‘‘thinking about looking beyond Austra-lia’’, FB Rice remains focused on expand-ing its local market share and is relativelyagnostic about the business plans of newlisted competitors focused offshore.

Overseas client work is a key strategyunderpinning the latest success ofrecently listed IP businesses, Shelston IP(trading as IPH) and Spruson & Fer-guson, which this week opened a Jakartaoffice.

IPH shares nose-dived on interim res-ults in February, but recovered, and arestill worth nearly double what they werea year ago.

‘‘A lot of firms built a practice as Aus-tralian representatives for the interna-tional companies who want to get an IPfoothold here, because it was profitable.We’ve always had it, but have kept a focuson the Australian client base and becausethat’s our bread and butter, we’ve beenfinding it easier to grow that market,’’Lunn says.

He says the success of listed IP busi-nesses has raised the profile of the profes-sion. ‘‘Now people say ‘Oh I know whatyou do, here’s my card’, so it’s actuallyhad a positive impact.’’

That heightened profile shouldincrease further if Prime Minister Mal-colm Turnbull’s plan to kick start Austra-lia’s Ideas Boom by injecting $1.1 billionover four years into science and innova-tion, transpires.

The challenge, as Mr Lunn and GriffithHack chairman David Hughes agree, is totranslate the government’s promisedsupport into action within the industry.

‘‘I expect the domestic clients will see alift in patent filings, as they realise thatthey need to innovate and one way of cap-turing the value of that is by filing pat-ents,’’ Hughes says, cautioning work isstill needed to build better collaborationbetween research and industry, to capit-alise on basic research.

That’s not to say the market for patentwork won’t remain tight, with firms leftto contemplate consolidation, specialisa-tion or a diversification as their businessstrategy of choice.

‘‘It’s hard to argue against consolida-tion happening in the market over thenext five years or so,’’ Lunn says. ‘‘That’sjust how business goes everywhere, and

it would be a pretty bold statement to saythere won’t be more, when we’ve alreadyseen some of it last year with Sprusonslisting and then acquiring other smallfirms.’’

But FB Rice is making no overtures,and Lunn says the firm is happy growingorganically, exercising a deliberatestrategy to remain specialist patent attor-neys, building existing clients, acquiringmore local clients and expanding geo-graphically – opening an office in Perth in2015 – rather than through acquisition ormerger.

While it has added new R&D taxadvice capacity, it intends to stay out oflegal and litigation service provision, andremain lawyer-less.

‘‘We took the view that we didn’t wantto compete with lawyers in the litigationspace because there are already plenty ofpeople competing. The result is thatwe’re friends of all these law firms andthey are a strong source of referral,because we’re not a competitor.’’

In contrast, Griffith Hack has chosen astrategy which includes that capacity,and Hughes says the firm is activelyworking to diversify its service offeringsfurther, including the launch of its newtechnology platform, Amplia.

‘‘Clients are looking at how to maxim-ise the value in the IP, and there’s a lot ofopportunity in that for firms likeours…that’s the sweet spot.’’

Hughes says the firm is working tocomplement existing offerings withother professional services, ‘‘particularlyaround the financials’’.

That includes IP valuation, R&D taxadvice, transfer pricing and providinganalysis of the changing patent and IPlandscape. The firm is seeing new clientsemerging via pathways that would tradi-tionally have been the remit of account-ancy firms or the like.

‘‘It’s important this approach is notabout being a one-stop shop. It’s notabout providing every service under thesun so the clients can never get rid of us.Its about trying to link our services.’’

Rivals cosy upfor survival involatile markets

Hannah Hamling: Trans-Tasman duosmore nimble. PHOTO: LAWRENCE SMITH

Giam Swiegers: New Zealand better atresponding. PHOTO: DANIEL MUNOZ

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Engineering● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Claire Stewart

As global engineering firms absorbsmaller players in local markets, special-ist businesses are being forced to makefriends with their competition to maxim-ise their capabilities and challenge themultidisciplinary behemoths in volatilemarkets.

‘‘The reality is that the projects are toobig for any one company. The personwho’s your competition this week is yourbusiness partner next week,’’ Tonkin +Taylor managing director New ZealandDoug Johnson says.

The more competitive market requiresa different approach to brand manage-ment.

‘‘We’re probably less aggressive [in NZ]because we don’t want to annoy any-body,’’ Johnson says.

Golder Associates New Zealand presi-dent Asia Pacific and Africa, HannahHamling suggests part of the reason herfirm and other trans-Tasman companiesare more progressive and adroit whenresponding to volatility is because theyhave always operated in an economy thatis entirely unbuffered.

‘‘If there is a change in the economicclimate, we have to respond reallyquickly to it. One day you’re makingmoney, the next day you’re losing it. Thathas made us a lot more nimble and moreresilient,’’ she says.

Aurecon’s global chief executive, andformer boss of Deloitte Australia, GiamSwiegers, told The Australian FinancialReview last year that he thought theirNew Zealand business outpaced otherAurecon groups in demonstrating thebest response to a market disrupted byaccelerating infrastructure needs, declin-ing commodity prices and tighter capitalflows.

It forces innovative thinking in howfirms position themselves in the marketand Hamling points to their own learningcurve, responding to the Christchurchearthquakes in 2010 and 2011, which hastriggered an estimated $NZ40 billion ininsurance claims.

‘‘The earthquake really sorted outengineering companies. A lot of the pre-vious incumbents always thought thatthey offered a high-end service but whenit boiled down to [it], they just didn’t havethe capabilities.

‘‘We’ve learned the value of a specialistcompany. Because we’re geotechnicalengineering and environmental sciencebased, we were able to truly leverage offour skills to differentiate ourselves and

very quickly start offering a whole newservice on seismic engineering.’’

As large multidisciplinary operationssuch as Petrotech swallow local compan-ies, the highly technical employees tendto move over to smaller specialist firms,Hamling says, which creates a lucrativeniche for those firms, but also demands ahigher level of co-operation betweencompetitors to plug skills gaps on pro-jects.

‘‘It’s very difficult to compete on a pro-ject which is 70 per cent geotech, but alsorequires mechanical and electrical. So wehave to team,’’ Hamling says. ‘‘We’redoing more of that and some of them playnicely and some of them team with usand cut our lunch.’’

Clients become used to dealing withmultiple firms, or picking people fromdifferent companies they want on pro-jects, Johnson says. This brings an addi-tional layer of risk management.

As infrastructure developmentbecomes more difficult, particularlyresponding to complex or repurposedsites, the ability to ‘‘coach that risk con-versation’’ is paramount, he said. ‘‘That’sone of the changes in the market, the riskdiscussion. It’s very easy in the diagnosticspace to just talk about the technicalproblem and ignore the risk conversa-tion.

‘‘Ultimately, as a professional servicesperson, you can only take a certain levelof risk.’’

From openness to the art of saying no – the secret of happy clients● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Practices● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Quentin Digby: ‘‘We have to be ourselvesmore.’’ PHOTO: DANIEL MUNOZ

Leanne Issko: ‘‘Have face-to-face contactwherever possible.’’ PHOTO: PAT SCALA

Martin Jones: ‘‘Remember it’s a longgame.’’ PHOTO: PHILIP GOSTELOW

Quentin Digby, partner,Herbert Smith Freehills

Why were you nominated? I really enjoyinteracting with our clients – people ingenerally, actually – and trying to help. Iwould like to think I was nominatedbecause I care about the client, will lookout for their interests ahead of my own,and am trustworthy with sound judg-ment, but I’d settle for any of those!Tips for young lawyers? We have to beourselves more or you aren’t going to getthat personal connection. There are allsorts of skills we are trained in, but actu-ally I think clients are looking for some-thing a bit deeper, and whatever it is hasto be genuine. One of our team membersnoted that sometimes as lawyers we trainourselves into being the serious ‘‘object-ive professional’’ and, in doing so, rightout of the approach in dealing with cli-

ents that actually would help with theconnection.How do you say no to a client? By beingopen and transparent. Failing to deliversomething that is agreed to is far worsethan saying ‘‘no’’ and explaining why.Tips for helping challenging clients?Often it’s just a case of getting to knowthem better. They may be under stress forreasons that we are unaware of. But if Ifeel that it’s an ongoing relationshipdynamic issue then recognising I may bepart of the problem, I’ll try to connectthem with another team member whomay be a better fit. The reality is that if Igenuinely don’t like working with a clientthen I won’t do as good a job for them as Ishould and we are all better off if they findsomeone else to advise them.Best thing you’ve been asked to do?Being asked by a project manager for asmall commercial team in a European-based multinational to be involved in atwo-day strategic planning session inSingapore. They wanted my input onbroader non-legal issues, and while my

first thought was ‘‘what value will I add?’’it was incredibly fulfilling and the feed-back was very positive.

Leanne Issko, senior associate,Mercer

Top tip? Have face-to-face contact wher-ever possible: it’s very difficult to build arelationship over the phone. You learn alot about clients by observing their work-place and there’s always some banterthat comes into the discussion, whichhelps to show the more human side; thatyou’re interested and will take the time.Your best quality? You’ve got to knowwhat’s happening in your sectors. If I talkabout an emerging trend, clients knowI’m in touch with a lot of people and thatI’m talking from a place of knowledge.Can you ever say no to a client? If they’relooking for advice in a particular way, ora particular answer, I find that if we don’tagree and actually say, ‘‘no, we can’trecommend what you want’’, theyrespect you more for being honest.

Can you learn client skills? Early in yourcareer, it’s really important to work with abroad range of people. You can pick updifferent attributes from different people.Stay true to yourself and be yourself, butyou can learn certain techniques or char-

acteristics so it is important to sit back andobserve. While we all develop our ownstyles, it comes down to listening skills.You have to let clients talk, don’t think,‘‘I’m here for a particular purpose only’’.

Also I’ll always double-check what

their needs are so I’m not going off on anassumption or reading in anythingdifferent.Best advice? I don’t think you should bescared to say, ‘‘that’s not my area ofexpertise’’. You can’t be the expert in

everything, so be clear about what you’rea specialist in and when there are oppor-tunities to bring in colleagues, do so,because it shows the client they are get-ting the best person at the time.

Martin Jones, partner,Ferrier Hodgson

Best tip? Develop long-term sustainablerelationships with clients and colleagues.Clients know what to expect when theyengage me. Remember it’s a long game,not a short game. If you focus on quickwins, inevitably you’re going to com-promise on values and not focus on a bet-ter result for the client.Do clients value creativity in problem-solving? If they had the answer, theywouldn’t be calling me. There’s no pointme telling them what they already know.The challenge is coming up with solu-tions where people say, ‘‘Hey, I didn’tthink of that.’’How much of your job is aboutempathy? You have to engage with

someone to draw out what the real prob-lem is. Professional services is relativelysimple: people have got to like you to trustyou, and they have to trust you to sharetheir problems with you. If they don’t, youwon’t be able to find the best solution.

That’s both an empathetic undertakingas well as a structural and professionalundertaking. Ultimately, corporate orany other failure is the result of a baddecision, [but] everyone deserves to betreated with respect.

They haven’t gone out to create a prob-lem, to fail. They’ve gone out to try to cre-ate value for themselves and theirfamilies and their stakeholders.How do you say no? You’re not paid to bea friend, and ‘‘no’’ is an answer. However,nor does there need to be an alienation –we may agree to disagree, and robustexamination of issues is healthy. If awork-around or alternate strategy is notpossible, then at least we part with repu-tations intact.

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Comments edited for length and clarity.

KWM, Allens hone agility as rivalry heats up

Above: Allens’ Richard Spuriopoints to market volatility.Right: KWM’s Sue Kench saysbig firms can be nimble.PHOTOS: LOUIE DOUVIS, SASHAWOOLLEY

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Diversification● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Claire Stewart

Australian firms willcompete against eachother for a greatershare of a decliningmarket.Sue Kench, King Wood Mallesonsmanaging partner

King Wood Mallesons managing partnerSue Kench says big legal firms need to‘‘get their elbows out’’ to win top-shelfwork offshore and boost revenue in a sat-urated home market.

‘‘Frankly, Australia has been over-lawyered as long as I’ve been practising.And continued decline year on yearmeans that Australian firms will com-pete against each other for a greatershare of a declining market,’’ Kench says.

Among the biggest law brands in thecountry, KWM and Allens have had tofind new sources of income in whatAllens’ new boss Richard Spurio admitsis a ‘‘volatile market’’.

‘‘We are seeing client sentiment canchange pretty quickly,’’ Spurio says.

‘‘A lot of our clients are in industriesthat are under a lot of pressure and sub-ject to change.’’

Allens, on a turnaround path withfresh leadership, is revitalising its brandwith new ideas such as the locallydesigned and focused start-up practiceAccelerate, which should give it nichecapabilities ahead of its Australiancompetitors and its international partnerLinklaters.

Since starting this year, Allens’ newmanaging partner has been on a ‘‘prettyintensive’’ client visit program.

Spurio points to the firm’s traditionand long history in the resources space asreason to resist chopping and changingsectors to chase growth.

‘‘Our clients like Rio Tinto go back over100 years. Having said that, as marketschange, new industries develop and youhave to be agile and look at thosenew things.’’

He laughs off any suggestion of marketrumours that the tie up with Linklaters iscutting Allens out of work it might other-wise have secured in the home market,but doesn’t deny that their relationshipwith the prestigious magic circle firm hasbeen re-evaluated in recent times.

‘‘Our relationship with Linklaters isterrific. We regard it as a very compellingoffering,’’ he says.

‘‘But like anything you can’t stand still,so you have to continually look at it andevolve and think about things and focuson different areas, pursue new areas.

‘‘But that to me is a strength of the rela-tionship.’’

The Allens Accelerate offering forstart-ups is the first example of Allensturning its focus to different areas in thehome market, to tap into the changing

market and economy. Spurio says onebenefit of the tie with Linklaters is the‘‘nice amount of autonomy’’ Allensretains in Australia.

‘‘They are aware of it. It’s available forthem to look at as well but it’s not some-thing that we run past them forapproval.’’

Rather, Allens saw a need in the mar-ket for a vehicle such as Accelerate andSpurio says the firm will continue to lookat different offerings and roll out a rangeof things to stay responsive to changingmarket demands.

KWM is pushing for more cross-border work throughout Asia, and build-ing capabilities in new sectors to increaseprofits without cutting costs. Kenchwarns against firms believing the slowdecline of the local industry is inevitable.

‘‘We can stand shoulder to shoulderwith the best of them internationally. Sodo it,’’ Kench says.

‘‘If the Australian economy is [growingat] 2 to 3 per cent, we all know there is

way better growth than that in differentplaces,’’ she says.

‘‘How are you more deliberate in goingto seek that?

‘‘Some of it’s difficult, in the sense thatyou can’t suddenly wake up one morningand say ‘oh there’s growth over there, sowe better chase it’. You have to build thecapability behind it as well.’’

Despite being steeped in convention,Kench says there’s no reason a big lawfirm can’t be nimble in changingmarkets.

Making all practitioners, not just part-ners, understand they have the freedomand the firm’s support to chase differentopportunities is part of the answer,she says.

Since Kench took the top job threeyears ago, KWM has undertaken a ‘‘verydeliberate exercise’’ to assess and fill thefirm’s capacity gaps externally andinternally.

‘‘Financial services is incredibly inter-esting at the moment: how the big banksface their challenges; what’s happeningfrom a global capital perspective;

negative-positive interest rates; how youactually encourage money into thebanks. And then the subset, which is reg-ulatory.’’

Kench says KWM is also targetinginfrastructure, including real estate andurban infrastructure in Australia andAsia.

‘‘Yes there is stress around mining, butI don’t think you can ever take your eyeoff the ball for mining and resources …and that might even be in terms of how itrestructures itself.’’

Client Service ExcellenceA

S2 WednesdayThe Australian

www.Special Report

Rivals cosy upfor survival involatile markets

Hannah Hamling: Trans-Tasman duosmore nimble. PHOTO: LAWRENCE SMITH

Giam Swiegers: New Zealand better atresponding. PHOTO: DANIEL MUNOZ

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Engineering● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Claire Stewart

As global engineering firms absorbsmaller players in local markets, special-ist businesses are being forced to makefriends with their competition to maxim-ise their capabilities and challenge themultidisciplinary behemoths in volatilemarkets.

‘‘The reality is that the projects are toobig for any one company. The personwho’s your competition this week is yourbusiness partner next week,’’ Tonkin +Taylor managing director New ZealandDoug Johnson says.

The more competitive market requiresa different approach to brand manage-ment.

‘‘We’re probably less aggressive [in NZ]because we don’t want to annoy any-body,’’ Johnson says.

Golder Associates New Zealand presi-dent Asia Pacific and Africa, HannahHamling suggests part of the reason herfirm and other trans-Tasman companiesare more progressive and adroit whenresponding to volatility is because theyhave always operated in an economy thatis entirely unbuffered.

‘‘If there is a change in the economicclimate, we have to respond reallyquickly to it. One day you’re makingmoney, the next day you’re losing it. Thathas made us a lot more nimble and moreresilient,’’ she says.

Aurecon’s global chief executive, andformer boss of Deloitte Australia, GiamSwiegers, told The Australian FinancialReview last year that he thought theirNew Zealand business outpaced otherAurecon groups in demonstrating thebest response to a market disrupted byaccelerating infrastructure needs, declin-ing commodity prices and tighter capitalflows.

It forces innovative thinking in howfirms position themselves in the marketand Hamling points to their own learningcurve, responding to the Christchurchearthquakes in 2010 and 2011, which hastriggered an estimated $NZ40 billion ininsurance claims.

‘‘The earthquake really sorted outengineering companies. A lot of the pre-vious incumbents always thought thatthey offered a high-end service but whenit boiled down to [it], they just didn’t havethe capabilities.

‘‘We’ve learned the value of a specialistcompany. Because we’re geotechnicalengineering and environmental sciencebased, we were able to truly leverage offour skills to differentiate ourselves and

very quickly start offering a whole newservice on seismic engineering.’’

As large multidisciplinary operationssuch as Petrotech swallow local compan-ies, the highly technical employees tendto move over to smaller specialist firms,Hamling says, which creates a lucrativeniche for those firms, but also demands ahigher level of co-operation betweencompetitors to plug skills gaps on pro-jects.

‘‘It’s very difficult to compete on a pro-ject which is 70 per cent geotech, but alsorequires mechanical and electrical. So wehave to team,’’ Hamling says. ‘‘We’redoing more of that and some of them playnicely and some of them team with usand cut our lunch.’’

Clients become used to dealing withmultiple firms, or picking people fromdifferent companies they want on pro-jects, Johnson says. This brings an addi-tional layer of risk management.

As infrastructure developmentbecomes more difficult, particularlyresponding to complex or repurposedsites, the ability to ‘‘coach that risk con-versation’’ is paramount, he said. ‘‘That’sone of the changes in the market, the riskdiscussion. It’s very easy in the diagnosticspace to just talk about the technicalproblem and ignore the risk conversa-tion.

‘‘Ultimately, as a professional servicesperson, you can only take a certain levelof risk.’’

From openness to the art of saying no – the sec● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Practices● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Quentin Digby: ‘‘We have to be ourselvesmore.’’ PHOTO: DANIEL MUNOZ

Leanne Issko: ‘‘Have face-to-face contactwherever possible.’’ PHOTO: PAT SCALA

Quentin Digby, partner,Herbert Smith Freehills

Why were you nominated? I really enjoyinteracting with our clients – people ingenerally, actually – and trying to help. Iwould like to think I was nominatedbecause I care about the client, will lookout for their interests ahead of my own,and am trustworthy with sound judg-ment, but I’d settle for any of those!Tips for young lawyers? We have to beourselves more or you aren’t going to getthat personal connection. There are allsorts of skills we are trained in, but actu-ally I think clients are looking for some-thing a bit deeper, and whatever it is hasto be genuine. One of our team membersnoted that sometimes as lawyers we trainourselves into being the serious ‘‘object-ive professional’’ and, in doing so, rightout of the approach in dealing with cli-

ents that actually would help with theconnection.How do you say no to a client? By beingopen and transparent. Failing to deliversomething that is agreed to is far worsethan saying ‘‘no’’ and explaining why.Tips for helping challenging clients?Often it’s just a case of getting to knowthem better. They may be under stress forreasons that we are unaware of. But if Ifeel that it’s an ongoing relationshipdynamic issue then recognising I may bepart of the problem, I’ll try to connectthem with another team member whomay be a better fit. The reality is that if Igenuinely don’t like working with a clientthen I won’t do as good a job for them as Ishould and we are all better off if they findsomeone else to advise them.Best thing you’ve been asked to do?Being asked by a project manager for asmall commercial team in a European-based multinational to be involved in atwo-day strategic planning session inSingapore. They wanted my input onbroader non-legal issues, and while my

first thought was ‘‘what value will I add?’’it was incredibly fulfilling and the feed-back was very positive.

Leanne Issko, senior associate,Mercer

Top tip? Have face-to-face contact wher-ever possible: it’s very difficult to build arelationship over the phone. You learn alot about clients by observing their work-place and there’s always some banterthat comes into the discussion, whichhelps to show the more human side; thatyou’re interested and will take the time.Your best quality? You’ve got to knowwhat’s happening in your sectors. If I talkabout an emerging trend, clients knowI’m in touch with a lot of people and thatI’m talking from a place of knowledge.Can you ever say no to a client? If they’relooking for advice in a particular way, ora particular answer, I find that if we don’tagree and actually say, ‘‘no, we can’trecommend what you want’’, theyrespect you more for being honest.

Can you learn client skills? Early in yourcareer, it’s really important to work with abroad range of people. You can pick updifferent attributes from different people.Stay true to yourself and be yourself, butyou can learn certain techniques or char-

acteristics so it is important to sit back andobserve. While we all develop our ownstyles, it comes down to listening skills.You have to let clients talk, don’t think,‘‘I’m here for a particular purpose only’’.

Also I’ll always double-check what

KWM, Allens hone agilit

Above: Allens’ Richard Spuriopoints to market volatility.Right: KWM’s Sue Kench saysbig firms can be nimble.PHOTOS: LOUIE DOUVIS, SASHAWOOLLEY

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Diversification● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Claire Stewart

Australian firms willcompete against eachother for a greatershare of a decliningmarket.Sue Kench, King Wood Mallesonsmanaging partner

King Wood Mallesons managing partnerSue Kench says big legal firms need to‘‘get their elbows out’’ to win top-shelfwork offshore and boost revenue in a sat-urated home market.

‘‘Frankly, Australia has been over-lawyered as long as I’ve been practising.And continued decline year on yearmeans that Australian firms will com-pete against each other for a greatershare of a declining market,’’ Kench says.

Among the biggest law brands in thecountry, KWM and Allens have had tofind new sources of income in whatAllens’ new boss Richard Spurio admitsis a ‘‘volatile market’’.

‘‘We are seeing client sentiment canchange pretty quickly,’’ Spurio says.

‘‘A lot of our clients are in industriesthat are under a lot of pressure and sub-ject to change.’’

Allens, on a turnaround path withfresh leadership, is revitalising its brandwith new ideas such as the locallydesigned and focused start-up practiceAccelerate, which should give it nichecapabilities ahead of its Australiancompetitors and its international partnerLinklaters.

Since starting this year, Allens’ newmanaging partner has been on a ‘‘prettyintensive’’ client visit program.

Spurio points to the firm’s traditionand long history in the resources space asreason to resist chopping and changingsectors to chase growth.

‘‘Our clients like Rio Tinto go back over100 years. Having said that, as marketschange, new industries develop and youhave to be agile and look at thosenew things.’’

He laughs off any suggestion of marketrumours that the tie up with Linklaters iscutting Allens out of work it might other-wise have secured in the home market,but doesn’t deny that their relationshipwith the prestigious magic circle firm hasbeen re-evaluated in recent times.

‘‘Our relationship with Linklaters isterrific. We regard it as a very compellingoffering,’’ he says.

‘‘But like anything you can’t stand still,so you have to continually look at it andevolve and think about things and focuson different areas, pursue new areas.

‘‘But that to me is a strength of the rela-tionship.’’

The Allens Accelerate offering forstart-ups is the first example of Allensturning its focus to different areas in thehome market, to tap into the changing

market and economy. Spurio says onebenefit of the tie with Linklaters is the‘‘nice amount of autonomy’’ Allensretains in Australia.

‘‘They are aware of it. It’s available forthem to look at as well but it’s not some-thing that we run past them forapproval.’’

Rather, Allens saw a need in the mar-ket for a vehicle such as Accelerate andSpurio says the firm will continue to lookat different offerings and roll out a rangeof things to stay responsive to changingmarket demands.

KWM is pushing for more cross-border work throughout Asia, and build-ing capabilities in new sectors to increaseprofits without cutting costs. Kenchwarns against firms believing the slowdecline of the local industry is inevitable.

‘‘We can stand shoulder to shoulderwith the best of them internationally. Sodo it,’’ Kench says.

‘‘If the Australian economy is [growingat] 2 to 3 per cent, we all know there is

way better growth than that in differentplaces,’’ she says.

‘‘How are you more deliberate in goingto seek that?

‘‘Some of it’s difficult, in the sense thatyou can’t suddenly wake up one morningand say ‘oh there’s growth over there, sowe better chase it’. You have to build thecapability behind it as well.’’

Despite being steeped in convention,Kench says there’s no reason a big lawfirm can’t be nimble in changingmarkets.

Making all practitioners, not just part-ners, understand they have the freedomand the firm’s support to chase differentopportunities is part of the answer,she says.

Since Kench took the top job threeyears ago, KWM has undertaken a ‘‘verydeliberate exercise’’ to assess and fill thefirm’s capacity gaps externally andinternally.

‘‘Financial services is incredibly inter-esting at the moment: how the big banksface their challenges; what’s happeningfrom a global capital perspective;

negative-positive interest rates; how youactually encourage money into thebanks. And then the subset, which is reg-ulatory.’’

Kench says KWM is also targetinginfrastructure, including real estate andurban infrastructure in Australia andAsia.

‘‘Yes there is stress around mining, butI don’t think you can ever take your eyeoff the ball for mining and resources …and that might even be in terms of how itrestructures itself.’’

Client Service Excellence

AFRGA1 S004

4 Wednesday 9 March 2016 | The Australian Financial Review | www.afr.com