A strategy consulting firm had historically generated new business through a series of public seminars on strategic issues. This channel was producing fewer and fewer leads at the same time that a buyback of the firm from a parent organization increased the need for revenues. Harding & Company worked with groups of firm partners and senior managers over three years to help them develop referral networks and sales skills needed to generate new business. The company has reestablished itself as an independent firm, the consultants are winning new business and improved sales have helped many senior managers earn promotion to partner.

Developing Accounts

A rapidly growing consulting firm entered accounts by selling a specific small service to middle management. In some cases these portal projects converted into multi-year relationships in which a series of large projects worth several million dollars in total were sold to senior management. To grow the firm, its founder needed this to happen more often. Harding & Company analyzed how small entry projects were converted to large account relationships and developed a program for training the members of the firm in the methodology.

Building a Sales Culture

A leading management consulting firm had promoted many consultants to partner based on their technical success and client management skills during the long, boom economy. When recession hit, few of these people didn’t knew how to generate business. The managing partner tasked the head of marketing with fixing this problem. She brought in Harding & Company to develop more rainmakers, and so, help build a sales culture. The results have been so strong that we are still working with the firm four years later. During a recent review of the program’s success the managing partner cited it as one of the firm’s most important initiatives in recent years. His review followed a presentation by one program alumnus whose sales had gone from under $1 million to over $5 million in one year. He had not been seen as someone with much natural business development talent.