Most firms now recognise that pricing strategy and execution requires considerably more focus and effort than has historically been the case. But as with any initiative, the starting point should be a critical appraisal of how we are doing currently. Only by taking a candid and honest view of the current state of affairs do we have a basis for deciding what is required to make improvements and how to prioritise those efforts.

With Validatum Pricing Espresso® we aim to bring you your regular pricing 'shot' - the best, most interesting, thought provoking and informative material we can find globally which will be of interest, relevance and help to you in your legal services pricing challenges. [Note: we don't always agree with the content of others that we post but the philosophy of Validatum Pricing Espresso® is shared perspectives, not a personal 'soap-box']

"I am sick and tired of asking my external law firms for a garden shed and getting a bloody office tower and a bill to match!"

So opined [verbatim] a very frustrated FTSE 100 GC in a casual conversation with us recently.

With Validatum Pricing Espresso® we aim to bring you your regular pricing 'shot' - the best, most interesting, thought provoking and informative material we can find globally which will be of interest, relevance and help to you in your legal services pricing challenges. [Note: we don't always agree with the content of others that we post but the philosophy of Validatum Pricing Espresso® is shared perspectives, not a personal 'soap-box']

Pricing improvement initiatives in law firms are unfortunately often characterised by confusion and indecision over why the initiative is required, what the initiative is intended to achieve and therefore what it should look like.

With Validatum Pricing Espresso® we aim to bring you your regular pricing 'shot' - the best, most interesting, thought provoking and informative material we can find globally which will be of interest, relevance and help to you in your legal services pricing challenges. [Note: we don't always agree with the content of others that we post but the philosophy of Validatum Pricing Espresso® is shared perspectives, not a personal 'soap-box']

With Validatum Pricing Espresso® we aim to bring you your regular pricing 'shot' - the best, most interesting, thought provoking and informative material we can find globally which will be of interest, relevance and help to you in your legal services pricing challenges. [Note: we don't always agree with the content of others that we post but the philosophy of Validatum Pricing Espresso® is shared perspectives, not a personal 'soap-box']

“Should we be nervous about turning away work? I think the concern here is that people will consider we are too small, or that we cannot be relied upon to help when needed, or just that we will drop off people's lists. Personally, I feel we should be less sensitive about this: we are not unlimited in size, and nor do we want to be. If therefore we are turning away work, it is because we have too much already, which is a good sign, and because we have a sensible and prudent approach to taking on more work, which is a good sign too. Obviously, we need to message it right, but do you agree with this as a matter of principle?”

With Validatum Pricing Espresso® we aim to bring you your regular pricing 'shot' - the best, most interesting, thought provoking and informative material we can find globally which will be of interest, relevance and help to you in your legal services pricing challenges. [Note: we don't always agree with the content of others that we post but the philosophy of Validatum Pricing Espresso® is shared perspectives, not a personal 'soap-box']

The latest General Counsel Excellence Report 2017 which has now been running for five years has produced the eyebrow raising conclusion that in the eyes of most GC's, the reputation of individual practitioners and their teams is more important than the reputation of the firm or pricing when it comes to selecting the right external legal resource.

At the latest Validatum Pricing Forum® on value-add, we asked attendees whether they thought their value-add differentiated them from their competitors and helped them win work. 86% of respondents responded ‘Occasionally, but hard to know whether the client really values the services’. Worrying isn’t it, given the amount of investment and effort that law firms put into it?

With Validatum Pricing Espresso® we aim to bring you your regular pricing 'shot' - the best, most interesting, thought provoking and informative material we can find globally which will be of interest, relevance and help to you in your legal services pricing challenges. [Note: we don't always agree with the content of others that we post but the philosophy of Validatum Pricing Espresso® is shared perspectives, not a personal 'soap-box']