Posted In: Business Development
Closing the Knowledge Gap: Using Training to Reinvigorate Your Marketing Team
After more than a year of working virtually, many marketing professionals are hungry to reengage and sharpen their skills. This is a terrific time for marketing leaders — CMOs, heads of business development, client service leaders – to plan out an offsite or intensive training session that sharpens skills and builds both knowledge and comradery.
What are some hot topics to include for the group? That depends, of course, on the current level of knowledge of the group and whether or not you have already had cross-functional internal or external training. A good place to start is with your internal resources. If your senior marketing, or other administrative professional staff, are able to provide a workshop or presentation on any of the following, that will be valuable for the group:
- Practice trends
- Firm financials
- PR/communications
- Industry hot topics
- Legal technology
- Client feedback
- Key client/strategic account information
- Recruiting
- Branding/design
- Writing
- Research/competitive intelligence
At LawVision, we’re often asked to speak about topics that are outside the expertise of the existing professional staff. Collaboration is certainly an important area and has been made more urgent due to everyone working in a virtual setting. We’ve facilitated sessions that use the Gardner & Co. Smart Collaboration Acceleratorä as an example. Other topics that resonate include:
- Legal project management
- Diversity inclusion & equity
- Firm culture
- Alternative fees
- Lateral integration
- Pricing
- Business development
- Sector/industry initiatives
- Profitability
- Strategic account management
- Alternative legal service providers (ALSPs)
- Environmental, social & governance (ESG) issues
Not familiar with some of these topics? That could mean it’s an area that needs sharpening. Engaged employees produce better business outcomes than other employees, and professional development is an important driver in facilitating collaboration, furthering skills, and transferring knowledge. A well-constructed team offsite or program gets the group rowing in the same direction and hopefully allows for the type of meaningful discussion and internal collaboration that gives people more purpose to their work. We know that in this environment – a tight and highly competitive labor market – it’s critical to have employees engaged.
Print PDF