Most firms still rely on gut instinct and assume data is too far out of reach to easily use, missing out on the potential to increase client satisfaction, improve profitability, and drive growth. But you don’t need a massive budget, fancy software, or an in-house tech expert to get started. There are simple, affordable strategies that even the smallest firms can use to get started and deliver more value to clients.

This article unpacks the insights that most firms already have at their fingertips, along with straightforward, practical ways to use them to enhance client relationships, boost profitability, and stay ahead of the competition.

The scaffolding put up to support scale—more process, layers of leadership, and bifurcated responsibilities—often comes at the expense of agility and personal touch. A stark example: I was recently speaking with a top ten accounting firm leader about a new pricing tool that their firm is hoping to launch… in the next 18 months. Not exactly nimble.

For professional services firms, where the ability to move quickly, adjust to client needs, and maintain deep relationships is crucial, it’s no wonder corporate buyers have been migrating to smaller, boutique firms; what they lack in brand name recognition is made up in white glove service, bespoke solutioning, and more reasonable rates.

This means making the decision a no-brainer for your clients. To do this, you need to put yourself in their shoes: clients should clearly understand what they’ll get and the required investment, be able to easily communicate your services internally, and feel confident about the real-life outcomes of the engagement. Here are strategies, complete with tips and examples, to help you achieve this:

1. Easy to Understand Pricing. Straightforward questions (“What will this cost?”) require straightforward answers. Offer pricing models that are easy to understand and, where possible, use flat fees or value-based pricing to reduce the cognitive load on your clients. They shouldn't have to use formulas to decipher how a blend of hours from various personnel might play out on a future bill and then wait for impact. Make it straightforward and stress-free to choose your firm. Tips:

It’s understandable – these are businesses whose “products” are people, and change is difficult for people to digest. Given questionable success rates, why move from the status quo? But in an increasingly competitive market driven by technology and global talent pools (among other factors), services are being commoditized and change is becoming increasingly unavoidable. It seems then that the logical solution isn’t to avoid change, but rather to find ways to mitigate the risk and increase the percentage chance of success.

Change management usually falters due to poor execution. One common mistake is overlooking the perspectives of those who will implement and live with these changes; without their buy-in, even well-intentioned programs struggle to gain traction and leaders are left policing poor compliance. Another misstep is designing programs that don’t account for the relevant workforce’s existing strengths and avoid leaning on weaknesses – unsurprisingly, they have little chance of survival given they’re asking employees to use skills they don’t have. Seeking a “magic bullet” is another common oversight – instead of trying to craft a perfect program (if such a thing even exists), start with a small pilot, and iteratively improve based on day-to-day reality.  

The scarcity of truly outstanding client service enables the firms that deliver to stand out sharply from the competition, charge more for their services, and keep client attrition down. It seems obvious, so why don't all service firms do it? 

Most firms actually do profess a client-centric ethos... but when asked about the tangible actions they take—be it in their hiring practices, established programs, or workforce incentives for client-centric behavior—the answer is usually silence. And that silence signifies well-meaning intentions that lack substance. Given the pivotal role of client relationships in business success, leaving client satisfaction to chance is a missed opportunity.

Clients can’t “try on” or “taste test” a service. Only the largest firms can rely on brand gravitas to do the heavy lifting on business development... and even they struggle to stand out as the clear choice among equally qualified peers. So how can professional services firms win new business more effectively in a crowded market?   

Creating traction with client prospects hinges on building trust and showing a track record of understanding and solving similar pain points. This article delves into essential strategies that don’t just push a service, but foster genuine connections, understand deep-seated client needs, and ultimately deliver transformations that bring superior value.

Growth can feel like a double-edged sword: the systems you add to keep up with demand can squeeze the very essence of what makes you successful. The good news is you don’t have to sacrifice your best qualities to scale.

This article provides a starting point for scaling with intention, covering how to: (1) Leverage your boutique strengths—agility, connection, and culture—to stay ahead. (2) Borrow what works from big firms without inheriting their bureaucracy. (3) Recognize the processes and programs that don’t add value so you don’t waste time and resources.

We recently published an article outlining a simple (yet effective) approach to business planning which starts with goal setting. We emphasized the need for goals that are both ambitious and attainable by using data points from market realities (what is possible for firms like yours) along with your own historical performance (what is realistic for your firm). Expanding on this, our latest article dives into the latter, outlining more specifically how the past year should serve as guidance for setting goals and executing against them in a way that aligns with your capabilities, speed, culture, and market strengths.

Your firm is probably leaving money on the table.

It happens in different ways: clients who expect more without paying for it, partners who cut time off the bill before a client even complains, teams who work past scope but never flag the extra effort, invoices that sit unpaid for months, marketing budgets that are rolled over from last year with no thought… the list goes on.

Historically, professional services firms have relied on intuition over structure, expecting their professionals to craft on-the-fly strategies to manage the business, from the top of the revenue funnel (e.g., business development efforts) to the bottom (e.g., handling write-offs). But your teams are stretched thin and this probably isn’t their core competency, so unsurprisingly, profitability suffers.

In this article, we first walk through a practical checklist of “baseline” programs you should have in place as a starting point, and then explore some examples of unique programs that well-known companies have adopted to differentiate themselves, engage employees, and reinforce their culture to inspire you to think about how you can enhance your culture beyond baseline programs.

Baseline Program Checklist

1. A Meaningful Performance Review Process. Performance reviews provide valuable opportunities for feedback, development, and alignment of goals. However, traditional performance reviews often fall short in providing meaningful insights and actionable steps for improvement. Make sure your review process includes the employee’s own feedback; they are often aware of their own shortcomings and it is helpful for managers to understand how an employee views their own contributions so they can approach the conversation accordingly. And, don’t use cookie cutter forms for every single role across departments and levels; customize the review process to be specific to each role and so there is parity for multiple employees in the same role.

These tactics to generate buzz – although showcased in a retail setting – can be adapted by businesses in any industry to stand out among peers. Here’s some of the most successful tactics and how to utilize them in diverse business contexts:

1. Prioritize Personalized Experiences. Personalization is a powerful approach that can enhance customer engagement and loyalty in any industry. By leveraging customer data and implementing segmentation strategies, businesses can tailor their offerings to meet individual needs and preferences. Retailers use customer data to tailor shopping experiences. Any industry can apply this by using client or customer information to provide more relevant services or communications.

In most firms, business planning is more checkbox than strategy—endless meetings, bloated paperwork, and a final product that’s forgotten until next year. The firms that get it right treat business planning as a tool, not a formality. It’s how they clarify priorities, adapt to challenges, and drive results.

The goal isn’t perfection—it’s precision. A solid plan sets a clear growth target, breaks it into actionable steps, and builds buy-in across teams so execution isn’t optional. A good plan flexes when needed but stays focused on results.

This article outlines how your firm can turn planning into action: creating plans your team believes in, implementing them effectively, and keeping them adaptable for what’s next.

In this context, Shireen Hilal (CEO of Maior, a consulting firm specializing in revenue generation, strategies for success, and process optimization) and John Bertoli (CEO of Bertoli Marketing, known for its fractional CMO, demand generation, and AI-powered website optimization services) share practical tips and give real-world examples of how to put “more with less” into action. As the strategies and examples below show, having limited resources can often lead to a team that’s more focused and deliberate—a clear advantage in any economy.

Change can feel daunting and bring out your team’s inner skeptic, or it can be exciting and present opportunities for growth, innovation, and improved performance. So how do you bring needed change that energizes your workforce (or even external stakeholders)?

1. Utilize Pilot Programs Where Possible. By selecting a small group or department to test new initiatives, you can gather valuable feedback and make iterative adjustments before rolling out changes organization-wide. Pilot programs allow the testing population to feel empowered and actively contribute to shaping the transformation. Furthermore, it instills confidence in the rest of the organization that the changes have already been tested with their colleagues and refined, increasing overall buy-in and reducing resistance.

In this article, we will explore common challenges that boutique businesses encounter and actionable strategies you can use for overcoming them: 

1. Lack of Time. Time is a precious commodity, with owners and employees often wearing multiple hats. The key to tackling this challenge is effective time management, streamlining your operations, and delegating down or out. Streamline your processes by giving employees clear lines of authority and creating written processes for repeatable tasks or events; evaluate your calendar to ensure you are spending time on the issues that matter most to your success (for example, 40% of your time shouldn’t be spent on something that brings in 5% of your revenue unless you see this as a rapidly growing area); and hire slowly and carefully, using consulting or staffing services as a first step where you need help but not full time, your budget won’t support the level of expertise needed for a full-time hire, or you aren't sure the function you're filling will be needed in the longterm but want to test it out. Importantly, make sure the business is serving you and not the other way around.  

In this article, we will explore actionable tips and real examples to help foster a culture that fuels innovation and empowers employees to contribute their best ideas:

1. Establish a Formal Innovation Process. Create a formalized process that encourages employees to generate and share ideas, evaluate their feasibility, and implement the most promising ones. One example is the “hackathon” approach, where employees from various departments come together to collaborate and develop innovative solutions. Atlassian, a leading software company, organizes quarterly “ShipIt Days” where employees have 24 hours to work on any project of their choice, sparking creativity and fostering a culture of innovation. Another example is to create a “Shark Tank” style program, whereby employees can submit and present ideas quarterly for consideration to an innovation panel, and the panel funds programs that show promise.  

This article explores strategies that businesses can adopt to navigate uncertainty and build resilience, enabling them to adapt, grow, and seize opportunities even in the face of adversity, using real examples from coffee behemoth Starbucks, including innovation, cost management, customer loyalty, market diversification, and technological advancement:

1. Product Innovation – Pivot to Your Customer's Needs. During the 2008 financial downturn, Starbucks recognized the need to provide different value to its customers. They introduced new products and offerings, such as the “Starbucks VIA” instant coffee line, which appealed to cost-conscious consumers seeking affordable coffee options. This product innovation allowed Starbucks to reach a broader customer base and maintain its market share.

In this article, we will explore what a bias for action means, why it is (usually) preferable, the valuable lessons organizations can learn from Amazon’s relentless pursuit of action-oriented decision-making, and how to temper action bias for optimal results.

1. Understanding Bias for Action A bias for action refers to a proactive mindset that prioritizes taking swift and decisive steps to address challenges, seize opportunities, and drive progress. It involves a sense of urgency, initiative, and a willingness to experiment and learn from failures. Instead of succumbing to “analysis paralysis” or excessive planning, organizations with a bias for action empower their teams to make decisions and execute quickly, accelerating innovation and growth.

Elite firms thrive on the capabilities and commitment of their employees, making an engaged workforce the cornerstone of client service excellence. But, as any leader of a services firm or agency knows, achieving an engaged workforce is easier said than done.

Midsized and boutique firms have their own version of this challenge – they often try to emulate industry giants who set market compensation and have expansive training and cultural programs, but employee engagement numbers nationwide (less than 30% according to Gallup) reveal the truth; those programs rarely work in companies of any size. But in the effort to keep up, firms adopt low-calorie versions of their larger counterparts’ strategies without considering whether these hefty structures support the firm or its employees. As a result, they end up with a lukewarm value proposition along with draconian handbooks and stringent policies because “that’s what firms are supposed to have,” inhibiting flexible and creative client solutions. So what’s the solution?

So how do you assess and shift your strategy iteratively over time without going back to the drawing board or putting your executive team through days of exhausting meetings or mountains of presentation decks? Get started with these tips:

• Measure Progress (Quantitative Data). Without regular assessment, you won’t know what’s working best and where you need to pivot. Choose a few Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that matter most, and then review them on a monthly basis so you understand where you may need to course correct before too much time passes.