Corporations are downsizing, renegotiating contracts, scrutinizing fees, and consolidating the number of outside service providers they work with. How do professional advisors not only maintain their clients in these challenging times, but take their relationships to a new level? In his new book, ALL FOR ONE—10 STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING TRUSTED CLIENT PARTNERSHIPS, Andrew Sobel offers a practical and innovative methodology for firms to refresh their core relationships and build broad, deep and trusted client partnerships which stand the test of time. Sobel calls them “those enduring, institutional client relationships that fuel your growth in good times, and keep you afloat when things are tough.”

Based on a five-year study of 50 leading professional service firms and advice-based businesses, Sobel offers strategies to create an “all for one” culture geared to sustain and support the kind of large-scale, institutional relationships which are critical to survival in today’s world. As corporations demand more value and better service, trusted client partnerships can no longer depend on individualistic rainmakers—they must be anchored by many relationships on both sides. Sobel says, “Today, you need more than trusted advisors—you need the right organizational capabilities and a collaborative culture, which, like a Redwood forest, has interconnecting roots that support your largest client relationships.” This means creating an organization that enables good professionals to become great.

The strategies highlighted in ALL FOR ONE are driven both by the firm and by the individual professional, and they shatter a number of long held myths:

• “Ultimately all client value boils down to either improving revenues or cutting costs”
  Truth: value is tangible, intangible, institutional and personal, and you must deliver all of these.
   
• “Knowing your client’s business is critical”
  Truth: mere client knowledge no longer sets you apart. You need to become an agenda setter with a seat at the table.
   
• “You have to be big and global to serve clients well”
  Truth: today it is all about focus and making the parts work together well, not about size.
   
• “Consistent quality and delivery are essential to differentiate your service”
  Truth: these days that just gets you in the game. You need to differentiate your firm by creating a
  unique client experience.
   
• “By rewarding people for teamwork, you will ensure collaboration”
  Truth: professionals don’t collaborate because they are paid to do so – they collaborate because top
  management has set the example and because they like and trust each other.
   
• “Top executives are focused like a laser on value for money”
  Truth: top executives are actually even more focused on value for time.

The book’s 10 strategies can be best expressed as a series of shifts in the way you build client relationships – from understanding your client to setting an agenda, from selling to engagement, from anecdotal client feedback to systematic client listening, from individual effort to collaborative effort, and from chasing any lead to disciplined client selection, among others. His ground-breaking methodology is illustrated with over 100 examples of best practices from the world’s top services firms including Ernst & Young, IBM, and Booz Allen Hamilton, which has been a continuous consultant to the U.S. Navy for over 70 years.

Sobel shows how to build trusted partnerships that add value, reduce risk and create stability for both your clients and your firm. He says, “People complain about how difficult clients can be today, and how tough the market is. But right now, there are very innovative firms out there that are building highly successful, large-scale client relationships. The recipe to do this is now pretty clear. The question, really, is ‘Do you have the ambition and the determination?’”
 

Reviews:

“All for One is thought provoking and actionable, making it a valuable roadmap for building trust and mutual benefit between clients and advisors."

- Ralph W. Shrader, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Booz Allen Hamilton

"All for One is a goldmine of best practices for building a culture around personalized relationships and then supporting these through collaboration and the mobilization of resources."

- Edward E. Nusbaum, Chief Executive Officer, Grant Thornton LLP

About the Author