1. RFP’s: the Coming of the New Era
for Selling Legal Services
A Presentation by Jerry Kowalski of
Kowalski & Associates

2. Basics
• What is an RFP?
– Just looking vs. buying
– Who is your competition?
– Who is your prospective client?
– How does that suit you?
– Why bother?
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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3. The RFP
Yes, folks it’s a horse designed by a committee!
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4. Some Basics
• Personnel
– PIC
– Experts
– Knowledge management
– Extranet
– IT
– Billing and collections
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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5. Collaboration
• Horizontal and vertical
• The GC is your partner
– Secondements
• LPO’s
• Local counsel
• Special counsel
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6. Winning
• What comes free and what you pay for
– Free:
• Extranet
– On line billing information
– Work in progress
– Building out the client’s searchable data
– A secondee or two
– CLE
– Availability for consultations outside the scope of the
engagement
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
rights reserved. Please visit us at our web
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7. Winning – Are you attempting to
compete in your proper weight
category?
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8. Winning
• Identifying
– The appropriate personnel
– The appropriate client
– The appropriate matter
– The appropriate platform
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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9. Personnel
• Substantive experience
• Personality and temperment suitability
• Industry experience
• Track record
• Representative similar engagements
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10. The client
• Meticulous preparation is the key
• Is the client a buyer or a shopper?
• Prior counsel
• Understand the constituencies you must deal
with
• Who is likely to compete with you?
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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11. The matter
• What real demonstrated expertise do you
have for this matter?
• What industry expertise do you really have for
the client?
• What is your USP?
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
rights reserved. Please visit us at our web
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12. The particular matter
• It may be your specialty, but is it too big or too
small?
• Getting your foot in the door sometimes only
get your foot chopped off
• Your first engagement sets the template for all
future relationships
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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13. The platform
• IT
• Support personnel
• Project management
• Billing and collection
• Alternative legal services providers
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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14. The Scope of the Engagement
• Detailed description of the work to be
performed
• Defined statement of the work that you will
perform under the engagement and what you
won’t
• Defining conclusion of work
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15. Value Billing and Alternative Fee
Arrangements
• Are you giving the client a discount or are you
truly using a value billing metric?
• Portfolio pricing
– Specialty area
– Geographical
• Premium on success
– Discounted hourly rates against success
• Fixed fee
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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16. Get it right or don’t bother
• The RFP itself
• Understand client expectations
• Open market bidding
• Follow through
• Follow up
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
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17. Winning
• Collaboration among
lawyers, marketing, project managers and
financial personnel
• RFP submissions must be strategic
• When you get called to the big show, don’t
just bring your beauties
• Listen as much as you present
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
rights reserved. Please visit us at our web
site at www.kowalskiassociates.com, visit
our blog at 17
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18. Winning
Yes, you can win the prize, but only if you spend a lot of time preparing
and rehearsing.
(C) Jerome Kowalski, January 2012, all
rights reserved. Please visit us at our web
site at www.kowalskiassociates.com, visit
our blog at 18
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