Artwork for podcast This Shit Works
The Three C’s to Becoming a Rainmaker with Matt Dixon
Episode 17115th November 2023 • This Shit Works • Julie Brown
00:00:00 00:46:44

Share Episode

Shownotes

By definition a rainmaker is an individual who generates an unusually high amount of revenue for an organization by bringing new clients and new business to the company. 

Listen in as I talk with Matt Dixon, author of a new groundbreaking Harvard Business Review article titled What Rainmakers Do Differently! We break down the 5 Principal Profiles and discuss the Three C’s that can turn anyone into a Rainmaker


Drink of the week….Triple C Welcome Cocktail 



Click to BUY MY BOOK!

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD CHAPTER ONE AUDIO FREE

Click to BOOK ME AS A SPEAKER

Click to SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER


Julie Brown:

Website

Instagram

LinkedIn

Youtube


Matt Dixon

DCM Insights

Matt’s LinkedIn


Transcripts

Speaker:

For many of you.

2

:

You know, especially

listeners around my age.

3

:

The first time you may have heard

of the term Rainmaker was when the

4

:

film, the Rainmaker written and

directed by Francis Ford Coppola was

5

:

released in 1997 or when the book,

the movie was based off of written by

6

:

John Grisham was published in 1995.

7

:

By definition.

8

:

Uh, Rainmaker is an individual who

generates an unusually high amount

9

:

of revenue for an organization

by bringing new clients and

10

:

new business to the company.

11

:

Rainmakers outperform others in

the organization through their

12

:

ability to bring in new ventures.

13

:

And their contributions are considered

critical to the success of the business.

14

:

Welcome to episode one 70.

15

:

One of the shit works, a

podcast dedicated to all things.

16

:

Networking relationship building

and business development.

17

:

I'm your host, Julie Brown.

18

:

Speaker author and networking coach.

19

:

And today I am joined by Matt Dixon.

20

:

Founding partner of DC and insights

and coauthor of the groundbreaking

21

:

article and the most recent issue

of Harvard business review titled

22

:

what rainmakers do differently.

23

:

The subtitle of the article.

24

:

What rainmakers do differently is

business development and professional

25

:

services firms is outdated.

26

:

Here's what works now.

27

:

And I couldn't agree more.

28

:

Business development is outdated.

29

:

I work with a number of firms who

want to improve their business

30

:

development activities and identify.

31

:

Who within the office might have the

secret sauce or the it factor to become

32

:

a successful door seller or a Rainmaker.

33

:

If you prefer.

34

:

Well, lucky for us.

35

:

Our guest and his firm has done the

heavy lifting, conducting research

36

:

that has revealed the five distinct

profiles that define how all partners

37

:

approach business development.

38

:

Research that further reveals that

only one of these profiles has a

39

:

positive impact on the performance

and revenue of their company.

40

:

And that only 22% of the people

possess the characteristics that

41

:

make up this Rainmaker profile.

42

:

I bet you're curious to know what the

characteristics of this profile are.

43

:

So without further ado, let's

welcome that to the podcast.

44

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

Hey, Julie.

45

:

How you doing?

46

:

Thank you for having me.

47

:

Track 1: Yeah.

48

:

First I wanna thank you and your

co-authors, Ted, Rory, and Karen for

49

:

this research, which is so in depth and

so eye-opening, and as I mentioned in

50

:

the article, like the five profiles that

you've discovered, like how did you decide

51

:

that you wanted to conduct this research?

52

:

This was what you wanted to

spend a chunk of your time on.

53

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

Yeah, it was, it's kind of an

54

:

interesting, uh, background story.

55

:

Uh, Julie, so I, my background and as well

as, uh, uh, Karen and Ted, uh, we kind

56

:

of grew up as researchers at a company

called CEB, which is now part of Gartner

57

:

Group, and we were all part of the.

58

:

Business to business sales practice.

59

:

So we were serving chief sales officers,

chief revenue officers, heads of sales

60

:

effectiveness, sales enablement, you know,

uh, all the, all the industries were.

61

:

Sales is not a four letter word.

62

:

So it's basically like one minus

professional services, um, or, you

63

:

know, financial services as well.

64

:

So we're really focused on, um, serving

heads of sales in software, medical

65

:

devices, pharmaceuticals, logistics, uh.

66

:

We'd spent probably 20 plus years

studying what great business to business

67

:

sellers do, star sellers do differently.

68

:

We wrote a number of books on it, a number

of HBR articles, and one of the things I

69

:

learned really quickly, uh, is that, uh,

the doer seller world is quite different.

70

:

I remember, actually remember a, an

experience where I presented some of our

71

:

work from, uh, a book we wrote called

The Challenger Sale, uh, which was very

72

:

popular in business to business sales.

73

:

And I was called into.

74

:

A large consulting firm to present, uh,

the findings at the partner retreat.

75

:

Uh, this is going back like a decade

and, um, you know, two thirds of the way

76

:

through my presentation, the managing

partner kind of stood up and, and called

77

:

Time Out and asked me to stop talking,

which is a little bit unsettling.

78

:

Um, and I said, you know, I was gonna take

questions at the end, but please, you're.

79

:

You're paying the bills.

80

:

So go ahead, Um, and he said, you know,

you keep using this term sales and you're

81

:

talking about salespeople and selling

and, um, you know, all this stuff.

82

:

And what you need to understand is that

at our firm, we actually don't sell,

83

:

we don't use that term internally.

84

:

It's not what we do.

85

:

And, um, I, I said back, uh, in

response that, um, let's stipulate

86

:

to the fact that there's a mysterious

process by which the client's money

87

:

ends up in your firm's bank account.

88

:

And we're gonna call it sales

for the next 15 minutes.

89

:

I could just finish up my presentation

and everyone had a good laugh, but it

90

:

did, as I delved into it, and I kind of

continued to have these experiences when

91

:

I was called in by, you know, law firms,

accounting firms, investment banks.

92

:

Wealth advisory firms, um, PR

firms, executive search, um,

93

:

uh, partnerships that this doer,

seller world is quite different.

94

:

Um, a lot of things we talked about

in our previous work is how you need

95

:

to deliver challenging sales messages

that lead to your company's product.

96

:

But what if you are the product, right?

97

:

If the product is your own

advisory skills as a partner in a

98

:

professional services firm, that's

a very different ball of wax and.

99

:

As you know very well, um, partners

in professional services, it's, look,

100

:

it's tough to be a good salesperson

when sales is your full-time job.

101

:

Um, and we've learned that

over, you know, 20 plus years

102

:

of studying great salespeople.

103

:

It's even harder where sales is

a part-time job, and you've gotta

104

:

be responsible for generating

the business with your clients

105

:

and professional services and

then executing it with your team

106

:

is a very, very different motion.

107

:

Um, that puts a lot of

pressure on partners.

108

:

So I always had sort of.

109

:

Uh, kind of back pocket, uh, kind

of curiosity or or study idea to go

110

:

out and do a lot of what we've done

in B two B sales, but a, a sort of

111

:

bespoke clean sheet of paper, new

study of the do or seller world.

112

:

Um, fast forward to when

we founded our company.

113

:

Um.

114

:

Uh, two years ago, DCM Insights.

115

:

Uh, one of our partners, uh,

is a guy named Rory Chan.

116

:

Rory actually spent, um, four years

as Chief Chief Business Development

117

:

Officer at a big law firm, uh, McDermott,

will and Emery, uh, Enam Law 50 firm.

118

:

And at the time I had left cb, he

and I, he was a former CB guy too.

119

:

He actually hired me.

120

:

I was working at Korn Ferry at

the time, running their sales

121

:

effectiveness consulting practice.

122

:

He hired me and my team to come in.

123

:

Study what their top rainmakers

were doing at McDermott.

124

:

So it was our first time ever studying

doer sellers, you know, putting aside

125

:

everything we know about B two B sales,

but looking at doer sellers as kind of a

126

:

unique, um, breed, a unique population.

127

:

And we found some interesting

things in that study, um,

128

:

that just again, further, I.

129

:

Um, piqued my curiosity around what we

might find if we did a broader study.

130

:

So, um, we've had our company two

years ago, um, and we partnered

131

:

with, uh, Intap, who, as, uh, many

of your listeners know, is a big,

132

:

uh, cloud provider to professional

and financial services, uh, firms.

133

:

And Intap agreed to underwrite a

large global study of doer sellers.

134

:

Uh, so we, um, we embarked on that.

135

:

Probably about a year and nine months

ago, um, we scoped out the study.

136

:

We started recruiting

firms to participate.

137

:

And as you know from the article,

uh, we got, uh, 23 firms, global

138

:

firms and 1800 partners to actually,

139

:

uh, complete the study.

140

:

Um, we didn't get any hate mail from

partners, but it was a pretty long study.

141

:

it, it's a long survey.

142

:

The, the thing that we got a lot of

responses from folks saying, um, this

143

:

was a really hard survey to fill out.

144

:

It wasn't a simple I check the box,

kind of, you can blow through it really

145

:

quickly.

146

:

There were kind of forced

trade off questions.

147

:

It really forced partners to think

very critically about how they engage

148

:

clients, how they spend their time,

um, what tools and resources they use,

149

:

how they pitch for business, et cetera.

150

:

Um, it, it forced a lot of introspection,

I think, on the part of the respondent.

151

:

So,

152

:

Track 1: Mm-Hmm.

153

:

. What I . I thought one of the great

points of this article was a problem

154

:

in business that it pointed out,

which is that most businesses believe,

155

:

Hey, you do really good work and your

clients will keep coming back to you.

156

:

But your research showed that there's

a shift in the loyalty of clients.

157

:

Like,

158

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: yeah.

159

:

Track 1: and so the shift is happening

and you're, you're prospecting

160

:

that it's going to get worse.

161

:

The shift in loyalty

is gonna get worse, so.

162

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

We actually, as part of the

163

:

study, we actually collected,

um, or we, we organized a panel

164

:

of a hundred c-level executives.

165

:

So these are, these are executives,

big companies that have, you know,

166

:

individually, decades of experience

hiring law firms and accounting

167

:

firms and investment banks and

search consultants and management

168

:

consultants and the like.

169

:

So if you edit all up, it was like

thousands of years of buying experience

170

:

with professional services firms and

partners, and we asked them, uh, a

171

:

series of questions, but one of the

most revealing ones was, you know.

172

:

If you had a new need that arose

and provided the firm you're working

173

:

with right now had done good work

for you in the past, would you be

174

:

inclined to just hire them again?

175

:

Would you just go back to

the, well, in other words, or

176

:

automatically go back to that firm?

177

:

We asked 'em to think about what the

response would've been five years

178

:

ago, what it would be today, and then

what it would be five years from now.

179

:

These respondents, uh, the responses

came back were pretty eye-opening,

180

:

um, 70, um, nearly three quarters.

181

:

It was like 73% of respondents

said five years ago.

182

:

Yeah, I would just go

back to those same firms.

183

:

So this was, you know, a, a time where

professional services purchasing Was

184

:

not really the domain of procurement.

185

:

It wasn't highly formalized.

186

:

Um, and, uh, you know, senior executives

could kind of put their thumb on the

187

:

scale for the firm or partner they really

preferred and maybe where they had a

188

:

personal relationship or they'd gone

to law school together with somebody

189

:

or business school or worked together

with the partner, their, um, who's, uh,

190

:

uh, you know, pursuing the business.

191

:

Today, that number is around half.

192

:

So about 53% of respondents said,

yeah, we would go back to the same

193

:

firms thinking out five years from now.

194

:

It's only about a third.

195

:

It's a slightly more, it's 37%.

196

:

And so this really is exactly

what you're talking about, Julie.

197

:

It's a degradation in the stickiness

of our client relationships.

198

:

Um, it is a more competitive environment.

199

:

We interviewed a lot of these

c-level decision makers as part

200

:

of this research, and what we

heard, um, was pretty astounding.

201

:

Many of them said, look, in the past.

202

:

Nobody really cared where, you

know, which law firm I hired,

203

:

which consulting firm I went with?

204

:

I could put my thumb on the scale.

205

:

No big deal.

206

:

It was a black box.

207

:

Today, everything is competitive.

208

:

Everything is a formal pursuit.

209

:

Procurement is involved.

210

:

And you know, for, um, fiduciary,

ethical, uh, legal reasons, I cannot be

211

:

seen as putting my thumb on the scale.

212

:

That's actually, we had people tell us.

213

:

Look, I, if I have a personal

relationship with a partner, I will

214

:

recuse myself from the purchase decision.

215

:

And we had CFOs and CHROs and GCs

and heads of m and a telling us,

216

:

you know, we are doing our firm and

our shareholders, our stakeholders,

217

:

our employees, a disservice if

we don't competitively bid out

218

:

each piece of business.

219

:

'cause we owe it to ourselves to

hear what everybody has to say

220

:

about our problems and our needs.

221

:

It, you know, we're kind of

shooting ourselves in the foot.

222

:

If we just go back to the same

partners we've always used, we

223

:

need to cast that broad net,

which then means the door is open

224

:

for you as a partner to lose that,

you know, longtime client relationship

225

:

because they're bidding it out.

226

:

Track 1: What would be an interesting

follow up study to this is in five

227

:

years when they, when client loyalty

is down to 30, you know, 33%.

228

:

If people are still as happy or if

they wished that they had you gone

229

:

back to their previous providers.

230

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yeah, that

is an, that is an interesting question.

231

:

Will that all that shopping

around actually benefit clients?

232

:

You know, or

233

:

will they feel like

they've missed something

234

:

because they've not gone back to the,

the providers who really know them and

235

:

their firms and their teams very well?

236

:

Uh, that, that is a really

interesting, uh, question.

237

:

But I, you know, what's,

what's so interesting is I.

238

:

When we talk to partners, a I would

say the vast majority of partners

239

:

are very frightened by this prospect.

240

:

They say, this is, this

is not good for me.

241

:

And it's exactly for the

reasons you just articulated.

242

:

Julie, I've grown up in a world where if

you did good work, you, you didn't have

243

:

to compete for the next piece of business.

244

:

The client just

245

:

came back to you for, you know,

the next consulting engagement.

246

:

The next legal matter, the next, uh, tax,

you know, advisory piece of business,

247

:

they would just come back

to you automatically.

248

:

So it's frightening for the majority of

of partners, but there's a small segment

249

:

of partners who are pretty excited about

this and say, look, there are clients

250

:

that I'm looking to get in with, uh,

251

:

uh, stat, I think from, uh, Russell

Reynolds found, um, that a huge percent,

252

:

I think 20 to 30% of Fortune 500 GCs are

gonna retire in the next like five years.

253

:

Track 1: Yeah.

254

:

Oh yeah.

255

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

It's gonna put $60 billion of

256

:

outside council spend up for grabs.

257

:

And so these, you know,

rainmakers, these top performers

258

:

are like, this is great.

259

:

And, and these firms will, these

companies will not automatically

260

:

go back to the firms they've used

for years and years and years.

261

:

They're the door's now open.

262

:

I'm gonna get an invitation to compete

for it and I might win some of these.

263

:

So they're pretty, they're pretty

energized by this prospect.

264

:

Track 1: Yeah.

265

:

It's funny.

266

:

I do a lot of college and university

lecturing on networking and business

267

:

development, and one of the first

things I say to him is like.

268

:

Do you think everybody else

in this room is a dumb ass?

269

:

Besides you?

270

:

Like being good at your job

is the barrier to entry.

271

:

Now let's talk about all the things

that are gonna help you stand out.

272

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yeah.

273

:

Yeah.

274

:

Track 1: Um, so as I mentioned, your

research found five distinct profiles,

275

:

which in my, in my experience in working

business to business we're spot on.

276

:

So I wanna dive into them a little bit.

277

:

The, so the.

278

:

For the listeners, the five

distinct profiles are the expert,

279

:

the confidant, the debater,

the realist, and the activator.

280

:

And one of these is the rainmaker profile.

281

:

So let's examine elite a, a little

bit of each of them, because I

282

:

think people will be like, yes, I

know who that person is in my firm.

283

:

Yes, I am that person in my firm.

284

:

Um, so great.

285

:

Let's start with the expert

because I think this is what

286

:

everybody strives to be like.

287

:

I'll just be an expert in the field

and everybody will come to me.

288

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

Yeah, it's, no, you're exactly right.

289

:

Um, so what, a couple thoughts,

just as I go through these.

290

:

I think one is, Julie, you're right.

291

:

The first thing that people do is they

think about themselves, um, and then they

292

:

think about their colleagues and then

they think about the, in their firm, who

293

:

are the top, some of the top rain makers.

294

:

Um, where do the people you

think are kind of doing it wrong?

295

:

What, what profiles they go into?

296

:

If you're a firm leader,

you're starting to think about

297

:

skylines, like, where are we?

298

:

Overweighted and underweighted.

299

:

Um.

300

:

Cautionary points.

301

:

One, I would say every single

one of the:

302

:

a combination of all five.

303

:

However, uh, statistically every single

one of them majored in one of those five.

304

:

We all spike in one, right?

305

:

But people are complicated and

partners in professional services

306

:

are especially complicated people.

307

:

So they, so, you know, this is,

um, it's a messy, messy business.

308

:

The other thing I would

tell you is that, um.

309

:

This almost, I always say this upfront,

but it almost always comes back as a

310

:

question that we didn't study personality.

311

:

And I think when pe

when we go through this,

312

:

Sometimes.

313

:

people say, well, this feels

like you're born with it, right?

314

:

It feels like you, you just, you have

that kind of personality that will

315

:

put you in one of these profiles.

316

:

We studied, uh, behavior skills,

time spent characteristics, use of

317

:

tools and resources, uh, techniques.

318

:

So these are things that with

the right training, coaching,

319

:

um, and support from the firm.

320

:

Every partner can get better at.

321

:

Now, why a partner ends up in any

of these five is probably partly

322

:

because of their personality and

what they're comfortable with.

323

:

But, um, the profiles themselves did not

have personality based characteristics

324

:

to them.

325

:

Uh, if that makes sense.

326

:

So, back to your question.

327

:

So the expert, uh, first profile here.

328

:

Um, and, and, sorry, one more

One more piece of background.

329

:

So the way we did, not I,

this is really important.

330

:

We didn't invent these,

um, these profiles.

331

:

So this is a, we use a technique

called factor analysis.

332

:

Factor analysis looks at a large data set,

it washes out the insignificant variables,

333

:

then it isolates the significant ones.

334

:

And typically in a large model,

uh, the data ends up clumping into

335

:

groups and those groups move up

and down in the model together.

336

:

So if you have something in the bucket,

you tend to have the other things.

337

:

If you lack something, you tend

not to have the other things.

338

:

We've used this technique in the past.

339

:

I mentioned the challenger

sale research in B two B sales.

340

:

And this is the second

time we've deployed this.

341

:

Um, and I actually think it worked

better in professional services than

342

:

in the B two B sales study we did.

343

:

So the first one, um, that the

model identified is the expert.

344

:

The expert I would describe as

a reluctant business developer.

345

:

So this is the person who would

tell you, look, Julia, I didn't go

346

:

to law school to be a salesperson.

347

:

Right?

348

:

Or, you know, I didn't.

349

:

You get my degree in, uh, in tax

accounting to be a salesperson.

350

:

But we all know when you make partner

in a firm, you're expected to bring in

351

:

the business, not just execute on the

business as part of the job, but because

352

:

they're reluctant and, and arguably

uncomfortable with business development,

353

:

they take a very reactive order taker

approach to business development,

354

:

meaning they try to signal to the market.

355

:

If you are looking for, let's say, an

at like, um, an IP litigation expert

356

:

in pharma, or if you are looking for an

m and a advisor, uh, in, uh, consumer

357

:

packaged goods, I am your person.

358

:

So the way they signal to the outside

market is through thought leadership.

359

:

They do a lot of publishing.

360

:

They do a lot of speaking at

361

:

conferences.

362

:

They serve on industry panels and things

like that, and what they're hoping is

363

:

that if a client has a need that aligns

with their expertise, the client will pick

364

:

up the phone and call, or they'll send

365

:

an email and say, Hey Julie, we gotta,

you know, I, we found you in our search

366

:

for an IP litigation expert in pharma.

367

:

We have a matter coming up.

368

:

We could use your, uh, advice on this.

369

:

Now, what that means in practical terms is

that by the time the client has found you.

370

:

They've probably found several

other people who also claim to be

371

:

an expert because nobody, like you

said, there are not a lot of dummies

372

:

out there, and there are a lot of

people who claim to be experts in,

373

:

in very, very specific niche areas.

374

:

Nobody owns a domain unto

themselves, and so they get pulled

375

:

into a lot of competitive bids.

376

:

So that's our first, uh, profile is

377

:

the, is the expert.

378

:

Track 1: The second

profile is the confidant.

379

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Correct.

380

:

Now, the confidant, the confidant,

I think the best way to think

381

:

of them is as the classic kind

of old school trusted advisor.

382

:

And what I mean by that is they now, and

this is probably not to the letter of

383

:

the book or ha as it's described by the,

the creators of that model, but rather.

384

:

The way that it's interpreted by partners

in professional and financial services.

385

:

Um, meaning what they do is they,

they kind of find a small group of

386

:

clients, maybe three to four key

clients that kind of bear hug those

387

:

clients, they they bend over backwards

388

:

forum.

389

:

Many of these clients are clients that

they had preexisting relationships with.

390

:

So we went to law school together, went to

391

:

business school together.

392

:

We worked in the Corporate

development, um, uh, department

393

:

of a Fortune 500 firm together.

394

:

Now I am the partner

and you are my client.

395

:

Um, so these are

longstanding relationships.

396

:

They have.

397

:

They bend over backwards to these clients.

398

:

They deliver very client-centric,

a very client-centric experience.

399

:

They deliver a great work product.

400

:

Um, and their mindset is, if I

do all those things, what I'm

401

:

effectively doing is building a moat

around this client that makes it

402

:

impossible for anybody else to steal

403

:

the relationship.

404

:

And I should be good.

405

:

If next time the client needs help,

they're gonna come to me automatically.

406

:

It shouldn't be a competitive pursuit.

407

:

And so I basically build these

ATM machines and then I stand

408

:

by it and collect the money.

409

:

Right Now, one of the other, uh,

interesting rubs about the confidant

410

:

is because they've invested so deeply

in these relationships and because

411

:

they cannot afford to have any of

them, um, uh, go south or go sideways.

412

:

They don't share those relationships

413

:

with their colleagues internally,

so they don't collaborate,

414

:

they don't make referrals.

415

:

I had one, uh, uh, chief marketing

officer of a big accounting

416

:

firm said, I know these people.

417

:

These are the people who call me up every

month and say, why did my client get the

418

:

firm newsletter without my permission?

419

:

Like,

420

:

how did they even get the client's email?

421

:

You know,

422

:

Track 1: Yeah.

423

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

and they don't put any notes

424

:

in the CRM system again,

425

:

Track 1: Yeah.

426

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

they cannot afford for somebody else

427

:

to come in and, and screw it up.

428

:

Track 1: Yeah.

429

:

Yeah.

430

:

I, I worked construction for

17 years, architecture and

431

:

construction for 17 years.

432

:

And there was a lot of this that the,

this is my client, I take care of

433

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

It's my, yeah,

434

:

that's right.

435

:

My is is used often by the

436

:

by the Cond.

437

:

Track 1: I, I think the most, the two

most I saw in, in, in architecture,

438

:

engineering, and construction

was the expert in the confident,

439

:

sort of side by side together.

440

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

You're right.

441

:

I think those two, actually I think

it's a really good point, so I don't

442

:

wanna skip ahead, but if you look at

how they distribute by sub-vertical,

443

:

which you can talk about like law

versus accounting, um, those are

444

:

the two that dominate the landscape.

445

:

So, um, so you are a hundred percent

right, and, and when I talk to firms

446

:

about this, they either say we are

over without even doing the survey or,

447

:

or having any data to support that.

448

:

Say they just know deep down

we're overweight and confidants,

449

:

or we're overweight and experts,

450

:

but it's very rarely we're over overweight

in one of the other three, which we'll.

451

:

Track 1: Yeah.

452

:

Yeah.

453

:

So the third one is the debater,

which I found interesting.

454

:

I actually didn't recognize this

profile in anybody that I saw, so

455

:

I'm, I was curious about this one.

456

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yeah.

457

:

So the debater in.

458

:

Maybe un charitable words of their

colleagues would be described as a, uh,

459

:

sharp, elbowed, opinionated know-it-all

so that may describe a lot of partners out

460

:

there, but these folks, so their, their

MO with a client and, and so these

461

:

folks, you find a lot of these folks in

industries like investment banking or,

462

:

you know, you do find a big chunk of

them in places like executive search.

463

:

And I think the reason is that, um.

464

:

These are spaces in which the fees

are the same across all the firms.

465

:

The assets that an, an investment

banker, uh, would represent or be

466

:

able to sell, you know, uh, on your

behalf or, um, to you are pretty open.

467

:

Just like an executive search.

468

:

Like we all have the, every

search consultant has the

469

:

same Rolodex of candidates.

470

:

It's a LinkedIn, right?

471

:

There's nobody, like, there's nobody

where from this is my candidate, right?

472

:

Um, and so these folks end up getting

pulled into a lot of competitive bids.

473

:

So you do find this debate or approach

where their goal is to come in and

474

:

say, I'm gonna box out every every

other player who's competing for the

475

:

business by telling you, giving you

a completely different point of view.

476

:

So I had a search consultant who told me

that, um, this was his go-to playbook when

477

:

he got call called into like, let's say

ACFO search from a big, for a big client.

478

:

Um, and he knew that he was up

against the other big search

479

:

firms, which we all know by name.

480

:

His goal was to come in and

basically tell the hiring committee,

481

:

um, that they're thinking about

the job spec completely wrong.

482

:

And my goal is to say

like, turn it upside down.

483

:

And what he said was, he said, it

doesn't always work, but every once

484

:

in a while it boxes everyone else out.

485

:

And then they're starting to be

skeptical that because all the other

486

:

people competing for the business,

they're telling them the same.

487

:

They're telling you x I'm telling you y.

488

:

And if I do that, create

white space and I can win's.

489

:

Interesting.

490

:

Part of this is that.

491

:

For those listeners who are familiar

with the Challenger sale, again, I

492

:

mentioned this a few times, this is our

study of business to business sales.

493

:

That approach was actually the

winning approach in B two B sales.

494

:

So coming in, reframing the clients,

understanding what they need, upending

495

:

their, you know, breaking their mental

model, shaking them by the lapels,

496

:

shaking them outta their comfort

zone, figuratively, not literally.

497

:

Um, that was a winning approach.

498

:

Um, but what's interesting in tipping my

mid, we'll get to the results in a moment,

499

:

these debaters don't do particularly

well in professional services.

500

:

And I think the reason is that

if you're selling software.

501

:

It's all well and good to come in and

reframe the client's world and blow

502

:

up their conception of what they need.

503

:

If you're selling yourself and you

are the product, it's exhausting for a

504

:

client.

505

:

And we had clients tell us this.

506

:

They said, I, you know, we had a

specific question in our client

507

:

interviews we asked about, um, I.

508

:

You know, how important is it to you that

your partners and your firms you work

509

:

with push your thinking and challenge you?

510

:

And, and they all said,

absolutely, it's critical.

511

:

I don't want any, I, I don't

want yes people, right?

512

:

I want people who push me, make me a bit

uncomfortable, push my thinking a bit.

513

:

I need a, a thought, thought partner.

514

:

But they also said, if every time

I sit down with them, they're

515

:

telling me I'm doing it wrong.

516

:

Like,

517

:

I don't have time for that.

518

:

Sometimes

519

:

I just need you to do

what we know we need.

520

:

Right?

521

:

So that is, uh, that is

our debater, uh, profile.

522

:

Track 1: Yeah.

523

:

Um, the, I'm glad I haven't

come up against that a lot.

524

:

in my professional career.

525

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yeah,

it's, by the way, and to your point,

526

:

and I think there's a specific point,

uh, reason I think Juliet, maybe for,

527

:

for I, you're not the first person who

said, I, I don't know if I've worked with

528

:

Track 1: Mm-Hmm.

529

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

or been pitched to by those folks.

530

:

Those were the smallest percentage

overall in professional services.

531

:

So it, again, I think because

you're selling yourself and it is a

532

:

relationship focused business, that

it kind of weeds out people like that.

533

:

I mean, you do have some, but

they're, they're not very prevalent.

534

:

Track 1: So the fourth one is the realist.

535

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yes.

536

:

Yeah.

537

:

So realist is another one that

you, it's a unique profile.

538

:

This is completely unique

to professional services.

539

:

This is the above board.

540

:

Truthful, transparent.

541

:

Um, you know, I'd say the, the

truth teller of, uh, to the client.

542

:

Tell the client what they need to

hear, not just what they wanna hear.

543

:

They're very comfortable saying

no, they do not sign up for work.

544

:

They can't, they know, they can't

deliver on, they will not sign up

545

:

for work that the client hasn't

allocated, um, enough budget for.

546

:

And they will always set proper

expectations with their clients.

547

:

Again, tipping my midst of the results.

548

:

Clients think that this approach

is, they appreciate it, but it can

549

:

be a little bit of a downer, right?

550

:

It's a little bit of a glass

half full approach, especially in

551

:

places like strategy consulting

552

:

where, you know, sometimes it's about

painting the art of the possible

553

:

and, and, you know, uh, the blue

sky kind of thinking our bluish

554

:

in strategy, uh, type of approach.

555

:

And so clients can find that.

556

:

If you will, Debbie Downer kind of

557

:

approach should be a little bit deflating.

558

:

Now, it, it is interesting that you

find these people in professional

559

:

services, and I think the reason

is that, um, professional services

560

:

is, it's not like buying software.

561

:

It's not like buying a medical

device, which you can test out.

562

:

You can see the features and benefits.

563

:

You can touch it, you can feel

it, you can pilot it, right?

564

:

Um, when you're buying a service

from a firm in professional services,

565

:

you are hiring for expertise

that is not possible to assess.

566

:

Until you get into the engagement and

you're kind of taking a leap of faith.

567

:

And I think what these realists understand

is that every client out there has

568

:

been burned in the past by a partner

that has overstated their capabilities.

569

:

A firm that is overpromised

and underdelivered

570

:

a, a lawyer who's like, who sends

surprise invoices after the matter

571

:

is concluded that are well in excess

of the stated budget that, you

572

:

know, was articulated way upfront.

573

:

So everyone's had that experience.

574

:

And so these folks try to set themselves

apart by kind of going overboard.

575

:

On the truthfulness.

576

:

Now, again, this is not to say

you don't want every partner

577

:

to be truthful and transparent and

honest, but these realists know that

578

:

unfortunately that is not the case.

579

:

And so they try to really set themselves

apart, um, and get clients to understand

580

:

that if you really want the honest

truth, you come to me, I'm the person.

581

:

Never gonna tell you, um, uh,

you know, uh, never gonna spin.

582

:

I'm always gonna tell you what you need to

hear or not what you wanna hear sometimes.

583

:

So,

584

:

Track 1: Mm-Hmm.

585

:

. Um, so the activator is our

final profile, which spoil?

586

:

Alert.

587

:

That's the rainmaker profile.

588

:

. Um,

589

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

When we get to that point,

590

:

Track 1: right.

591

:

So this is, I.

592

:

I, I think I am the activator profile,

like I and I, so I just, I wanna dig

593

:

into all the pieces of it because I

think this is part of the activator

594

:

profile is that relationships, it's

relationships inside the office with

595

:

the clients, making new relationships.

596

:

So I, I wanna dig into the activator.

597

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yeah,

so the activator, uh, to summarize is

598

:

I would call them a super connector.

599

:

So, um, they are su like if you looked

at what we had a set of questions

600

:

around, for example, LinkedIn

601

:

usage or how a partner engages

with clients at a, a firm sponsored

602

:

event or an industry conference.

603

:

Activators, they are heavy users of

LinkedIn and, and, and technologies

604

:

like Sales Navigator for instance.

605

:

Um, they are purposeful

attendees at events, meaning.

606

:

Most partners will go to

an event and it's there.

607

:

You're there to consume the event,

have a nice dinner, have a couple of

608

:

cocktails, maybe you meet somebody, um,

maybe some business falls into your lap.

609

:

Great.

610

:

Um, but activators are there as a

business development event, right?

611

:

So they look at the attendee list, they

612

:

schedule meetings in advance,

coffees, breakfasts, you know,

613

:

lunches, dinners, side conversations.

614

:

They're looking at the attendees

and they're specifically saying, I

615

:

want, my goal is to meet this person

and that person, this other person

616

:

now.

617

:

They leave that event with a stack

of business cards or connections

618

:

they've established, and then they

try to convert those, uh, connections

619

:

into conversations and then use those

conversations to create paying clients.

620

:

Now what's also interesting about

these conversations is they are very

621

:

proactive in nature and they're, it's

all about bringing clients new ideas.

622

:

So, um, the, that is the way they move

somebody from the outer rings of their

623

:

network where they're just a connection.

624

:

Just somebody I met at a conference or I.

625

:

Into the inner circle where

I become a paying client.

626

:

What I'm trying to do is spot an

opportunity for that client, whether

627

:

that's a regulatory change, it's

an m and a event in their space.

628

:

It's a, a change in the labor market.

629

:

It's um, you know, gen ai, right?

630

:

There's lots of different

things that are happening.

631

:

Tax court decisions, you name it.

632

:

Things that clients don't

have time to monitor

633

:

these activators say, yeah, I.

634

:

I can put myself in a great position

if I don't wait for the phone to

635

:

ring, but I spot an opportunity.

636

:

I say, Julie, I don't know if you

saw this tax court decision in

637

:

your jurisdiction, but I think it

might represent a threat or perhaps

638

:

actually an opportunity for your firm.

639

:

I'd love to hop on a Zoom

640

:

or, or grab a coffee.

641

:

Let's talk about it.

642

:

Now, what's also interesting is

these activators will tell you, I'm

643

:

not looking to bill for that time.

644

:

But what I am trying

to do is pay it forward

645

:

to give them a chance to kick the tires

on me as an advisor, and also earn

646

:

a bit of goodwill so that when Julie

realizes, Hey, this is a real need.

647

:

I wanna carve out budget for this.

648

:

We need to hire a service provider.

649

:

I've, and even if it's

competitive, I've got a leg up.

650

:

'cause I brought the idea to

you and I paid it forward.

651

:

Where every other partner's

only gonna talk to you if you,

652

:

they can bill for the time.

653

:

I'm gonna pay it forward

with a bit of free advice.

654

:

Now the last thing about

activators, which is very.

655

:

Interesting is that unlike the confidant

who kind of hoards relationships,

656

:

these folks are the exact opposite.

657

:

So activators believe that, um, in a

world of diminished client loyalty,

658

:

the way that you create stickier

relationships is that you gotta shift

659

:

the locus of loyalty from me to we.

660

:

In other words, I've gotta get

that client to stop being just

661

:

loyal to me as a service provider.

662

:

My goal is to bring in my colleagues

in other practice areas in my firm

663

:

because when I do that, that, becomes

a multi-point, kind of multi-threaded

664

:

connection, which a client will think

twice about severing and going with a

665

:

competitor when we serve

them across so many different

666

:

functional areas and domain areas.

667

:

Um, and so they are actively

looking to bring people in.

668

:

Um, and you know what's also interesting?

669

:

We talk to activators

and they'll say, look.

670

:

I also, um, leverage my network as

a strategic asset for my client.

671

:

So a client, and it's the very best

activators you talk to will say that.

672

:

Let's say, um, uh, we spoke to, for

example, um, a partner in a law firm

673

:

in the uk and he told us, he said,

I get calls all the time about I.

674

:

You know, uh, hey Jim, do you know

any, um, search consultants in our

675

:

space or we're looking for a tax

advisor in, you know, Malaysia,

676

:

or we're looking for an m and a?

677

:

You know, but you've always get, you've

always, you have a great deep network

678

:

and you always steer us the right way.

679

:

And so he will point people

to others in network, say, you

680

:

gotta really talk to Julie.

681

:

You gotta talk to Susan.

682

:

You got to, you know, here's, here

are the people you should talk to.

683

:

And they say, I know I get blowback value

for that, even though I don't even do the

684

:

work, but because I can connect my clients

with talented people in my network.

685

:

That is a huge source of

value, uh, to my clients.

686

:

So a lot going on there.

687

:

What I, the way I summarize it

back to your points, activators

688

:

really do three things.

689

:

So,

690

:

um, and one of which I didn't, didn't

actually mention, the first thing,

691

:

um, they do is they have a real

commitment to business development.

692

:

So, um, of the five profiles.

693

:

These were the only partners who told us

that they carve out time to do business

694

:

development every week, if not every day.

695

:

Now it's not a ton of time, right?

696

:

It's, um, but it's, it's

meaningful and purposeful time.

697

:

Maybe it's a half hour in

the morning or the afternoon.

698

:

They do not let it get scheduled over.

699

:

And if it does for an urgent client,

um, uh, uh, engagement, they move it

700

:

to another time of their calendar.

701

:

They

702

:

always make sure they get to it.

703

:

It's like going to the gym.

704

:

If I miss my gym workout in the

morning, I go in the afternoon.

705

:

Um.

706

:

Every other partner in our study said,

I do BD when I have time to do bd.

707

:

We're not busy, busy

serving clients, right?

708

:

These folks don't view it that way.

709

:

Why does that matter?

710

:

Because we are in a world

of lower client loyalty.

711

:

So you better have a pipeline behind

that, those handful of key clients.

712

:

Quick, uh, story on that one.

713

:

Um, one of the PR firms that participated.

714

:

Um, in the research, um, told us that one

of their, um, top rainmakers a person had

715

:

been a top rainmaker at their firm for

many, many years, um, had a huge global

716

:

consulting firm as their key client and

leadership had always tried to encourage

717

:

this rainmaker to broaden his portfolio

of clients to not be so Single, you know,

718

:

exposed to a single client, and every

time they tried to do it and they tried to

719

:

feed 'em other opportunities, they said,

no, no, I'm too busy serving these guys.

720

:

You know, they need me for an event.

721

:

They need me on site.

722

:

They need me to go meet

with the leadership team.

723

:

Never had time to create a pipeline

behind that one key client.

724

:

Then, uh, just this year, that key

client put the work out to bid,

725

:

and this PR firm lost the business.

726

:

That guy went from their top rainmaker

for probably 15 years to the lowest

727

:

performing partner in the firm.

728

:

Overnight.

729

:

We had nothing, nothing to fall back on.

730

:

So that's the first thing we call it.

731

:

Uh, this is the.

732

:

Three pillars of act.

733

:

The first one is commit

to business development.

734

:

The second one is connect.

735

:

And we talked about this before.

736

:

Um, building your network at both

internally and externally as a

737

:

strategic asset to be leveraged, right?

738

:

They understand that, um, a

multi-threaded, a multi-point

739

:

connection with the client is

way stronger, especially in the

740

:

current buying environment than

a single threaded relationship.

741

:

So bring your partners in, bring

your colleagues in, create a high

742

:

tensile strength, multi-point

connection web with your clients.

743

:

That will help you weather, um,

weather the storm, because again, those

744

:

clients are gonna think twice about

pulling up the 10 stakes and leaving.

745

:

And then the last pillar, uh, so

that's, so we got commit connect.

746

:

And the last one is create, so I mentioned

this before, but activators know that

747

:

in today's world where clients want to

bid out the work force you to go through

748

:

RFP is competitive pursuits, et cetera.

749

:

and and they wanna put you in a box and

they wanna assume like, you're all the

750

:

same, whoever who's gonna cut us the

best price possible for this engagement.

751

:

Um, what they understand is that

in that world, way better to create

752

:

demand than to react to demand.

753

:

So I need to be out in front of this.

754

:

I need to bring my clients' ideas, not

wait for the phone to ring, because

755

:

doing so allows me to shape the RFP

if there's gonna be one, but at least

756

:

shape the client's understanding

of what they need in a way that

757

:

feeds to me as the best service

758

:

provider

759

:

Track 1: Mm-Hmm.

760

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: So.

761

:

Track 1: So a couple of things when

you were talking about the activator.

762

:

My first thought was in order for each

and every firm to have . Activators,

763

:

we need to look at how people

are compensated for the work they

764

:

bring in and the clients they have.

765

:

Because I think our compensation plans

and schedules force people into that, that

766

:

confidant role and that these are mine.

767

:

I don't wanna share the, you know,

the, the, you know, uh, promotions

768

:

or, or money or bonuses or whatever

that come with keeping this client.

769

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

Yeah, you're totally right.

770

:

In fact, you know, I should

say I, it's kinda skipped a

771

:

little bit of the punchline.

772

:

We already said the activators win,

but just to put a finder point on that,

773

:

when we ran a regression analysis,

which we talk about in the article,

774

:

we looked at, if you put, for lack

of a better description, if you put

775

:

these five profiles into a horse race,

and you said, let me take the average

776

:

performing partner, and let's see what

would happen if they chose to lean

777

:

harder into any of those five approaches.

778

:

Four of those five.

779

:

Um, realist debaters, um, uh,

confidants and experts actually

780

:

have a negative correlation with

business development performance.

781

:

So in other words, the more a,

you know, your average partner

782

:

leans into those approaches, the

worse they do, uh, relative to

783

:

what they could potentially do.

784

:

They think they're stepping on the gas,

but they're actually stepping on the

785

:

brakes on their own business development

786

:

only one.

787

:

It was the activator that had a

positive straight line statistical

788

:

correlation with performance to

really get down to brass tacks.

789

:

If you took the average partner.

790

:

They went from not very good to very

good on the activator dimensions.

791

:

They could lift their own personal

revenue generation by 32% up to 32%.

792

:

So it's a big, big change.

793

:

Now you hit on, it's so interesting to

me because when I talk to firms, um, I.

794

:

You know, we, and we

show them the results.

795

:

More often than not, they say exactly

what you just did, which is, uh, they

796

:

look at, you know, I show them the

results and they're overweighted,

797

:

let's say in confidants or maybe

in experts, which is where most

798

:

firms end up being overweighted.

799

:

Um, and almost always

the, the chair or the.

800

:

The CBDO or you know, the managing partner

will say, we did this to ourselves.

801

:

Like there, this is not just

happenstance that people all went

802

:

into this confidant approach.

803

:

If you look at our comp plan, if you

look at who we hold up and we celebrate,

804

:

you look at the lateral

hires, we're bringing in the

805

:

people we put on a pedestal.

806

:

We shine a bright, we

put their name in lights.

807

:

Like every signal that our

younger, uh, associates and, and

808

:

income partners and, and junior

partners get is, this is the way to

809

:

make it.

810

:

You know what was interesting is across

these 23 firms, there were a handful

811

:

where they had a spike in activators.

812

:

Which really kind of set them

apart from their peers overall,

813

:

but also in their sub-segment.

814

:

And so we spent a lot of time with

those leaders trying to figure

815

:

out like, how did this happen?

816

:

Right?

817

:

'cause you're doing something differently.

818

:

And what we found was, um, that

they're kind of, they're, that

819

:

activator is not just about partner

skills, it's about firm capabilities

820

:

and creating the right environment.

821

:

So the first thing to your point

is, um, you've gotta have the right

822

:

both monetary, uh, incentives and

non-monetary reward and recognition

823

:

programs that signal to partners.

824

:

Here's what we care about,

825

:

right?

826

:

We care about cross-sell,

we care about collaboration.

827

:

We care about, um, network building.

828

:

We care about purposeful use

of technologies like LinkedIn

829

:

or events or, or what have

830

:

you.

831

:

We care about everyone carving out

and protecting time, uh, for bd.

832

:

Um, you've also gotta have the right

training and coaching programs, right?

833

:

That teach partners how to do this stuff.

834

:

And here's the thing, almost every

one of those activator firms told us.

835

:

We don't wait till people make partner to

teach them how to do business development.

836

:

That's actually in many

respects, too late.

837

:

What you wanna do is start investing

in them at the associate level.

838

:

Because if you think about stuff,

activators do, commitment to bd, network

839

:

building, being a proactive rather

than reactive, um, business developer.

840

:

These are not things you need to

wait till you make partner just

841

:

muscles you need to wait to develop.

842

:

You can

843

:

start developing them early.

844

:

And then the last thing they

would talk about, um, was.

845

:

Enabling an activator approach.

846

:

So that is the way that you equip

partners with technology or the way

847

:

that you support them with the BD team

or with, uh, thought leadership or the

848

:

way you structure your events program,

um, and support partners to turn those

849

:

events into real BD opportunities.

850

:

Like they're, you gotta create kind of a

nest for your, uh, for your activators.

851

:

So they're not swimming against

the system, but rather they're

852

:

supported by the system.

853

:

So I, I think that's one of

the most interesting parts of

854

:

the story actually, is that.

855

:

Again, it's, you could take a partner

in almost any other firm and you drop

856

:

'em into one of these activator firms

where they're supported and all the

857

:

nudges they're getting, tell them

to do things one way not the other.

858

:

And the outcome can be quite different.

859

:

So again, it is a story of

individuals, but it's also a story

860

:

of, uh, firm leadership and firm

861

:

capabilities.

862

:

Track 1: you, you quite succinctly asked

my next question, which was, you know, if

863

:

we need more activators in our companies,

how do we start creating them and giving

864

:

them frameworks to become activators?

865

:

I wanna go back to one thing

that you talked about about.

866

:

When it comes to BD, that the activators

schedule it and they, they, they

867

:

dedicate a certain amount of time,

and you didn't say how much time they

868

:

dedicated, but research shows that about

six hours a week is the sweet spot for

869

:

business development and or network

networking and business development

870

:

at the, you know, in conjunction.

871

:

And when I . Giving keynotes and I talk

about this magical six hour number,

872

:

people are like, I don't have six hours.

873

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Yeah.

874

:

Yeah.

875

:

Track 1: Um, and I think

the activator reframes.

876

:

What is networking and what is business

development as a very holistic part

877

:

of the job you're already doing.

878

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

Yeah, that's right.

879

:

You know, and, and I think, um, I

think sometimes partners get into this

880

:

mode of like, okay, I'm gonna schedule

an hour a day or however much time

881

:

a day to do my bd, and it's, that's

pitching for business time, right?

882

:

Or it's going fine, responding

to RFPs or what have you.

883

:

I.

884

:

But, but it's a very, as you said, it's a

very holistic understanding of what is bd.

885

:

So that hour might be spent, um, following

up on all the stack of business cards

886

:

you collected at the last conference.

887

:

It might be, um, scrolling the news to

look at, are there events here that I

888

:

could bring to one of my clients and say,

this is an opportunity for us to talk and

889

:

maybe potentially do business together.

890

:

Uh, there was a partner, we, um,

interviewed a longtime partner, managing

891

:

partner, actually, of a, uh, an Asian, uh,

Asian off office of a big global law firm.

892

:

And he told us.

893

:

And his kind of specialty area was, um,

patent and trademark kind of, uh, law

894

:

within, um, within the food, uh, industry.

895

:

Uh, and so he said, um, he

only ever had three things on

896

:

his desk, uh, any given time.

897

:

The first thing he had was his checklist.

898

:

Here are the things I'm gonna

do today in, in the BD things.

899

:

Here are the client thing.

900

:

So there's your commit piece, right?

901

:

This is, I've developed

a metronomic cadence.

902

:

I don't let BD fall by the wayside.

903

:

I, I'm always doing it.

904

:

The second thing he had, he always had

LinkedIn open on his, on his computer.

905

:

Never closed it, right?

906

:

Always had it open.

907

:

Track 1: I never close mine.

908

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944:

Never close it.

909

:

Right?

910

:

That's how we got connected.

911

:

I think

912

:

so.

913

:

And then the last thing he had

was on his desk, the stack of

914

:

today's news in the food industry.

915

:

And he's going through it and he's

carving out time and saying, where

916

:

is there some new, like, is there a

firm that's created new innovation?

917

:

Have they patented that?

918

:

Um, should I reach out?

919

:

Is that an opportunity

for having a conversation?

920

:

Um.

921

:

And so that to me was really interesting

'cause you got that commit that

922

:

the commit piece, the checklist,

you got the Connect, which is your

923

:

LinkedIn and you got your create,

which is that those industry events.

924

:

So I thought was a simple kind of way

to think about that activator playbook.

925

:

But you're quite right, it's not.

926

:

Now, if you look at, if you look at

average partners, what they tend to

927

:

do, first of all, their time is way

overweighted to delivering work versus um.

928

:

bd.

929

:

And the reason is they believe

delivering great work is bd, right?

930

:

That means if I deliver great

work, I'm automatically gonna

931

:

get the next piece of business.

932

:

So that's, and the other thing is

activators are equally weighted.

933

:

Not they're, they're more evenly balanced

in terms of BD versus execution time.

934

:

But also if you look at their BD time,

they're more evenly weighted across new

935

:

versus existing client opportunities.

936

:

Now, if you look at most other

partners are way overweighted

937

:

to existing clients, right?

938

:

I've already got this

relationship, I'm just gonna.

939

:

Overinvest in time, shower them

with service and client centricity

940

:

And

941

:

um, uh,

942

:

you.

943

:

know, all kinds of, you know, great work.

944

:

And then they'll just

hire me automatically.

945

:

But again, that, that approach

may have worked 10, 20 years ago.

946

:

You know, maybe we would've

seen the expert of the confidant

947

:

was the winning approach.

948

:

But today the client

environment is really changing.

949

:

And look my.

950

:

My, uh, guidance for partners is,

you know, if you're a top rainmaker,

951

:

if you're a top performer and you

952

:

Don't see yourself as,

953

:

an activator, that's okay.

954

:

There are top performers who are

on the other profiles for sure,

955

:

Track 1: Mm-Hmm.

956

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: but

957

:

I think it's also.

958

:

a recognition.

959

:

We all agree the client buying

environment today is different from

960

:

how it was 10 or 20 years ago, and

if you buy the proposition that the

961

:

world is changing, then by definition

you have to evolve your approach.

962

:

What worked yesterday is

not gonna work tomorrow.

963

:

And so I encourage partners

to think about this as.

964

:

Not changing everything about who you

are and what you do, but rather, um,

965

:

uh, building involving some new tools

to put in your BD tool, tool belt.

966

:

Keep doing the stuff that made you

great, but understand as the title

967

:

of the, um, the Wellknown book goes.

968

:

What got you here is not gonna get you

there, and you gotta keep stepping on

969

:

the gas and evolving your own approach.

970

:

Thank

971

:

Track 1: Matt, this was amazing.

972

:

Thank you so much for taking so much

time to talk with us about this.

973

:

Um, if people wanna learn more about

you and learn more, more about what

974

:

you and your partners do at your

company, where, where should they, um,

975

:

look to find you or go to find you?

976

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Uh, so our

company website is uh, d cm insights.com.

977

:

Um, and that provides an

978

:

overview of kind of

who we are, what we do.

979

:

Um, we have offerings, as I

mentioned, we kind of cut our teeth

980

:

in business to business sales.

981

:

We do still do a lot of business

to business sales support, but also

982

:

what we do to help partners and

firms on this activator journey.

983

:

So can learn all about us and maybe

more than you wish to know on.

984

:

Track 1: Um, and I'll put a, i for

those people who have a Harvard

985

:

Business Review subscription, I'll

put a link to this article in the

986

:

show notes as well, um, because

it's, it's a fascinating article as

987

:

matt-dixon_1_11-07-2023_100944: Thank you.

988

:

Thank you.

989

:

And I should mention, by the way, I, I

love connecting with folks who've, um,

990

:

heard me on a podcast or show like this.

991

:

If you did, uh, send me a LinkedIn

invite, um, uh, Juliet, Julian,

992

:

I'm very active on LinkedIn.

993

:

I am, um, and I, I know I'd love

to connect with your listeners.

994

:

If you have a follow-up question, hit me

up and happy to continue the dialogue.

995

:

Okay.

996

:

Take care.

997

:

All right, so there you have it.

998

:

I want to be a Rainmaker or want

to nurture them within your office.

999

:

Start focusing on the three

CS commit, connect and create.

:

00:44:49,404 --> 00:44:51,894

Make time for business

development every day.

:

00:44:51,894 --> 00:44:56,634

And if not every day, every week,

Become a heavy user of LinkedIn, not

:

00:44:56,634 --> 00:44:59,814

just for connecting, but for commenting

and creating your own content.

:

00:45:00,414 --> 00:45:01,824

Start educating your clients.

:

00:45:01,824 --> 00:45:04,404

Don't wait for the phone to ring or

for them to reach out when they need

:

00:45:04,404 --> 00:45:08,334

help anticipate their needs and how

you can be a source of information.

:

00:45:09,264 --> 00:45:12,624

And convert those connections

into conversations.

:

00:45:13,104 --> 00:45:16,404

All things that we have talked

about on this podcast to still

:

00:45:16,434 --> 00:45:18,234

down and backed by research.

:

00:45:18,834 --> 00:45:23,874

And you know how much I fucking love to

say the research suggests take a drink.

:

00:45:25,164 --> 00:45:25,974

And with that.

:

00:45:26,351 --> 00:45:28,181

We are now onto the drink of the week.

:

00:45:28,601 --> 00:45:29,291

And it is.

:

00:45:29,951 --> 00:45:32,951

Based off of the three's commit,

connect and create it is the

:

00:45:32,981 --> 00:45:35,051

triple C welcome cocktail.

:

00:45:35,051 --> 00:45:36,371

And it's from taste and tipple.

:

00:45:36,581 --> 00:45:37,541

Here's what you're going to need.

:

00:45:38,051 --> 00:45:39,611

A quarter ounce of cinnamon syrup.

:

00:45:39,641 --> 00:45:42,431

We've covered how to make simple

syrup before and flavored simple

:

00:45:42,431 --> 00:45:43,931

served before in this podcast.

:

00:45:43,931 --> 00:45:45,371

So quarter rounds of cinnamon syrup.

:

00:45:45,881 --> 00:45:49,931

Two to three dashes of cardamom,

bitters, one ounce of cognac, four

:

00:45:49,931 --> 00:45:55,751

ounces of chilled, sparkling wine

and grapefruit twist for a garnish.

:

00:45:55,841 --> 00:46:01,601

So I think the three CS are going to end

up being cinnamon cardamom and cognac.

:

00:46:02,081 --> 00:46:03,251

I think that's the three series.

:

00:46:03,731 --> 00:46:06,941

Anyways, poor cinnamon syrup

into a champagne flute at two to

:

00:46:06,941 --> 00:46:08,621

three dashes of cardamom bitters.

:

00:46:08,681 --> 00:46:11,231

Add the cognac carefully

top with sparkling wine.

:

00:46:11,411 --> 00:46:13,721

You know, it could be

four seas if you use cava.

:

00:46:13,751 --> 00:46:14,021

Okay.

:

00:46:14,021 --> 00:46:14,471

I'm getting off.

:

00:46:14,531 --> 00:46:14,771

All right.

:

00:46:14,771 --> 00:46:18,131

Anyways, sparkling wine and

garnished with a grapefruit twist.

:

00:46:18,551 --> 00:46:18,941

Okay.

:

00:46:19,211 --> 00:46:19,871

All right, friends.

:

00:46:19,901 --> 00:46:20,681

That's all for this week.

:

00:46:20,741 --> 00:46:22,631

If you like what you heard

today, please leave a review

:

00:46:22,661 --> 00:46:23,921

and subscribe to the podcast.

:

00:46:24,251 --> 00:46:27,491

Also, please remember to share the podcast

to help it reach a larger audience.

:

00:46:27,761 --> 00:46:29,411

If you want more, Julie

Brown, you can find my book.

:

00:46:29,441 --> 00:46:31,451

The shit works on Amazon

and Barnes and noble.

:

00:46:31,451 --> 00:46:33,941

You can find me on

LinkedIn at Julie Brown BD.

:

00:46:34,151 --> 00:46:35,801

Just let me know where you

found me when you reach out.

:

00:46:35,831 --> 00:46:38,441

And I am Julie Brown underscore

BD on the Instagram, or you can

:

00:46:38,441 --> 00:46:39,881

just pop on over to my website.

:

00:46:40,331 --> 00:46:43,571

Julie round bd.com until next week Cheers.

Links

Chapters

Video

More from YouTube