Meet the innovators: How award-winning lawyer Ina Brock transforms client relationships through strategy and focus

I like to challenge people defaulting to routine behaviors by asking questions as simple as “could we do this differently?” or “are there other options to achieve the goal?” It’s important to be forward-thinking in order to stay ahead in the market and understand how the way we do business will need to evolve. I encourage others to take a bird’s eye view and focus on the broader strategy first by asking, “how will this development affect the way we work, build relationships, and sell now or in five years?”

I like to impress and want to create the “wow” factor. We want our clients to not only be satisfied with our services, but to also feel that what we achieve is unique. We continuously look to improve our relationship with clients – from thought leadership, to pitching, speed of delivery and responsiveness, consistency in cross-border matters to fee arrangements, and billing.

There is a boldness to calling law firm business development what it is: “sales”. The law is not unique in that the selling focuses on trust, relationship building, and top quality work, but it remains “selling”.

The Sales Transformation Program itself is distinctive because we not only focus on partners, but we have implemented a culture change program to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset for everyone in the firm, at every step of their interactions with our clients. From recruiting people with that mindset, to setting expectations, driving first-class business development activities, and delivering support and dedicated training for each generation of lawyers and business professionals, this is our future.

The first step in sales is always determining what the client needs.

You cannot sell a product or service that a client does not need. A client development mindset is always thinking about the next stage – the next change or challenge the client will face – and always looking to the future. We have to be agile and consider how to become early adopters and set the pace at the front of the market.

As digitalization rapidly progresses, we’ve become vital partners with our clients – leveraging technology and focusing our conversations around efficient service delivery. Depending on the issue, the client’s appetite to take risks will be central to that discussion, and the added value from our strategic advice will have to be explored and explained in new ways.

Our Sales Transformation Program is built for this moment. It equips our lawyers to lead through change, partner with clients, and seize the future – together.

I do a lot of exercise that allows my brain to wander, and I read as many books as I can – preferably fiction and history. History holds valuable clues on human behavior that helps us navigate the future. But, most often, my ideas come from conversations with clients. When I hear their concerns and what’s top of their mind, we immediately search for solutions to support them.

Most of our clients are acting globally and are at the forefront of their respective sectors – from Technology, Life Sciences, Energy, and Automotive to Aerospace and Defense and many more. They take a broad view and look into the future, addressing risks to their business before they materialize.