Trusted Adviser to
Managing Partners
and Managing Directors
on Strategy, Performance and Growth
WHAT WE DO
OUR EXPERTISE
Running a professional services firm means carrying decisions that rarely come with clean answers. Partner dynamics. Growth under pressure. Performance conversations that need to land without creating collateral damage. Leadership gaps that can’t be discussed internally without consequence.
Robin Johnson works confidentially with managing partners, managing directors and senior leadership teams as a trusted external adviser. He has no stake in the firm’s internal politics, no obligation to protect anyone’s position, and two and a half decades of experience helping leaders at this level think more clearly and act more decisively when it matters most.
FOR SENIOR LEADERS IN PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
WHO ROBIN SUPPORTS
Robin supports leaders in growth-oriented firms, primarily in law, accountancy, engineering and financial services, where decisions are consequential, partner dynamics are complex and the margin for error is real. Some approach him with a specific problem. Others need a reliable external adviser they can call on as issues develop. Most relationships continue for longer than originally expected.
OUR CLIENTS
HOW ROBIN WORKS WITH FIRMS
Three core areas of support
Strategic advisory
Confidential support for managing partners and leadership teams on growth strategy, firm direction, leadership dynamics and decisions that can’t easily be delegated.
Growth committees
Independent challenge at the point where commercial decisions are made, including partner performance, revenue, collection rates, charge-out rates, meeting effectiveness and growth accountability.
PARTNER PERFORMANCE
The greatest ROI in partner performance is often with your most successful people, who often take up less of one’s time and so can be neglected. Robin spends most of his time supporting top-tier partners and support staff.
OUTSIDE THE POLITICS. INSIDE THE ISSUES.
The Outsider Insider
One of the less obvious advantages of an external adviser is what they are free to do that insiders aren’t. Robin conducts his own research, asks the questions people inside the firm have stopped asking and challenges assumptions that have become too comfortable to question.
He understands the commercial and political reality inside professional services firms, while remaining independent of it. That combination is why clients describe him as their ‘Outsider Insider’.
WHY TIMELY INTERVENTION MATTERS
Commercial value in practice
An ambitious and acquisitive mid-sized regional law firm’s highest-billing partner was in active conversations with competitors. The managing partner identified the risk early and asked Robin to step in.
More than ten years later, that partner remains with the firm, with an adjusted role and an undiminished commercial contribution. The investment in early intervention was a fraction of one month’s potentially lost fees.
THE WEIGHT OF EXPERIENCE
Experience and proof
More than 500 senior leaders supported
Over 25 years advising leaders in professional services and beyond
Experience across more than 20 countries
Chair or participant on multiple growth committees
Long-term and repeat client relationships across firms and decades
WHAT CLIENTS SAY
Real Results From Real Clients
START WITH THE GUIDE
Not Ready To Speak Yet?
A short guide is available for senior leaders in professional services who are considering whether Robin’s support is relevant to a current situation. Practical, direct and available without a form.
A CONFIDENTIAL FIRST CONVERSATION
LET'S TALK
If what you’ve read is relevant to something you’re currently dealing with, the most useful next step is a private conversation without obligation. There’s no sales process. It’s simply a chance to discuss the situation and work out whether Robin’s involvement would add anything.
Every enquiry is treated in confidence from the outset. Share a few details below and Robin will respond personally, usually by email, with suitable times for an initial conversation.