You’ve been asked to submit a business case for partnership. Wouldn’t it be easier if you could see a sample first? I know this to be true, because I’ve been asked numerous times by people on my mailing list for a sample business case for partnership. This article includes a link to our ‘Guide to creating a business case for partnership’ and also some ideas of how to adapt the sample to suit your own particular circumstances.
WARNING: Sample Business Case for Partnership
Every business case is different, so do not be tempted to use the sample business case for partnership without adapting it for your particular scenario. (See the 7 types of business case to understand how you may need to change the sample business case to suit your own requirements.)
What typically is expected in a business case for partnership?
This extract of what typically is expected in a business case for partnership is taken from chapter 7 of Poised for Partnership
Outline of your current practice
Your partners want to understand the value of your current practice. This means you will need to help them understand:
The services you offer to your clients and the value you help them achieve.
- If you deliver a distressed service or transactional service, such as insolvency or litigation, then the value of your current referral networks. This means identifying your top 10 referrers and breaking down the value of the work they send to you.
- The revenue you have billed for your top 5–10 clients for each of the last 3 years.
- How your practice measures up against the metrics that your firm cares about. E.g. recoverability, billings.
- The current size of the team within your practice.
How you plan to grow your practice over the next 3 years
This is where you draw a picture of the opportunity that the partnership will have with your practice. You will need to show:
- The markets and geographies you plan to target and why you have chosen these. So, what is the opportunity available to the firm for targeting these markets and geographies?
- The services you will offer to your clients.
- How you will compete against and differentiate yourself from your key competitors.
- How you will fuel the growth of your practice. For example, will this be by growing more of your current client portfolio? Winning new clients? Cross-selling your services to the firm’s clients?
- What are the goals that the partners could measure you on and which will demonstrate how you plan to grow your practice?
- Revenue and profit for your practice for the next three years, broken down by year.
- Potential known risks which may stop you achieving your business case.
- The team and people resources you will need to deliver the promise of your business case.
12-month marketing plan
This is your marketing plan to help you achieve the growth figures you are predicting for your practice. It will contain:
- Key account plans for the clients that you plan to grow materially over the next 12 months. These account plans will identify the opportunity with the client and your activity plan to realise this opportunity.
- Your prospective client list and your plan to convert these into clients.
- Your Networking Strategy to strengthen your referral networks.
- How you plan to build general awareness of you and what you do in the marketplace.
Critical success factors
This is where you identify:
- The support and budget you need to achieve your business case.
- Any issues preventing or hindering the delivery of your business case; e.g. staffing, marketing budget, skill gaps.
Free guides and templates to get you through your firm’s partner track process
An idea of the size of client portfolio you will need to be a partner in a Big 4 firm
What due diligence should I do on my firm before buying in
6 tried and tested tips to ace your Partner Panel Interview
The definitive guide to building a business case for partnership
See whether you are a good fit for partner in your firm
What’s included in the FREE guide:
1. Extracts from real and successful business cases for partnership
2. How to structure your business case for maximum impact
3. What questions your business case needs to answer
Click here for more information about the guide
