- Only one-third (33%) of firms provide associates with structured training in financial performance, matter economics, or profitability management.
- Just 32% offer targeted development programmes to help lawyers build commercial confidence.
Rather than dwell on missed training targets, this piece focuses on where firms can unlock commercial value right now by building on, rather than waiting for, individual capability development. I want to highlight a major opportunity: business development through cross-selling and collaboration.
Uncovering Opportunities in Cross-Selling
Firms often lean heavily on a handful of major clients or key practice areas. Revenue looks steady, relationships endure, and panel spots might seem locked in. Yet beneath this apparent stability lurks a vulnerability: client concentration or overdependence now counts as a top strategic risk for 26% of firms.
I see cross-selling as an antidote - a way to bolster revenue resilience and cash flow security without relying on net-new client acquisition. However, BigHand's data reveals that only about one-third prioritise joint client targeting (31%), share profitability insights between practices (33%), coordinate pricing for multi-practice work (33%), or tie partner incentives to collaboration (34%).
This gap between recognised risk and coordinated action is striking. Most firms are sitting on untapped opportunities without the visibility or coordination to seize them. What’s missing is deeper commercial context beyond the surface strength or fragility of a client relationship: insight into the breadth of matters, service patterns, client-specific unmet needs shaped by sector shifts, and proven outcomes from past work.
Finance and Pricing as Growth Enablers
Mark Medice's LawVision article “Navigating Pricing in an Uncertain Legal Economy” draws from the 2025 LawVision Strategic Pricing Survey. Medice highlights the “Power of Pricing Teams”: pricing professionals rank as the top role for planned hiring, with 40% of firms actively recruiting for them. He notes that pricing has shifted from back-office support to a core element of firm strategy. As a former Pricing Manager, I’m inclined to agree.
BigHand's report supports this trend. Among respondent firms, 87% employ financial analysts, 86% have data scientists, and 89% use finance business partners. Investment in these roles shows clear commitment to commercial expertise.
The report also details how strategic C-level finance roles may soon receive compensation on a par with equity partners. This reflects wider acceptance that profitability rests on professional management as much as legal skill. The implication is clear: Lawyers who own client relationships must align closely with these specialists.
We’re shifting toward shared commercial ownership, stronger accountability, and systems that let lawyers focus on high-value work and relationships while meeting profitability targets.
Bridging the Gap Between Data and Action
The opportunity now lies in execution. Finance business partners are uniquely positioned to share profitability insights across practices, revealing cross-selling patterns that stay hidden in silos today. Without this visibility, firms risk leaving revenue on the table despite deep client ties. Data scientists offer the next layer, modelling unmet needs from sector shifts or past wins to challenge overdependence head-on.
BigHand's findings hint at momentum building, yet execution still lags behind intent across the sector. Pricing coordination, in particular, can struggle to scale without integrated systems, leaving many firms stuck in fragmented efforts. This is the pivotal shift: finance must evolve from scorekeeper to strategist, guiding lawyers toward collaborative growth.
Winning leaders will bridge this divide early, leveraging financial insights to build a practical collaboration engine.
A Winning Formula for Resilient Growth
Training + Financial Alignment = Growth Beyond Key Clients
Finance functions are gaining the recognition they deserve. Investment is following. But real change demands closer alignment between lawyers and pricing teams, supported by systems that make collaboration visible and rewarding.
Right now, the gap between training intentions and delivery tells us that good intentions aren’t enough. The goldmine is there. Finance teams hold the map. The question is whether firms will equip their lawyers to follow it.
