1

One-day conference
7 December 2010, London
BOOK BEFORE
1ST OCTOBER
AND
SAVE £149
Managing Partner Events presents the 5 annual th

Financial planning, forecasting

and budgeting for law firms
Strategic business planning for change and uncertainty

A one-day intensive conference that will ensure you: Expert contributions from:
» S J Berwin LLP
» Model your costs to match forecasts in an unpredictable climate
» Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge UK LLP
» Understand the implications of external investment on your plan
» DMH Stallard LLP
» Get more from your bank
» Tollers LLP
» Work harder to engage your practice heads in a difficult climate » Hill Dickinson LLP

» Discover how alternative pricing will impact on your forecasts » Manches LLP

» Plan for international expansion, mergers and acquisitions » Fox Williams LLP

» Smith & Williamson

" This conference is an excellent opportunity for law firm Finance

Directors to come together to fine-tune their financial planning
and forecasting tools in the context of ongoing changes in the
legal services market.

Robert Mojab, Finance Director, DMH Stallard LLP

"
Attendance at this event can count towards CPD for ICAEW members if it meets the training and development needs relevant to the member's current role.
To claim SRA CPD points for this event, please quote: ANS/ARCO

Researched by: Media Partner:

5 easy ways to register

Tel: +44 (0)20 7566 5792 E-mail: events@ark-group.com Web: www.ark-group.com Fax: +44 (0)20 7324 2373 Or see back page for mailing details
WHY THIS EVENT?
Translating your firm’s strategy into an accurate statement of
forecast fee income has never been easy. But in the current WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
market, while uncertainty abounds, and as markets recover, it has
become harder than ever. Not only do you not know how quickly » Chief Executive (Officer)
the turnover of work will pick up but also your fee-earners may be
less willing to put their name to revenue predictions. » Chairman

» Managing Partner
This year’s conference programme has been completely refreshed
to tackle financial planning in the context of change, whether that » Senior Partner
be economic change and market uncertainty; structural change
such as the implications of the Legal Services Act; strategic » Chief Finance Officer
changes planned by your firm, such as international expansion,
mergers, acquisitions, and the adoption of alternative pricing
» Finance/Financial Director
models; or even, a change in the relationship with your bank, and
» Financial Controller
the commercial terms it offers you, and how this, too, can impact
on your plan. » Finance Manager

» Accountant
Our senior level speakers will address all of these issues and
more, so that you leave this compact one-day conference » Management Accountant
with new insights that will help you to stay on top of providing
accurate forecasts and budgets to the firm amid the market and » Chief Operating Officer
business change that is occurring around you.
» Head of Business Planning

Just as important as forecasting revenue accurately is structuring » Head of Financial Planning

your business model, managing your costs and timing your
» Business Analyst
investments effectively so that these match the workload you
anticipate. In a keynote speech, Keith Wood, Chief Executive at » Financial Analyst
S J Berwin LLP, will explain how you can do this.

Also, don’t miss our special focus sessions on getting more

EXPERT CONTRIBUTIONS FROM:
from your bank. You’ll have the opportunity to quiz a financial
adviser about the terms you can currently expect as well as
» S J Berwin LLP » Hill Dickinson LLP
the chance to hear from a law firm about the ways in which it has
kept its bank on side.
» Edwards Angell » Manches LLP
Palmer & Dodge
UK LLP » Fox Williams LLP
Even if you have been to a financial planning conference in the
past, this December’s intensive one-day conference is filled » DMH Stallard LLP » Smith & Williamson
with so many new ideas to help you keep your financial plan
on track amid the current change and uncertainty that you just » Tollers LLP » Focus on Banking
can’t afford not to be there!

PAST "Practical advice on forecasting that I will try to implement"

FEEDBACK
Beverley Edhouse, Financial Director, Warners Solicitors

"Very useful conference which highlighted key points to be addressed"

WHAT OUR DELEGATES SAID Mohinda Chima, House Partner, Adams Solicitors

ABOUT THE 2009 EVENT "I really enjoyed it, some excellent content, good speakers and venue. Thank you"
Declan Tyrrell, Director, Lucid Solutions

tel: 020 7566 5792 fax: 020 7324 2373 e-mail: e

 AGENDA
Tuesday 7 December 2010
09:00 Registration and refreshments » How can you improve the relationship with the bank and achieve the
best terms possible?
» DISCUSSION and Q&A: Your chance to quiz Andrew with your burning
09:30 Chair’s opening remarks
questions about banking, or scenarios you are facing with your own bank
Andrew Austin, Founding Director, Focus on Banking
PLANNING FOR EXTERNAL CHANGE

14:10 Working closely with your bank for mutual benefit

09:40 KEYNOTE: Remodelling your costs constantly to match forecast
revenue and plan effectively in an unpredictable climate
» Forecasting your income on a quarterly basis
» Measuring and monitoring your costs every three months
» Structuring your firm according to current market rates
» Balancing cost-control with the need for investment
» Timing investments effectively
Keith Wood, Chief Executive, S J Berwin LLP
10:20 Understanding the implications of the Legal Services Act and external
investment for the financial planning process
» The background to the Legal Services Act 2007
» The level of interest in external investment
» The expected shape of the legal market
» The implications of external investment, including structure, ownership,
financial planning, valuation, reward and governance
Giles Murphy, Professional Practices Director, Smith & Williamson
11:00 Morning coffee break
PLANNING FOR STRATEGIC CHANGE
11:30 International expansion: Strategy development, approval
and implementation
» Identifying the case for international expansion
» Building the case, including financial planning
» Sensitivity analysis in relation to financial planning
» Achieving approval of the plan
» Execution of the plan
» Regulatory
» Follow up
Steve Rowan, Director of Finance & Administration, Edwards Angell
Palmer & Dodge UK LLP
12:10 Financial planning for mergers and acquisitions
In an ever-consolidating and changing legal industry, the need for Finance
Directors to understand how to implement a successful merger or
acquisition has never been greater. This session will cover a wide range of
topics including:
» Mergers and acquisitions – key considerations – the business case, deal
structure, financing implications and costs
» Acquisitions out of insolvency: Specific issues, pitfalls and tips
» Operational aspects: Key success factors
» Post-acquisition monitoring and implementation
Colin Wardale, Director of Finance, Hill Dickinson LLP
» Keeping your bank on-side
» Providing pre-emptive information to the bank to speed up the risk-
assessment process
» Offering mutually agreed training on "the view from the other side of the desk"
Richard Wyatt, Director of Finance, Tollers LLP
14:30 FLOOR DISCUSSION: A chance to put your questions to Andrew and
Richard, and also share your thoughts and experiences, about current
relationships between banks and law firms.
INTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS
14:50 Working harder to engage practice heads in the budgeting process in
the context of a difficult economic climate
» Encouraging partners and group heads to engage with the firm’s
strategic plan
» The need for reliable budgeting and regular reviews during uncertain times
» Helping partners and group heads to produce reliable revenue forecasts
in the present economic climate
» Testing proposed budgets for reasonableness and sensitivity to
external factors
» Resolving conflicts which arise during the budgeting process
Robert Mojab, Finance Director, DMH Stallard LLP
15:30 Afternoon coffee break
NON-TRADITIONAL PRICING AND BUDGETING METHODS
16:00 Demonstrating the impact of alternative pricing methods on
revenue forecasting
» Thinking creatively about pricing
» Weighing up the risks involved in fixed fee and conditional
fee arrangements
» Forecasting revenue effectively when not working with the billable hour
Jeremy Gubbay, Chief Operating Officer, Fox Williams LLP
16:40 Flexing your budgets effectively based on updated forecasts
» Explaining to lawyers why the budgeted figures are changing
» Clarifying with lawyers the difference between actual, forecast and
budgeted figures
» Reporting using flexed budgets
Louis Manches, Senior Partner, Manches LLP
17:20 Chair’s closing remarks

12:50 Networking lunch break 17:30 Close of conference

EXTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS – YOUR BANK

13:50 Understanding the changing relationship between law firms and

their banks
» How have the terms offered to law firms changed and what are the
trends/issues to be aware of going forward?
» What do the changes mean for the financial planning process?

events@ark-group.com web: www.ark-group.com

 WAYS TO REGISTER
Financial planning, forecasting One-day conference 1. Tel: +44 (0)20 7566 5792
7 December 2010, London 2. E-mail: events@ark-group.com
and budgeting for law firms 3. Online: www.ark-group.com
Booking ref: 1081-10
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