Greentarget

Authoritative messaging

by

Leaders at professional services firms are under enormous pressure to communicate effectively and authentically in today’s volatile world. From global crises to social shifts, they’re expected to comment on issues even when situations don’t directly impact their business.

Deciding how, when, and what to communicate — or even whether to say anything at all — is a minefield.

Greentarget tackled this challenge in our recent webinar, Communicating in an Increasingly Volatile and Complex World: A Roadmap for Professional Services Leaders. In it, we offer important insights on navigating today’s toughest communication scenarios and provide guidance on how to speak out authentically while staying aligned with your firm’s values.

Topics include:

  • Geopolitical and generational shifts
  • Diversity, equity, and inclusion
  • The impact of AI

by

Professional services firms face an uphill battle to stand out and promote their expertise, as overwhelming amounts of content flood target audience’s inboxes and feeds each day.

How, then, can your firm avoid contributing to the noise — and instead rise above it? The answer lies in bespoke research that informs distinctive, high impact thought leadership campaigns. 

The Power of Research-Backed Thought Leadership

True thought leadership isn’t just about reposting articles or chiming in on the latest news. It’s about unleashing fresh and unique insights and practical guidance that can address the critical issues facing your key audiences. In doing so, you can differentiate the most important practices at your firm and open doors to new business opportunities.

Research-based PR and marketing campaigns offer unique advantages over run-of-the-mill content, enabling your firm to:

  • Go deep on a topic. While most content just skims the surface, well-crafted research reports provide original data and in-depth analysis that clients and prospects value.
  • Fuel content for multiple channels. A single research initiative can drive articles, presentations, infographics, videos, podcasts, and more — creating a content engine that keeps producing long after you launch the report itself.
  • Strengthen relationships with clients and stakeholders. Research gives you insights into the concrete needs and challenges of your internal and external stakeholders. When you understand these deeply, you can deliver clear and actionable guidance that makes a difference.
  • Leverage findings as a catalyst for business development. When you connect the dots between your research findings and your prospects’ needs, you’ll be able to more easily open doors to high-value sales conversations.
  • Establish authority. Staking a claim on key topics and building your position on those topics year after year is an effective strategy to elevate visibility and deepen trust with your audience.

Of course, research-backed campaigns will only drive results if the research they’re based on is both salient and sound. Rather than go it alone, it can be helpful to partner with a firm that specializes in this work.

Greentarget conducts approximately 50 major research-based campaigns for our clients each year. Of those, about half are ongoing campaigns that we iterate over time to help clients build their brand, strengthen their reputation, and drive growth.

Let’s take a look at what it takes to conduct research and market intelligence projects that drive results.

6 Steps to Create Research-Backed Thought Leadership Campaigns

Effective research must be tied to the issues that matter to your audience and help your firm differentiate itself. So what tools and strategies should you use to effectively move from idea to insight? Here’s a look at what it takes to develop research that delivers tangible results.

  1. Identify your audience and brainstorm relevant topics. Conducting research for research’s sake is an exercise in futility. To make an impact, your research must be targeted and purposeful, relevant to thought leaders’ expertise, client needs, and timely news hooks.
  2. Conduct a white space analysis. White spaces are where you have an opportunity to differentiate — where you can bring something new and valuable to the conversation, and your audience. 
  3. Choose the ideal research methodologies for your objectives. Whenever possible, leverage a combination of secondary research (e.g., existing industry reports, academic studies, and publicly available data) and primary research (e.g., quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews or focus groups). 
  4. Execute the research. This step involves developing your research instruments, recruiting participants, and conducting fieldwork. But bear in mind: It takes experience and know-how to gather high-quality data with statistical significance. Partnering with a firm like Greentarget helps ensure you reach the right respondents and maintain methodological rigor.
  5. Analyze findings and develop strategic guidance. After you’ve collected your data, you need to extract meaningful insights from it. Be sure to invite internal stakeholders and subject matter experts back into the process at this stage. They have the insight and expertise to help you interpret the results accurately, contextualize key findings, and identify the most significant implications for your clients.
  6. Create the cornerstone report and supporting content. Package your insights into a report and related content items to distribute to your audience. Make sure all pieces of content are relevant, urgent, novel, and useful to provide maximum value to your audience.

Remember, the goal is to create multiple touchpoints that reinforce your key messages and position your firm as a thought leader in your chosen area. Monitor the performance of different channels and content pieces, and be prepared to adjust your strategy based on what resonates most with your audience. Directing smarter conversations requires powerful insights that are rooted in sound market intelligence. Greentarget can help you find them. So let’s talk.

by

Too many aspiring thought leaders are more concerned with simply being part of the conversation than adding to it in a meaningful way.

Some may feel an intense pressure to keep pace with competitors, even if they don’t have anything new to say. Others may have plenty to say, but hesitate to speak out for fear of offending stakeholders and losing current and/or future business.

Whatever the reason, this lack of confidence in what to say and when to say it presents a problem. In almost every case, it strips would-be thought leaders of a true point of view — a critical element in establishing and demonstrating authority.

What Are the Hallmarks of a Strong POV? 

At its core, a point of view (POV) is a statement or position that others might disagree with. It’s not merely a statement of fact.

Like a good piece of writing or a coveted dinner guest, a solid POV invites further conversation and sparks new ideas. And like those thesis statements we learned about in middle school, a good POV is evidence of an underlying argument that’s well-constructed and fully considered. One that persuades, excites, and pushes the conversation forward using supporting evidence, engaging storytelling principles, and illustrative examples.

By contrast, what too often passes for thought leadership actually closes conversation off by  repeating what’s already been said, stating the obvious, or saying something patently false or outrageous. 

There is a middle ground here. Just because someone might disagree with a point of view doesn’t mean their response is inherently controversial or combative. They might just be saying, “Hmm, you’d do it this way? Interesting. Here’s why I think you should do it this way instead…”

Alternatively, sometimes a compelling, subjective point of view shines through thanks to the voice and distinct personality of the writer — even if the opinion expressed isn’t intrinsically novel. For example, most movie critics agreed that Moonlight was an exceptional film (see as evidence its 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes). But just because they all agreed doesn’t render each critic’s review moot. 

Good critics know how to express the same overarching opinion in a new and unique way — by drawing on their individual experiences, layering in interesting historical and industry context, and infusing their prose with a memorable style. These elements set each review apart and open up more space for conversation and debate.

Similarly, a consultant might agree with the majority of her peers that there needs to be more focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations at the board level. But she might have her own unique perspective on the best ways to go about it. Or she might offer salient, industry-specific advice on how ESG should be talked about and prioritized. She may even bring first-hand experience to the table (e.g., a stint serving as a consultant in South Africa during apartheid or advising directors who were early ESG adopters) that lets her speak to the issue in a completely different way from everyone else. 

Nobody needs to hear another clarion call about the need to adopt ESG practices at their organization (or read generic content about any other trending topic). But advisors who draw on their own experiences can make the case for ESG — or for the topic at hand — in a way that nobody else is making it.

Put simply, true authorities develop statements and positions that are made more compelling by virtue of their unique perspective.

[Ready to start honing your firm’s unique POV? Download our 4-Step Guide to learn how.]

It’s Time for Professional Services Firms to Develop True POVs

If you’re a marketer or aspiring thought leader at a professional services firm, you may be thinking that this is all well and good in theory, but that the consensus-driven partnership structure of your organization makes it difficult to put any kind of real stake in the ground.  

You’re not wrong. It’s rare to find a lawyer or consultant who wants to go out on a limb and risk offending their partners, clients, or potential clients.

But here’s the rub: Going out on a limb is often what makes the best points of view. (Just look at any newspaper’s most read op-ed pieces.) More to the point, weighing in on the conversations that matter most is exactly what your audience needs from you right now. 

The 2024 EdelmanTrust Barometer reveals that the public’s trust in government, media, and science continues to deteriorate. Conversely, people trust businesses more than they trust these traditional helms of authority. 

As a result, more and more of your stakeholders expect the leaders they trust to speak out and carve out positions of authority about things like: 

  • The increasingly polarized rhetoric around DEI and ESG
  • Geopolitical concerns and their effect on business decisions
  • Social issues that become heightened during election cycles
  • The promise and peril of emerging technologies like AI
  • Generational shifts in the workforce and their impact on recruitment and retention

In pivotal moments, your firm’s silence can speak louder than words. And your lack of response will be particularly noteworthy if your employees, clients, and community stakeholders look to you as a trusted authority and advisor. Abstaining from active, important, timely conversations might make your audience wonder what you stand for. 

By contrast, when you participate skillfully in the conversations that matter, you can reinforce your authority and strengthen your firm’s relationship with your audience.

Greentarget Can Help You Find the POV You’re Looking For

It can be challenging to uncover the positions of authority that will resonate most with your audience — especially if you’ve never taken time to think about thought leadership in this way before. The good news is there’s no need to figure it out alone. 

Greentarget can help you artfully combine your subject matter expertise with the factual rigor and narrative techniques of traditional journalism to produce POVs that align with your business goals — all while communicating what your audience needs to know. 
So when you’re ready to find your firm’s unique voice, let’s talk.

by

by

Over the next fifteen years, the American workforce will undergo a seismic shift. Baby Boomers will fully retire, and Gen Xers won’t be far behind. And that means Gen Z (those born between 1996 and 2010, currently 14 to 28 years old) will soon make up a significant share of your prospective talent pool.

Is your professional services firm ready for this inevitable sea change?

Gen Z has been shaped by vastly different cultural contexts than previous generations. Two events in particular — Covid-19 and the Great Recession — have influenced how members of this emerging generation approach their professional and personal lives. Whereas older generations considered things like flexible hours, work/life balance, and high pay to be hard-won rewards, Gen Z expects them as a given. What’s more, Gen Zers care deeply about working for organizations that meaningfully align with their personal values and ideals.

These realities create risk for firms like yours, especially if your current culture doesn’t match Gen Z expectations. Many Gen Zers are uniquely uninterested in chasing the proverbial brass ring. They want to do good, interesting work — but they also want to enjoy rich, full personal lives. If these priorities appear to conflict, conventional wisdom predicts a crisis for professions that serve the most challenging and sophisticated clients. Managers are fearful that a refusal to bend on cultural change will drive talent away.

Gen Z is an Executive Positioning Challenge

Much of our recent guidance on critical issues – whether it be geopolitical conflict, AI, DEI and ESG backlash, the 2024 election – is rooted in this assertion: if you are clear about what your firm stands for and can demonstrate how its values and expectations are in alignment, you will have an easier (or at least less fraught) time communicating controversial topics or positions that can create misunderstanding and conflict and damage the firm’s reputation. This is also true of the Gen Z challenge, and you can address it with the following steps.

1. Define your audience – You may only want Gen Zers who still aspire to the brass ring – they exist, no generation is a monolith. But focusing on that cohort may turn away the best talent and limit the diversity and alacrity of thought you can access. Either way, the first step is to define the audience you want to attract and retain. Then gather information about what they care about most and react to workplace culture.

2. Create a feedback loop – Effective communication requires a feedback loop. This can include formal and informal channels through which you gather input from your audience, identify expectations, and measure whether your messages are landing as intended. Regular contact with affinity groups, associate committees, or trusted intermediaries can inform your approach.

3. Declare what you stand for – We’ve written elsewhere about the University of Chicago’s Kalven Report. Create a process that is open to a diversity of stakeholders and engage them in a conversation about the values and principles that drive behavior at your firm. Clarify how you will make decisions that impact all the generations in your workforce and publish your guidelines for all to see. Going forward, your decisions may not make everyone happy, but they shouldn’t be surprised.

4. Reiterate and reinforce –If you can identify and occupy the space in which the firm’s priorities and expectations overlap with your audience’s values and aspirations, then you can alter your culture to encourage greater engagement. With every alteration you make to workplace culture, reiterate, and reinforce the values that drove the decision.

Meaningful Work and a “You Belong Here” Culture

What sort of alterations are appropriate? Corporate Counsel underscores the need to move beyond “no-meeting Mondays and free-pizza Fridays.” Such perks simply don’t go far enough to create the kind of culture that appeals to Gen Z. While aspects of your firm’s culture may be difficult, if not impossible, to change, there is room to maneuver within the “softer” elements of your culture that you can control.

McKinsey’s research findings show that Gen Z is passionate about:

· Advocating for social, racial, and environmental justice issues

· Finding purpose in their life and work

· Experiencing a sense of belonging within the context of a supportive community

· Expressing themselves individualistically

Considering this, you may need to formalize regular communication regarding:

· Your firm’s mission and values. What do you stand for and what is the impact your firm is making on your community, the nation, and the world, and well as on your clients and profession?

· Your firm’s commitment to DEI. What steps have you and are you taking to make your firm an authentically diverse, equitable, and inclusive place?

· Opportunities for meaningful work. What stories can you share about the ways colleagues are able to immerse themselves in work that has influence in their field, or to society as a whole?

· The global and social issues you support. Are there unique positions of authority your firm can hone to participate skillfully in the conversations that matter most to Gen Z?

Don’t Underestimate Gen Z’s Impact on Your Professional Services Firm

There’s no one-size-fits-all strategy for making your professional services firm an employer of choice for Gen Z. And you certainly won’t be able to flip a switch and get where you need to be overnight.

But even today, you can start doing the work of understanding what motivates and drives Gen Z. And you can begin communicating in ways that will pay dividends in the future.

Though urgent issues undoubtedly occupy your attention on a day-to-day basis, getting ahead of the coming generational shift is vitally important. By making this a priority now, you can future-proof your firm and set yourself up for continued success.

Need some help directing a smarter conversation with Gen Z? Let’s talk.

About the Executive Positioning Practice

Exemplifying Greentarget’s commitment to being a trusted advisor to clients, our Executive Positioning team provides C-suite executives (managing partners, CEOs, executive committees, and boards) with insights to anticipate, understand and respond to important global and social developments, analyzing key issues that can impact reputation and compel leaders to communicate.

by

How should professional services organizations talk about DEI at a time when even the acronym itself has become a lightning rod for controversy?

DEI programs in business and academia have been under the magnifying glass since the Supreme Court struck down race-conscious admissions at Harvard and the University of North Carolina last year. The watershed ruling emboldened DEI critics who equate efforts to increase racial diversity in the workplace with reverse discrimination.

Now the backlash is dominating headlines as corporate leaders backpedal recent commitments and DEI becomes a culture-war football in a contentious U.S. election year. It is a striking reversal of the climate just a few years ago, when George Floyd’s murder and nationwide protests over racial injustice unleashed a flood of diversity-related statements and pledges from corporate America.

This moment presents a two-fold challenge for leaders. It complicates efforts to advance diversity, equity and inclusion at their own organizations—an issue that many legal and professional services firms have struggled with for decades, particularly when it comes to representation among upper management and executive ranks. It also has ramifications for firms’ service offerings and counsel to clients on DEI-related issues, including those tied to ESG, a growing business area for legal, accounting and consulting firms.

In what follows, we’ll discuss how professional services firms can communicate effectively, and authentically, to stakeholders about DEI. Those audiences include current and future talent, as well as clients and potential clients—who may well be wrestling with similar questions themselves.

The current DEI landscape

As companies and law firms scale back DEI initiatives or quietly retool them to avoid mounting legal challenges, it’s worth considering the broader impact of the Supreme Court’s decisions on affirmative action.

From a recruitment perspective, some experts expect it to reduce the pool of diverse talent from law schools and universities, based on what’s happened in California and Michigan after state universities there eliminated affirmative action. The broader pushback could also impact corporate DEI initiatives, such as diversity fellowships for historically underrepresented groups.

While the anti-DEI movement may pose heightened risk, companies and boards should understand how current laws apply to DEI measures at their organizations before deciding to shift course. Retreating from earlier commitments could also have consequences, from impacts on talent recruitment and retention to reputational harm.

Here’s how Nell Haslett-Brousse, director of diversity, equity and inclusion at consulting firm Point B, put it in a LinkedIn post soon after the Supreme Court rejected affirmative action in college admissions last June:

“Values have been and should continue to serve as a company’s north star… In a landscape where performative DEI+J [diversity, equity, inclusion and justice] has already drawn sharp criticism, any company that’s pulling away from its bold statements or goals will be hard-pressed to find near-term benefit, let alone long-term gains from reacting so quickly.”

Understand your DEI motivations

Caution is understandable. But there’s not much to be gained from walking back a previous commitment to DEI—you risk appearing disingenuous, or worse. As my colleague Steve DiMattia has  noted, in moments like these it’s important to “draw on well-defined organizational values—what you stand for, and how you demonstrate and encourage behavior that lives up to it.”

Organizations navigating this increasingly polarized environment must reflect on why they are pursuing their DEI path. Have those drivers or goals changed? How might the more fraught political and legal environment affect your firm’s chosen approach?

After all, many see DEI both as a social issue and a business imperative, and firms have a right to decide for themselves what steps to take to ensure the long-term success of their businesses. It’s important to consider what those efforts signify to critical constituencies, such as clients and current or potential talent.

“Diversity is the most important issue facing the accounting profession because it is essential for its sustainability and success in the global economy,” Anoop Natwar Mehta, immediate past chairman, AICPA & Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, told Accounting Today. “I also believe increasing diversity will also help our pipeline challenges.”

Clients are hungry for DEI counsel, too. Greentarget and Zeughauser Group’s State of DEI Content Report (released six months before the Supreme Court’s rulings on affirmative action) found that executive decision makers want more guidance on DEI from the law, accounting and consulting firms they hire, with 69% of law firm chief marketing officers ranking DEI as the topic that attracts the most attention from clients.

As a result, organizations are unveiling service offerings directly related to DEI counsel. For example, some law firms are launching DEI-focused practice groups to help field the recent flood of queries about racial equity audits and legal challenges.

But it goes deeper. Our research also shows that executive decision makers want their service providers to make progress as well as provide counsel on inclusion and diversity—and in-house counsel rate their law firms’ DEI execution as mediocre, saying there’s more work to be done. That’s something to keep in mind when considering adjustments to DEI programs and communications.

Be transparent about what—and how—you’re doing when it comes to DEI

Diversity, equity and inclusion is a long game. Reactive pivots and retreats can signal a lack of authentic commitment that could do more damage over time, both reputationally and to your DEI goals, than staying the course. Consistency and communication matter.

Think about your audience—especially when it comes to talent. As Bloomberg reported in September: “While most baby-boomers don’t consider a company’s focus on DEI when applying to jobs and accepting offers, almost three-quarters of Gen Z workers want their employer to consider it a priority, according to a new global study by consultancy Ernst & Young LLP.”

Track your efforts and share where you are and what needs improvement. As Point B’s recent research on DEI+J maturity shows, “While companies have invested heavily in top-down initiatives like workforce development and recruitment, many have yet to implement the deeper, structural changes and policies needed to make a lasting impact.” Consider what metrics may be most effective to assess progress—and which ones could expose your firm to risk in the current environment. Tying DEI programs to specific business outcomes may be a safer bet than setting quotas or diversity targets, for example.

For its part, the New York State Bar Association’s Task Force on Advancing Diversity advises private employers—corporations and law firms—to communicate a continued commitment to the organization’s DEI principles, but also to evaluate how employees and external stakeholders perceive those efforts and programs. What’s more, the group recommends keeping a close eye on DEI-related communications and disclosures and ensuring that people making employment decisions understand the key legal principles that govern DEI programs.

But it’s important to note that, as DEI and corporate governance lawyers told Fortune recently, despite the headline-grabbing lawsuits alleging reverse racism, firms are more likely to be sued by employees or job seekers from historically underrepresented groups.  

DEI is here to stay

Despite the well-documented blowback, most organizations remain committed to DEI. According to new research from employment law firm Littler, 57% of the more than 300 C-suite executives surveyed say their companies have expanded diversity-related initiatives over the past year. And while nearly six in 10 (59%) say anti-DEI backlash has increased since the Supreme Court rulings, three-quarters of respondents say the decisions haven’t changed their approach. Of the 6% who did scale back DEI efforts, concerns around general legal liability and costs were the primary factors.

“We’re seeing many employers maintain—or even double down on—their commitment,” said Jeanine Conley Daves, Littler shareholder and member of the firm’s IE&D [inclusion, equity and diversity] Consulting Practice. “Demonstrating that IE&D is part of their core values, many organizations are taking the prudent step of auditing and assessing their current initiatives, rather than eliminating them amid the challenges in today’s political and legal environment.”

The stakes are high, and the challenges are real. If you’re looking to start a smarter DEI-focused conversation in a post-affirmative action world, the team at Greentarget is here to help.

About the Executive Positioning Practice

Exemplifying Greentarget’s commitment to being a trusted advisor to clients, our Executive Positioning team provides C-suite executives (managing partners, CEOs, executive committees, and boards) with insights to anticipate, understand and respond to important global and social developments, analyzing key issues that can impact reputation and compel leaders to communicate.

Close
Close