Articles and reports

The MPF commissions articles on key aspects of management for MPF publications, such as the MPF Global 500 Annual Report, and the external media. We also publish free reports on MPF events and surveys.

ARTICLES

Profitable, growing, resilient, invisible

Knowles - Professional Services Index - March 2009

The Managing Partners’ Forum believes that, when confronted by major environmental change such as the Legal Services Act, management’s primary task is to carry out due diligence to clarify strategic options and to guide internal discussions. Download the full article


Towards a more efficient market

Hodgart - Professional Services Index - March 2009

A sector worth 16% to 20% of the UK economy is near invisible to external investors. Download the full article


Investing in a professional firm

MacErlean - Professional Services Index - March 2009

Most investors are unfamiliar with the key drivers behind a successful professional firm, and unsure what measures to track. Neasa MacErlean explores current attitudes amongst investment professionals towards investing in the professions. Download the full article


Leading a listed firm

MacErlean - Professional Services Index - March 2009

Many leaders of listed professional firms have experienced both a partnership and listed firm culture. Neasa MacErlean explores the impact of listing on firms and their leaders. Download the full article


Calculation and technicalities

Wilson - Professional Services Index - March 2009

How the Index will be maintained. Download the full article


Comparisons with other indices

Source Noble - Professional Services Index - March 2009

The success of the MPF campaign to encourage investors to appreciate the profitability, growth and resilience of professional firms can be judged when the MPF Professional Services Index compiled by Noble consistently outperforms superficially comparable indices. Download the comparisons charts


Full list of constituent firms

Professional Services Index - March 2009

Download the full list


Individual firm profiles

Professional Services Index - March 2009

Listed professional firm leaders have kindly commented on important issues affecting their firm’s market capitalisation, in particular: Download the full list


Global 500 list

MPF Global 500 - December 2008

Welcome to the second annual listing of the world's largest professional firms. Download the full article


Client service - the new professional service?

Fleming - MPF Global 500 - December 2008

In the continuing economic downturn, for professional services firms as elsewhere the pressure is on to improve client service. Download the full article


The value of being global

Blase - MPF Global 500 - December 2008

The success or failure of a global firm lies in its strategic decision making and therefore with the leadership team. Paradoxically, the more focused a truly global firm is, the smaller it can be. Download the full article


Leading a global firm to greatness

MPF Global 500 - December 2008

Most firms have some brilliant people. But what makes the whole firm special? That often comes from just a handful of people who can create the right environment. We speak to the leaders of four great firms. Download the full article


Enhancing client service

MacErlean - MPF Global 500 - December 2008

What does first-rate client service really mean? Neasa MacErlean talks to firms which think they are discovering the answer. Download the full article


MPF Best Professional Firms to Work For - Top 100

Smith - MPF 100 - March 2008

Welcome to the inaugural listing of the UK's best professional firms to work for in the eyes of their own people. Download the full article


Harnessing energy

Watson - MPF 100 - March 2008

Mark Watson discusses employee engagement as a driver of business value. Download the full article


Increasing engagement

MacErlean - MPF 100 - March 2008

Neasa MacErlean spoke to seven MPF Best Professional Firm employers about the steps they are taking to become even better employers. Download the full article


Accreditation as a management tool

MacErlean - MPF 100 - March 2008

Neasa MacErlean looks at the value of regular employee feedback. Download the full article


Employee advocacy

Hutton - MPF 100 - March 2008

Peter Hutton discusses the links between employee engagement and brand advocacy.Download the full article


An Invaluable Contribution To The World

MacErlean - MPF Global 500 Annual Report - July 2007

The real achievements of professionals are not that widely known - partly because caricatures are easier to present in the press than flesh and blood. Without professionals and the infrastructure they have created, the world would be a much sorrier place. What is most surprising, perhaps, is not the extent of their contribution - but the fact that it is so little known. Download the full article


Getting People To Speak More Highly Of Your Firm

Knowles/Hutton - Legal Week - April 2005

Those who really believe in communications need no persuading that this is the way to unlock the full potential of their firm. But not everyone shares their views. We all know firms whose cultures are more about control than consultation. Power is seen as something to be held on to not to be handed down. And in environments that are heavily into measurement, intuitive judgments that openness, empowerment and involvement are 'good things' are met with the demand to prove that they produce tangible returns. Download the full article


Giving Something Back

MacErlean - MPF Global 500 Annual Report - July 2007

Philanthropy has been part of the normal life of the professions since they first set up in business. ProHelp, the professional wing of Business in the Community was founded in 1989 with only ten member firms. Now it has 1,000. Corporate and Social Responsibility is a wonderful lens through which to view the character of a firm. Following the Asian tsunami, the RICS has established a permanent organisation to advise on preventing and responding to future calamities. Download the full article


I Don't Know How To Be A Manager And No-One Is Helping Me

Knowles/Matthews - The Lawyer - October 2005

People join professional firms because they are intrinsically interested in the subject matter they are going to practise. Yet, there comes a time when such expertise is no longer sufficient to guarantee progression within a firm, and the challenge starts to be around non-technical areas - particularly managing others, developing relationships, and exercising leadership. It is fairly common for people to express anger at the prospect. Download the full article


In Search Of Management Talent

MacErlean - MPF Global 500 Annual Report - July 2007

Working as a marketer, IT consultant or other support professional in a professional services firm has become a specialism in itself. Many firms have sizeable teams which have become increasingly well-paid, appreciated and stimulated in the last few years. You need a lot of patience and resilience but, once you've won their respect, professionals are the most energising and challenging people to work with. Download the full article


Leadership - Less Politics, Clear Reward

Knowles/Pester - Legal Business - April 2006

Effective leadership is critical to the success of the modern professional firm; without it, firms will be left behind in this current period of consolidation. Yet fee earners continue to insist that their leaders must be qualified fee earners elected by the partnership. This raises an interesting challenge. If trainees join the profession primarily to practise their expertise and serve clients, how should suitable candidates for leadership positions be identified, developed, elected and rewarded? Download the full article


Profitability: What Sort Of Future Do You Want To Create For Your Firm?

Marson/Sanderson - MPF Research Committee - June 2007

Many firms look to their leaders to bring about a difference - to improve current profitability and to secure a profitable future. In our research on leadership and innovation we found leaders who were focused on building value for the future profitability of their organisations. Download the full article


The Future Of The Uk Professions

Knowles/Chaplin - Business Money - September 2007

There has hardly ever been a better time to be an accountant or a lawyer than today. Technology is taking away the tedious parts; and globalization is, literally, broadening the horizons. But golden eras do not usually arrive as a gift of the gods. Professionals in these and other sectors in the UK have, rather, responded with ingenuity to potentially difficult circumstances - and have created opportunities out of challenges. In short, the professions are boxing clever rather than simply getting bigger. Download the full article


Unsung Heroes - There's More To Professional Firms Than Fee Earners

Knowles/Chaplin/Smith - Legal Week - September 2004

In theory, a partnership stands for collaboration and team work; in practice many partners are highly competitive animals, focusing on client-based financial measures to determine relative status and reward. If partners see success in these terms, it is hardly surprising that those who neither directly bring in fees nor deliver services to clients are referred to in pejorative terms, for example 'non-fee earner'. Download the full article