The Unofficial Guide to Partner Personalities in Professional Services Firms (and How Marketing & BD Teams Survive Them)
Every marketing and BD professional working in a professional services firm quickly learns one thing: no two partners are the same.
Some reply to emails within seven seconds. Some disappear for three weeks and then ask why the campaign hasn’t launched. Some say they want something creative, then quietly reject every creative idea you present.
Learning to read and work with different partner personalities is not just useful in professional services marketing. It is practically a survival skill.
So, in the spirit of solidarity and gentle satire, here is an entirely unofficial guide to the partner types most marketing and BD teams will recognise, and how to handle each one.
1. The last-minute Larry
You’ll know this person immediately. Their requests arrive at 4:47pm on a Friday. The conference brochure is needed by Monday. The event was confirmed six months ago. None of this information has been passed on until now.
Favourite phrase:
“Sorry, this has come in a bit late…”
How to work with them:
Build in false deadlines wherever you can, keep calm in the face of visible chaos, and keep reintroducing briefing forms and lead times until something eventually sticks. When a request lands, ask clearly: “What would you like us to deprioritise to make this happen?” It reframes the conversation and puts the decision back where it belongs.
2. The ghost
Emails go unanswered. Meeting invites are ignored. Approvals stall because nobody can get a response. Then, just as the project has been quietly shelved, the ghost reappears wanting to know why nothing has moved forward.
Favourite phrase:
“I have been meaning to come back to you.”
How to work with them:
Keep communication short, specific and easy to act on. Bullet points over lengthy emails. Binary choices over open questions. Chase gently but persistently, and do not assume that silence means approval. Sometimes the only thing that works is walking to their office.
3. The conference collector
Every event is high profile. Every sponsorship opportunity is not to be missed. The conference collector has a desk drawer full of branded merchandise from events attended years ago, and a genuine belief that being in the room counts as a marketing strategy.
Favourite phrase:
“We should probably have a presence there.”
How to work with them:
Before any event commitment is made, ask what success looks like and what the follow-up plan is. Gently push for evidence that the audience is the right one. A sponsorship package is not a marketing strategy, and helping partners understand that distinction early saves a lot of time and budget later.
4. The accidental marketer
One LinkedIn post performs well and suddenly everything changes. The accidental marketer now has opinions on content strategy, sends ideas at midnight, and has begun asking whether AI can just handle all of this. Their enthusiasm is genuine and infectious. The challenge is channelling it before it creates more work than it solves.
Favourite phrase:
“I have got a great idea…”
How to work with them:
Encourage the enthusiasm without letting every idea become an immediate campaign. Introduce a simple process for reviewing and prioritising ideas, and help them understand the difference between a good concept and a well-timed, well-executed one. Not every idea needs to go live. But handled well, this partner can become one of your strongest advocates.
5. The perfectionist
Every headline gets rewritten. Every word choice is debated. The font question alone takes forty-five minutes. What started as a simple brochure is now six weeks in and still not approved. The perfectionist genuinely cares about quality, which is admirable. The challenge is helping them see that a piece of content published is worth more than a perfect one that never goes out.
Favourite phrase:
“Just a few tiny tweaks…”
How to work with them:
Set review deadlines early and agree upfront on how many rounds of amends are included. Avoid sending fully designed documents for early-stage feedback because once something looks finished, the instinct to perfect it intensifies. Keep the bigger objective visible throughout the process.
6. The rainmaker
Brilliant with clients. Impressive revenue numbers. Absolutely no idea where the latest pitch document is saved. The rainmaker operates at speed and does not always leave a trail. They are not trying to be difficult. They are just focused entirely on the thing they are best at.
Favourite phrase:
“Can you make this look better?”
How to work with them:
Keep interactions efficient and low-friction. Focus on practical, fast support rather than process. Protect their time and accept that their inbox operates by different rules to everyone else’s. The goal is to make them look good and stay out of their way while doing it.
7. The marketing sceptic
Relationships drive growth. Everyone knows that. So what exactly does marketing do? The sceptic has built a strong practice through their network and genuinely struggles to see the value in anything that does not result in a direct instruction. They will also, quietly, want a full pipeline of new clients.
Favourite phrase:
“How many instructions did this actually bring in?”
How to work with them:
Speak their language. Lead with outcomes, commercial impact and data. Avoid marketing jargon and do not try to win them over with theory. Start small, demonstrate results, and build trust from there. The sceptic who becomes a convert is often one of your most valuable champions.
8. The unicorn partner
Replies promptly. Gives clear, actionable feedback. Understands what strategy actually means. Respects lead times. Has read the briefing document before the meeting.
Favourite phrase:
“Happy to trust your judgement.”
How to work with them:
Protect them at all costs.
The serious bit at the end
Tongue firmly in cheek, obviously. But most marketing and BD professionals in professional services will recognise at least a few of these, and probably a handful of colleagues who are reading this and thinking of someone specific too.
The reality is that strong marketing and BD relationships in law firms are built on communication, trust, clear expectation management and a genuine understanding of how different people work. Partners are not being difficult for the sake of it. They are usually operating under pressure, with competing priorities and without always understanding what good briefing looks like.
That is where a skilled marketing and BD team earns its value. Not just in the work it produces, but in its ability to navigate the people, manage the dynamics and still deliver something worth delivering.
Once you understand the personalities, the job does not necessarily get easier. But it does get a lot less surprising.
Need help?
If you would like help with your marketing, bringing on a marketing consultant with a fresh pair of eyes can make all the difference. I work with B2B businesses and professional service firms in London, Kent, the UK, and Europe, specialising as a legal marketing consultant. Please get in touch or book a free 30-minute consultation.
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