Passle CMO Series Podcast

A merger doesn't end when the ink dries. For Wilkin Chapman Rollits, the real work started afterwards with harmonising systems, bringing two firms together, and taking time to build new firm values that actually reflected the combined business. On this episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Will Eke sits down with Gaius Powell, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Wilkin Chapman Rollits. Gaius talks through his career journey, the client‑driven thinking behind the merger, and why the firm chose to wait before relaunching its values. He also shares how they designed client feedback interviews around those values to understand how they show up in practice. Will and Gaius dive into: Gaius's career journey and what led him to Director of Marketing and BD at Wilkin Chapman Rollits How Rollits partners joining Wilkin Chapman ahead of the merger helped set the stage for what followed The main considerations behind the merger, and the thinking around building a strong presence across both regions What day-to-day life looked like post-merger, integrating laterals and building a shared culture Why the firm waited to relaunch its values, and what that process involved How updated interview-based client feedback shows the values showing up in real client relationships

Last week you heard from Grasford Smith, a Litigation Partner and Co-Chair of the lateral integration programme at Akerman, to hear his insights on two good things that have worked for the programme and one thing that he and his Co-Chair would avoid doing again. This week we’re bringing you another exciting episode of 2 Good 1 Bad. Connor Kinnear sits down with Craig Budner, CEO of Budner Performance Group and former Global Strategic Growth Partner at K&L Gates, who had a front‑row view of a major law firm merger, guiding Hughes and Luce through integration and seeing firsthand how firms grow through both merger and lateral expansion. With Craig’s 25+ years of experience, he shares the importance of connecting lateral integration with business development, holding laterals accountable through both leading and lagging indicators, and the costly lesson of skipping due diligence during a period of urgent hiring.

Cross-selling in law firms isn’t a knowledge problem, it’s an execution problem. Most lawyers know it matters, but few do it consistently because the right infrastructure, support, and momentum aren’t in place. In this special episode of the CMO Series Podcast, recorded live, Charles Cousins explores the next era of cross-selling alongside Raya Blakeley-Glover, Director of BD, Sales & Clients at Bird & Bird, and Mo Bunnell, CEO & Founder of Bunnell Idea Group. The webinar reinforces the importance of making cross-selling client-led, measurable, and scalable, for communication to win relentlessly. Raya provides practical advice on how real progress starts once firms stop treating cross-selling as a vague aspiration and build the client-focused systems that allow lawyers to act. She emphasizes replacing hesitation with confidence through structured support, such as the sales resource and training app that Bird & Bird developed in-house. Mo broadens the perspective by framing cross-selling as a progression from simple presentations to structured programs that drive long-lasting change. He dives into his “Give to Get” concept to shift cross-selling from awkward referrals to meaningful, client-focused exchanges that build momentum.

High-performing teams are the difference between steady progress and real growth in professional services marketing and BD. Performance doesn’t happen by accident, it’s built, shaped and led. In the latest CMO Series Podcast, Will Eke is joined by Tricia Weener, Global Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer at Linklaters, who has built a career spanning entrepreneurial ventures, scale-ups and global organisations. That breadth gives her a sharp perspective on what “high performance” actually means, and how differently it shows up depending on the environment. In this episode, we unpack what it really takes to build a high-performing team inside a global law firm and the lessons Tricia brings from outside the industry. Tricia also shares: The perspectives she’s gained during her industry-agnostic career journey How high performance shows up in different contexts The importance of building high-performing teams on strong foundations Using the power of the “three Cs” to shape team culture Practical advice for others to build sustainable high-performing teams