Passle CMO Series Podcast

Episode 174 - Jason Levin of Ready, Set, Launch, LLC on The Key to Cross-Selling: Building Real Human Connection

Cross-selling is becoming an essential part of how law firms can boost their revenue and create long-lasting relationships with their clients. Yet, CMOs and BD leaders have recognized that their lawyers are struggling to cross-sell effectively, leaving them wondering how they can get their lawyers over the cross-selling barriers. The key to that is building real human connection. 

On today's episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Charlie Knight is joined by Jason Levin, Founder of Ready Set Launch and author of Relationships to Infinity, former brand marketer of Unilever, and a business development coach to law firms across the US. Jason shares his insights on how CMOs can help their lawyers be more authentic and in-tune with their clients to help unlock unlimited opportunities to cross-sell and establish long-lasting relationships.

Charlie and Jason cover: 

• The types of clients Jason takes on and the core work Jason does with law firms
• The expectations that general counsels have for law firms and the reason why lawyers fall short in meeting their expectations
• The approaches lawyers can take to build relationships and how CMOs can make it easier for their lawyers
• The barriers holding law firms back from cross-selling and what practical steps CMOs can take to help their lawyers unlock their cross-selling potential
• The ways CMOs can help their lawyers shift from the ‘not enough time’ mindset to a proactive mindset
• Practical examples of small changes that lead to significant results, along with key takeaways CMOs should apply
• Advice for CMOs on building authentic relationships to unlock the full potential of cross-selling within their firms

CMO Series Live Special: How Law Firm Leaders Use Thought Leadership to Drive Growth

In this special edition of the CMO Series Podcast, we revisit one of the standout sessions from last week’s CMO Series Live in New York. This episode explores how managing partners and senior leaders are using thought leadership to strengthen client relationships, drive business development, and leave a lasting impact in the digital space.

This session was moderated by our very own Alistair Bone, who was joined on stage by:

• Jeff Greenbaum, Managing Partner of Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz
• Simon Malko, Managing Partner of Morris, Manning & Martin
• Meredith Williams-Range, Chief Legal Operating Officer at Gibson Dunn
• Carl Kennedy, Partner and Co-Chair, Financial Markets and Regulation at Katten

Jeff, Simon, Meredith, and Carl shared how effectively leveraging thought leadership has fueled their firm’s growth, elevated their personal brands, and empowered their lawyers to become thought leaders themselves.

This special episode covers: 

• How thought leadership fits into today's legal landscape and why it's significant
• The challenges to expect when getting your lawyers to create their own thought leadership
• Refreshing approaches to maintaining a dynamic and compelling online presence over the long term  
• Advice for firms that want to build successful thought leadership programs 

RE-RELEASE: Gina Connell on How to Bring Your Firm on the AI Journey

AI is quickly being adopted and used to keep firms ahead of the curve, yet many firms struggle to do this effectively and get the most out of AI. However, the key question many firms ask is ‘How do we bring the whole firm along the journey of using AI?’

In today’s re-release episode, Gina Connell, Chief Marketing Officer at B P Collins, discusses the practical and strategic approaches to navigating the journey of AI within a firm. Gina breaks down how she led the charge of the firm’s AI policy, how firms can collaborate and use AI, and how to encourage people across the firm to engage with AI effectively. 

This episode covers: 

• Practical steps to effectively developing and communicating an AI policy
• How to bring the different areas of the firm up to speed on AI and its potential impact on their sectors. 
• What the AI journey looks like and what are the biggest opportunities for AI in legal marketing.
• Advice for marketers looking to stay ahead of the curve with AI in their firm.

Episode 173 - Laura Klysz of Simmons & Simmons on The Power of Storytelling in Legal Marketing

For law firms to truly stand out, creativity in storytelling is essential. It’s what humanises the brand and helps build stronger, more meaningful relationships with clients and prospects.

On today’s episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Alistair Bone is joined by Laura Klysz, Chief Marketing Officer at Simmons & Simmons, who recently led the firm to a Drum Award nomination for their standout campaign, The Year Ahead 2025.

Laura shares how storytelling has become a powerful foundation of her legal marketing strategy - and how looking beyond the legal sector for inspiration can unlock new levels of creativity and thought leadership.

In this conversation, Laura takes us behind the scenes of The Year Ahead campaign, discussing the concept, the creative process, and the challenges faced along the way, including some surprising results. She also offers a sneak peek at what’s next and how she plans to sustain the momentum.

Laura and Ali explore:

• Her journey to becoming CMO and how it shaped her approach to storytelling
• Why storytelling is central to building a modern legal brand
• What law firms can learn from other industries about creativity and content leadership
• How The Year Ahead campaign was developed, launched, and brought to life with stakeholder buy-in
• The campaign’s internal and external impact - and the unexpected outcomes that followed
• Her strategy for evolving the campaign and keeping it fresh
• Practical advice for CMOs looking to embed storytelling into their marketing efforts

Episode 172 - Nicholas Barrows of Trowers & Hamlins on Blending AI with Human Creativity to Drive Deeper Client Connections

AI and automation are reshaping how professionals engage with their clients and promote their services, but is there any room left for human creativity? 

In today’s episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Charles Cousins is joined by Nicholas Barrows, Director of Marketing at Trowers & Hamlins, to discuss the evolution of AI, data and creativity in marketing and business development.

Nicholas shares his insights on how AI is transforming the professional industry, the journey of their data-driven campaigns like ‘Rethinking Regeneration’, and how professionals can blend AI, data, and human creativity to promote greater client engagement.

Nicholas and Charles cover: 

• How AI and data have changed the way professionals engage with their clients in marketing and business development, and where human creativity fits into this.
• How to leverage AI and automation to uncover new opportunities and drive business development efforts.
• The ‘Rethinking Regeneration’ campaign, and the roles technology and data-driven client engagement play alongside human creativity.
• The challenges of delivering the ‘Rethinking Regeneration’ campaign and how they were tackled.
• Advice for professionals looking to blend AI with creativity for better client engagement.

Episode 11 - CMO Series Digital Masterclass: Chris Yates of Bristows on How to Streamline Your Thought Leadership

Thought leadership is a cornerstone of content marketing in professional services; it showcases your firm’s expertise and strengthens client relationships. The real challenge is uniting lawyers on one platform to centralise and scale thought leadership.

In this episode of CMO Series Digital Masterclass, Will Eke speaks with Chris Yates, Digital Marketing Manager at Bristows, where over 150 authors have published 900+ insights, driving more than 330,000 views.

Chris shares how Bristows has reimagined its approach to thought leadership, brought lawyers on board, and built an internal comms strategy that made it all work.

Will and Chris cover: 

• The platforms and thought leadership strategies Bristows used before Chris joined
• The turning point for Bristows in consolidating the firm's thought leadership platforms
• The steps to managing and streamlining the new strategy and platforms
• How to get lawyers engaged with the new process and the importance of key internal relationships in making the initiative successful
• The strategies used when implementing the adoption of Passle across the firm
• The feedback that has been received from lawyers and partners using Passle and the impact it has had on business development
• The future of the firm's thought leadership strategy
• Advice for getting lawyers on board with a central thought leadership platform 

 

RE-RELEASE: Tracey Whyte on Getting The Most Out of AI in a Lean Marketing and BD team

AI is being leveraged in professional services marketing at a rapid rate, yet there are limited examples of successful adoption. 

In this episode of the CMO Series Podcast re-release series, Tracey Whyte, Director of Business Development and Marketing at Piper Alderman, speaks with Charles Cousins to share practical tips on the applications of AI that she has been using to drive the firm in the market. She also shares the challenges that come with applying AI and how she's navigating them.

Key highlights from this episode include: 

• Tracey’s journey to Piper Alderman
• The early steps to adopting AI
• The use of AI across the marketing and BD functions, and its purpose
• Advice on how to get the most from AI

RE-RELEASE: Joe Green & Monica Rodriguez Kuniyoshi on Integrating Generative AI with Your Experts

We're revisiting standout episodes from the CMO Series Podcast exploring the role of AI in reshaping professional services marketing. 

In this second episode of the series, we look back at an unforgettable session from the CMO Series Live held in New York. Joe Green, Chief Innovation Officer, and Monica Rodriguez Kuniyoshi, Chief Marketing Officer of Gunderson Dettmer, took to the stage to discuss integrating generative AI into their team's expertise.

They cover:

• How they are leveraging AI
• The strategic decisions involved when using and implementing generative AI
• How to keep the human voice central to the firm while embracing the power of AI.

RE-RELEASE: Alison Arjoon and Luke Ferrandino on Shaping a New Era of Collaboration with AI

We’re revisiting standout episodes of the CMO Series Podcast to explore how AI is reshaping professional services marketing. We’ll hear insights directly from industry leaders on the best approaches to integrating AI into your firm and the efficiencies they are seeing.

In this special episode, we look back at a memorable session from the CMO Series Live held in New York.

Alison Arjoon, the Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer at Fragomen, and Luke Ferrandino, who was the CMO at Paul Weiss and is now the Chief Business Development & Marketing Officer at Skadden, took to the stage to discuss how AI is ushering in a new era of collaboration within law firms. 

They cover:

• The role of technology and the challenges faced by both traditional and non-traditional law firms
• Strategies for effectively leveraging technology to streamline processes
• How AI contributes to project success and fosters a new way of collaboration 
• The evolving role of AI and its current and future impact

Episode 171 - Wendy Bernero of Yate Collaborative on Igniting Your Cross-Selling by Delivering Client Value

Every law firm strives to achieve year-on-year profitable revenue growth. As the industry continues to grow more competitive, firms are looking at how to drive sustainable, organic growth by focusing on client value delivery.

On today's episode of the CMO Series Podcast, James Barclay is joined by Wendy Bernero, Founder and Strategic Advisor at Yate Collaborative, who has over 30 years of experience in legal marketing and held Chief roles in firms including Baker McKenzie. Wendy discusses insights on how firms can deliver real value to their clients, the ways to maximise cross-selling and more. 

James and Wendy cover: 

• Wendy’s background in legal marketing and key learnings she's taken into her current role
• The strategies CMOs should implement and stay away from
• The reasons why firms should decide whether they want to be a solution provider or a talent agency
• The framework that Wendy uses to maximise cross-selling and the steps teams should take to make it successful
• The three actions every marketing and BD leader should do to improve their go-to-market strategy