Passle CMO Series Podcast

Adapting the big law playbook and driving the same high standards without the big law budget has never been more relevant for growing firms.   On today's episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Will Eke is joined by Sarah High, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Yetter Coleman, about what it takes to successfully build a BD function from the ground up in a boutique litigation firm. Drawi...

As the role of a legal marketer evolves beyond traditional definitions, it is important that marketing and BD professionals actively redefine and shape the role’s future direction. On this week's episode of the CMO Series Podcast Alistair Bone is joined by Jennifer Shankleton, Chief Growth and Development Officer at Brennan Manna & Diamond LLC, a title introduced in recognition that the market...

Building a BD function that actually drives revenue, not just activity, is something many law firms talk about but few get right. On today's episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Will Eke is joined by Helen Griffiths, Head of Business Development at Fladgate, who brings a genuinely distinctive perspective to the role, having spent her career across litigation funding, global law firms and a leading c...

In most large law firms, a small handful of clients truly move the needle on revenue, yet BD efforts are still spread thinly across the board. In today’s episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Will Eke sits down with Rob Gijsen, Chief Marketing Officer at CMS, who has spent nearly three decades in senior BD and marketing roles at some of the world's largest firms. In the last year, Rob has driven the...

In a market where everyone has smart people, strong credentials, and now access to the same AI tools, what is the actual differentiator and how do firms truly stand out? On today's episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Alex Haidar is joined by Roanne Neuwirth, a B2B enterprise marketing leader and advisor whose career spans over two decades across law firms, global management consultancies, and bouti...

Building a growth function from scratch has never been more important for law firms, yet it remains one of the hardest things to get right. It means bringing in new people, shaping roles that have never existed before, and responding to a shifting market, all while respecting a firm's culture and heritage. Getting that all right is no mean feat.  On today's episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Will...

55% of law firms say cross-selling is one of their most important levers for revenue growth, yet only 19% strongly agree they're effective at it. That gap between ambition and execution is at the heart of our latest research and it's costing firms real revenue and opportunities. Today on the CMO Series Podcast, Dionne Cole is joined by James Barclay, CEO of Passle Inc, to discuss the findings from...

The countdown is officially on for CMO Series Live 2026! Just 3 weeks to go until the action-packed day of networking, collaboration, and learning with legal marketing and BD professionals from across the industry. No more FOMO, having to choose what sessions you attend in the morning. It's going to just be one single stream, and that's allowed us to factor in more of that networking that we know...

Law firms talk a lot about client relationships. But turning that into something consistent, scalable and truly integrated across a firm is a very different challenge.  In this episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Eugene McCormick is joined by Bela Grover, who most recently served as Chief Client Relationship Officer at Goodwin Procter LLP, to explore what it truly takes to formalise client developm...

Getting the right MarTech stack in place has never been more critical, yet many firms struggle with getting the high-stake investment projects off the ground. Today on the CMO Series Podcast, Charles Cousins sits down with Iwona Kesting, Director of Business Development and Communications at Jones Day, to unpack what it really takes to secure firm-wide backing and how to make tech deliver real imp...

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...

Business development is something every law firm talks about, but far fewer truly embed it into the day-to-day habits of their lawyers.  On the latest episode on the CMO Series Podcast, we sit down with Gemma Francis, a legal BD consultant who spent years working in-house before stepping out on her own. Gemma now works closely with law firms and lawyers to rethink business development approaches,...

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-up...

Client experience is fast becoming a key driver of long-term growth for law firms that want to deliver real value, build lasting client relationships and stand out in the market. On today’s new episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Charles Cousins joins Vanessa Crocetto, who recently became Butzel’s first Chief Experience Officer, after more than a decade leading the marketing and business developmen...

Firms cannot afford to fall at the final hurdle. BD must work alongside fee earners to equip them with greater confidence to win and grow client relationships themselves. On this latest episode of the Passle CMO Series Podcast, Charles Cousins is joined by Alexis Gray, who has held senior marketing and BD leadership roles at PwC, Grant Thornton, Bond Dickinson and The Berkeley Partnership, as well...

The most effective legal marketing today is designed to be useful, not just visible. Firms that are seeing real results are building targeted campaigns that connect insight directly to client need and, ultimately, to revenue. In today's episode of the CMO Series, Will Eke is joined by Kimberly Rennick, Chief Business Development and Marketing Officer at Thompson Coburn, to explore how bespoke, tim...

The smartest PR strategy for law firms isn’t creating more content, it’s repurposing existing expertise and turning that powerful thought leadership into media opportunities. In today’s episode of CMO Series Digital Masterclass, Yasmin Zand sits down with Ryan Evans, Director of Public Relations and Communications at Jones Walker, to learn all about how to grow a world-class PR pipeline.  In this...

To mark International Women’s Day 2026, Part two of our special episode of CMO Series REPRESENTS brings together senior leaders from across the legal sector to focus on one thing. How firms turn intent into action for women in law. The conversation centres on advocacy and access, who is in the room when decisions are made, who gets named in the room when they are not there, and who is given real e...

To mark International Women’s Day 2026, CMO Series REPRESENTS returns with a powerful conversation on leadership, equity and action in legal marketing. In part one of this special edition, we bring together senior marketing and business development leaders from across the profession to explore how firms can build a true culture of giving to gain, where collaboration, sponsorship and shared success...

Building that long-term leverage can be difficult with short bursts of visibility. You need to consistently show up, make yourself known, and build relationships before you need them. In today’s CMO Series Rainmakers episode, we are joined by Laurie Burlingame, a Corporate Partner at Morse, who shares her grounded view on what rainmaking really looks like in this current legal market as proactive...

In this episode of the CMO Series podcast, we're joined by Doug Gold, Chief Operating Officer at Mitchell Silberberg and Knupp to explore what that means in practice.  Doug shares his career journey and what first bought wellbeing into focus at MSK, and he'll also talk about how the wellness program got off the ground, the realities of building internal support around it and getting it going. Char...

True innovation in law firms goes beyond AI. It's rooted in humanity, with the people and process creating true client value. On today’s episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Will Eke is joined by Aubrey Bishai, Chief Innovation Officer at Vinson & Elkins, to explore the true meaning of innovation and the evolving client expectations around AI. Aubrey joins us to unpack how the firm’s unique lead...

Most law firms pitch a lot. Far fewer pitch well. And that gap represents one of the biggest missed growth opportunities in the legal market. In the latest episode of the CMO Series Podcast, Charles Cousins is joined by Patrick Johnson, Chief Business Development & Marketing Officer at Honigman, to explore the importance of culture and client-centric storytelling in pitches. After a month in h...

Building a book of business isn’t about being perfect or staying invisible, it’s about being consistently authentic and recognizable long before clients even need you. On today’s episode of CMO Series Rainmakers, we’re joined by someone who has redefined what it means to build a book of business in Big Law. Mona Dajani, Partner and the Global Co-Chair of the Energy, Infrastructure and Hydrogen tea...

A consistent client experience doesn’t start with clients. It begins with strong internal alignment throughout the firm, built on trust, collaboration, and a proactive culture. In this episode of the CMO Series Podcast, we’re diving into one firm’s bold growth journey. Lowenstein Sandler has set its sights on expanding from 400 to 700 lawyers in just five years. But behind that ambition lies a big...