Field notes
Notes from fee schedules, engagement letters, and partner rooms
Short articles on pricing strategy for professional services firms — written for partners who set fees, not for generic business readers.
When hourly rates stop reflecting the value of the work
Professional services firms often keep raising the hourly figure while clients still negotiate hard. The gap usually sits in how scope and outcomes are described, not in the number itself.
Write-downs often begin in the engagement letter
Fee write-downs are frequently blamed on difficult clients. In practice, many start with soft language about scope that partners never intended to leave open.
Designing retainers that clients renew without resentment
Retainers fail when they feel like prepaid hours with a loyalty discount. They work when both sides can describe what access and priorities the retainer buys.
How to run a partner meeting about fees without circling for hours
Fee debates stall when every partner brings a different anecdote. A short shared brief and a few decision rules keep the discussion practical.