Before you read this article any further, we would like you to make a little calculation. Consider a recent invitation to tender that your firm was involved in but was unsuccessful. Calculate the cost of the fee earner hours involved in the whole pitch process. Now add the support service staff’s time that was used. Add in the opportunity cost – what you could have been doing instead. Add in the cost of all the materials that went into responding to the pitch. Put it all together for the total cost of that new business pitch. How much did it amount to?
In recent years, as the legal market has become more competitive, many firms have seen involvement in new business pitches run into several thousands of pounds, sometimes for no return. This is both a huge waste of resources and demotivating to all involved. Yet it is rare for a firm to decline an invitation to tender.
