Podcast 105: Ron Baker on Value pricing, value billing and the billable hour
Today I am talking to Ronald J. Baker who started his accounting career in 1984 with KPMG Peat Marwick’s Private Business Advisory Services in San Francisco. Today, he is the founder of VeraSage Institute, a think tank dedicated to teaching Value Pricing to professionals around the world
Listen to the podcast with Ron Baker
References:
Verasage Institute
Burying the Billable Hour; and Trashing the Timesheet; published by the UK ACCA. You can download both short books in pdf, at (scroll towards bottom of page)
A blog post that summarizes what is needed for firms to move away from billable hours and timesheets, with many additional resources summarized by category:
Webinar: Ron baker on Value Pricing
Webinar: Value pricing for lawyers Part 3
Podcast content:
Definitions
Value pricing
Value billing
Alternative fee arrangements
Timeline summary of the issue
From the ABA Report on the Billable Hour to the ACC Value Challenge
What’s in it for the client –why is it good them?
Predictability of spend
Better communication
Better service
What’s in it for the lawyer?
Predictable revenue
Opportunity to leverage profitability or resources
Improved client satisfaction
Shift in client communication from bills to status reports
Value pricing does away with disputes around “reasonable” fees
Opportunity to garner positive PR/press in local and industry press
Barriers
The lawyer’s barriers
The buyer’s barriers
Rebutting lawyers’ objections
The recession and legal-spend cutbacks/caps are exerting downward price pressure
Buyers can only compare price the old model
The inexorable forces at work that are chipping away at resistance to the old paradigm
Tech efficiency
Unbundled legal services
Multi-jurisdictional practice
Legal process outsourcing
Others
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