Objective

The Legal Marketing Association seeks a facilitator to lead the Strategic Planning Task Force and Board of Directors in a long-range strategic planning process. The end result will be a 3-5 year strategic plan for the association. Phase 1 of the process will be working with the Task Force, appointed by the President of the Association. (Task Force roster attached) Phase 2 will continue with the Board of Directors through the adoption and implementation of the recommendations produced in Phase 1.

Background

The Legal Marketing Association (LMA) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to serving the needs and maintaining the professional standards of the men and women involved in marketing within the legal profession. One of the principal goals of the Legal Marketing Association is to provide to its members vital and timely information on a wide variety of legal marketing issues so that they may grow professionally as well as personally. LMA members immediately gain access to a wealth of resources including national and regional educational programs, the monthly newsletter Strategies, LMA Web site and online job bank, industry specific market research, timely and provocative white papers and much more. More than networking - LMA provides real tools and a knowledge bank so that members are empowered to build successful practices in today's competitive legal marketplace. Over 3,000 members strong, and growing, LMA was founded in 1985 and currently has seventeen local chapters located across North America, including Vancouver and Toronto. Our members are marketing professionals, consultants and vendors who support legal services marketing. 80% of the largest 250 U.S. law firms employ an LMA member.

For more than 20 years, the Legal Marketing Association has been the voice of legal marketing professionals and attorneys looking to develop their practices. The association addresses the demanding needs of its members by providing:

• Continuing educational and professional development opportunities
• Forums for open exchange of ideas and knowledge
• Establishment of professional ethics and standards of conduct and performance
• Education to the legal community as well as other professionals about the important role law firm marketing plays within the industry

LMA’s mission is to serve the needs and maintain the professional standards of those involved in marketing for the legal profession. Our objectives are:

• to establish and maintain an international organization to assist in establishing professional standards of performance;
• to encourage and provide continuing education and professional development in the field;
• to use the knowledge and experience of the members to promote the marketing profession in the legal community; and
• to provide a forum for the sharing of ideas and experiences among its members taking into consideration the competitive position of the members’ firms and the confidential nature of certain issues.

To effect the foregoing, LMA shall endeavor:

• to encourage active and organized communication and cooperation among members;
• to foster and provide training and research in the field;
• to foster professional and ethical conduct in the field;
• to enhance the growth and stature of the profession; and
• to perform any and all such other acts as are necessary, convenient and proper to the attainment of these objectives.

Deliverables/Timeline

Responses are due May 5^th and will be evaluated immediately. Please include a project management timeline and budget to demonstrate when, where and how each requirement of the project will be met to achieve the desired deadline for project Phase 1 completion by October 1^st. Selection of the facilitator will be made within two weeks and all individuals/companies who submit a response will be notified by May 23^rd. Strategic planning data collection and concurrent Task Force discussions will be conducted during May, June and July 2008, with necessary meetings conducted by conference call. A two-day in-person meeting is currently anticipated on July 22^nd and 23^rd in Chicago. A number of conference calls may be necessary as a follow-up to the July in-person meeting as the final recommendations are formed. The final strategic plan document, including all analysis, graphs, and related content will be delivered in Microsoft Word and PDF to Betsi Roach by October 1^st. Phase 2 process would start with Phase 1 recommendations submission to Board of Directors in October 2008 and would be completed by the Board meeting at the April 2009 Annual Conference. Consultant proposal should include design of this phase.

About You

Please include with your proposal a summary of your company’s products and services along with a client list and provide at least three references. Important areas of information will include: What process, procedures and methodologies will you use to complete this project? What qualifies you to complete this planning and make recommendations? Please provide information on your experience, education and expertise and that of your employees and/or subcontractors along with resumes and anticipated work assignments for anyone who will work on the project.

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated based on compliance with the requirements in this RFP. Evaluations will be based on a demonstration of the bidders’ capacity to deliver the desired work products using the following criteria:

• Approach/Methodology (30%)

Assessment of methodologies used in facilitation skills and developing recommendations 

• Experience and Qualifications (30%)

The successful bidder will have experience in facilitating and developing strategic long-range plans for membership associations.

Quality of recommendations from references and similarity of projects completed for these organizations.

Quality and thoroughness of proposal.

• Budget Justification and Timeline (30%)

The awarded proposal will fairly represent the cost of delivering the expected work product within the specified timeframe. Please price Phase 1 and Phase 2 separately. 

• Insights and Approaches (10%): 
• What are some common salient strategic opportunities and threats that other professional associations and their members face right now?
• In what fruitful or appropriate ways have you seen other professional associations approach strategic planning?

Confidentiality

LMA will provide the facilitator with key information required for this project. The selected facilitator and agrees to hold this data in the strictest confidence and agrees to not disclose it to any third party for any reason. The chosen facilitator(s) agrees to use this data exclusively for LMA purposes, and to not sell it, rent it, or use it for any third party.

Please review the above information and respond to

LMA-RFP@tcag.com by 5pm Central on May 5.