James J. Stapleton

For nearly two decades, James Stapleton has driven business development, marketing, and client service excellence as the head of these functions at four prominent AmLaw 100 firms in the United States, including Blank Rome, Dickinson Wright, Littler, and Fenwick & West. Across those firms, he built industry sector-specific business development platforms.

His proven track record in accelerating organic growth, enhancing client relationships, and leveraging data-driven strategies has positioned him as a trusted advisor in the legal industry. His leadership coincided with:

• Transformational improvements in institutional client development

• Sector penetration unlike any other law firm

• Client satisfaction improvement

• Record growth rate & AmLaw ranking improvements

Today, as Managing Principal of Client Sciences—a Silicon Valley-based firm founded in 2023—Mr. Stapleton partners with both corporate clients and law firms to optimize legal service ecosystems. For corporate clients (including in-house legal departments), he helps:

• Cultivate an optimal mix of law firms and alternative legal service providers (ALSPs) through AI-powered evaluations and sector-specific indices.

• Enhance the overall client experience with external legal providers via proprietary frameworks like the Client Code of Service Excellence.

• Maximize value from legal spend by shifting to predictable, value-based fee structures and improving operational efficiency.

For law firms, he provides strategic guidance to:

• Deepen industry sector penetration using custom indices (e.g., Sector Penetration Index and Client Service Excellence Index) that benchmark performance in areas like Life Sciences.

• Boost revenue generation through advanced business development, proposal optimization, and client feedback integration.

• Build high-performing marketing and sales teams, drawing on his experience in restructuring departments and training rainmakers.

This dual-sided approach ensures mutually beneficial relationships, informed by thousands of client feedback interviews, post-mortem analyses, and over 7,500 proposal processes.

Career Highlights

• More than quadrupled the long-term average annual organic growth rate at Blank Rome from 1.46% to 7.74%. In his last full year, the firm's AmLaw 100 Profit Per Equity Partner ranking improved to #76 from #81, and Profit Per Lawyer ranking to #55 from #70.

• Led Dickinson Wright to become the fastest-growing firm in the AmLaw Second Hundred (per American Lawyer) with an 8.6% annual growth rate.

• Drove Littler's fastest two-year growth in two decades as CMBDO, more than doubling annual proposal opportunities from 259 to 560 in 20 months. Shortly after his departure, Law360 hailed Littler's marketing program as "one of the five most feared in the AmLaw 100."

• At Fenwick & West, increased annual proposal opportunities from 110 to 606 and trained their long-term CMO, contributing to the firm's rise from #144 in the AmLaw 200 in 2005 to #67 by 2023.

Career Achievements and Experiences

Here is a brief summary of Mr. Stapleton's expertise in branding, business development, client engagement, client relationship management, knowledge management, marketing, marketing technology, revenue generation, sales, and team management—tailored to benefit both law firms and their clients.

Sales, Revenue Generation, Client Service, and KPIs/ROI Metrics Expertise

• Achieved substantive revenue growth at all four AmLaw firms through sophisticated account planning and client experience methodologies.

• Conducted sales and business development coaching for over 300 law firm partners and training sessions for thousands of lawyers.

• Supervised or authored over 7,500 proposals, RFQs, SoQs, RFIs, and pitches, maintaining 50%+ win rates.

• KPI and metrics expert; taught Thomson Reuters/Hildebrandt's first law firm metrics class alongside Baker & McKenzie's former CMO.

• Led thousands of post-mortem discussions and client feedback interviews, integrating insights into relationship plans.

• 10+ years of direct selling experience, including face-to-face sales, tandem selling with partners, and promoting legal services/products.

• 19 years instructing complex sales, business development, marketing, and management skills at PwC and Arthur Andersen.

Technology, Client Relationship Management, and Knowledge Management

• Experienced with comprehensive marketing tech stacks, including AI tools, CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics), competitive intelligence, data platforms, digital advertising, knowledge management, and social media.

• Designed proprietary CRM systems and hired/trained martech teams (twice rebuilt due to poaching).

• Extensive knowledge management and thought leadership experience using platforms like JD Supra, Mondaq, Lexology, and National Law Journal.

• Authored two books on firm development and knowledge management, published by John Wiley & Sons.

Marketing and Branding Successes

• Held national/international industry-specific marketing and sales roles at Big Five accounting firms and large law firms.

• Planned/executed high-ROI events, including Blank Rome's first off-site All-Attorney meeting, Littler's Annual Employer event (1,000+ attendees), Fenwick's 500+ annual events (e.g., Business Plan competition with 120 entrepreneurs and 65 VCs), and Arthur Andersen's Silicon Strategies conference (65 semiconductor CEOs).

• Content management expert: Tripled Blank Rome's content production (including award-winning COVID survey/events); leveraged Littler's 60,000+ pages of annual content to solidify its brand as the top international labor & employment firm; managed PwC's global knowledge for Technology, InfoComm, and Entertainment/Media practices.

• Product marketing expertise: Developed programs for Littler's CaseSmart and Fenwick's Flex by Fenwick.

• Transformed Chambers recognition at Blank Rome and Littler, achieving the second-highest percentage of recognized attorneys among cohort firms at Blank Rome.

Team and Employee Management

• Restructured and revitalized marketing departments at all four firms, with annual surveys showing 40%+ response rates and year-over-year improvements.

• Conducted annual attorney/marketing department surveys with 40%+ response rates with improving results every year at all four firms.

• Hired and managed salespeople and internal and external coaches.

• Supervised/trained eleven current/former law firm CXOs, including:

  • Susan Hollender / Chief Growth Officer, Michael Best & Friedrich

  • Robert Kahn / Chief Marketing Officer, Fenwick & West (now retired, Rob held the role for eight years)

  • Jen Klein / Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Littler

  • Sarah Korth / Chief Business Development Officer, Littler

  • Brandon Lulis / Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer, Dickinson Wright

  • Divya Reddy / Chief Practice Officer, Foley & Lardner

  • Deb Ruffins / Chief Marketing Officer, Perkins Coie (Retired after five years, also held Global Head role at Hogan Lovells)

  • Mitchell Sterling / Chief Client Development Officer, Blank Rome LLP

  • Marianne Talbot / Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer, Bailey Glasser

  • Katherine Tavella / Chief Communications Officer, Blank Rome LLP

  • Jill Toporkiewicz / Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer, Michael Best & Friedrich