Glenville Walker was founded in 2017 by managing partner Denise Walker, alongside her daughter, director and group CEO, Hazel Walker. The family-run law firm specialises in corporate, litigation, dispute resolution, commercial and residential property, and advises SME businesses of many different sizes and specialisms across the UK.
The firm spent its first five years building a strong portfolio of clients, winning new business, and investing in talent to build a team of 18 legal experts. It was at this point that Hazel, Denise and their senior management team realised that to keep growing successfully, they needed to put more robust plans in place to cope with increasing demand. Hazel and Denise also wanted to ensure a clear succession plan was in place, by building a strong management board to help steer future development strategies for the firm.
To capitalise on new growth opportunities and create a robust plan to futureproof the business, Hazel decided to enrol on 12-week Help to Grow: Management Course which is designed to help business leaders and senior managers increase resilience, innovation and growth.
The course was delivered by the University of Liverpool’s Management School – a recipient of the Small Business Charter accreditation that recognises institutions that support small business – and gave Hazel the skills needed to implement a robust succession plan and enhance the firm’s business strategy.
Hazel also learned how to effectively communicate, guide, and manage expectations of the senior management team, utilising case studies from the course. This resulted in the appointment of two new board members – a vital part of the new succession plan – and the launch of a litigation and dispute resolution department. This additional service has opened a new revenue stream for the firm and enabled it to increase its range of services so that it can now provide a one-stop-shop of specialist business advice to clients, removing any previous need to outsource support to external consultants.
The additional service has also helped contribute towards the firm’s 38% increase in fee income over the course of the past financial year.
Hazel Walker, Chief Executive Officer at Glenville Walker, said: “Denise worked at one of the region’s most prominent law firms for 27 years, so growing up, I was familiar with the legal sector and we thought it would be great to combine her legal expertise and my business acumen and start our own business together.
“We wanted to break the mould of traditional legal practise and provide clear, tailored, solutions driven advice and support to help owner managed businesses thrive across the UK. We value our client relationships which enables us to intrinsically understand the needs of their businesses. That is why we designed the firm to act as an extension of our clients’ in-house teams. While growth has always been on the agenda, we wish to stay in the SME market to allow us to remain in-tune with our loyal clients. Our main objective is to continue to add to our specialist services for the benefit of our clients’ experience and to target new markets.”
“Following on from our initial success, we knew we needed to formulate a strategy for future growth. Thanks to the Help to Grow: Management Course, I’ve been able to change the mindset of our senior team to help us expand our revenue streams.
I’ve always wanted people to see me for my talent and passion for the business, not just as a family member at the firm, so it’s important I can effectively communicate the changes I feel are best to push the business forward.”
“We want to inspire and invest in the next generation of talented business lawyers, so having a plan in place now is essential especially if we want to prepare them for management. The course gave me the confidence to deliver new ideas in a factual way to the board, and to bring real change in the business, not least to start to implement the succession plan. Finding a way to communicate clearly has really helped the senior team to plan ahead and I’m excited to continue bringing ideas to the table to drive future growth.”
Michael Hayman MBE, Chair, Small Business Charter, added: “Understanding the strengths of your business and knowing how to differentiate yourself is critical to growth. Glenville Walker had a strong understanding of their target audience and their proposition and have used the experience of the Help to Grow: Management Course to introduce an additional, complementary service line for their customers, reduce their reliance on third parties, and increase revenue.
“The course gives business leaders like Hazel the skills and knowledge needed to translate a business strategy into realistic and achievable goals that drive commercial success. Being confident of the decisions behind your strategy is key to being able to communicate the benefits to fellow members of the senior management team and your employees. With the tools and frameworks that participants use during the course, they are able to work through their strategy and then explain it with confidence, bringing everybody with them on their journey. We wish Hazel, Denise and the entire team at Glenville Walker every success for the future.”
Business leaders can find out more about Help to Grow: Management and sign up for their nearest course here.
About Help to Grow: Management:
Help to Grow: Management is a 12-week course designed to support business leaders and senior managers to increase resilience, innovation and growth within their organisations.
Delivered by Small Business Charter accredited business schools, the course is available in more than 60 locations across the UK and is 90% government funded. It is designed to fit around existing work and personal commitments, providing business leaders with more than 50 hours of online and in person training including 10 hours of one-to-one mentoring. Individuals completing the course automatically join the Alumni Network, where they have access to exclusive events, content and partner offers, as well as the support of a UK-wide peer network.
The Small Business Charter, which oversees Help to Grow: Management, is an award for the UK’s world-class business schools. The Charter was developed by Lord Young, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, and the Chartered Association of Business Schools to celebrate business schools that play an effective role in supporting the UK’s 5.8m SMEs and their local economies by extension.