I often compare building a key account management (KAM) program to flying a plane while serving tea and coffee. It’s a high-stakes balancing act: you’re trying to keep the business soaring while also orchestrating a smooth new way of working behind the scenes. It’s no surprise that many firms underestimate how complex it can be.
Key account management is a structured, strategic approach to managing a firm’s most valuable client relationships – those that contribute most to revenue, influence, or long-term growth. It involves aligning cross-functional teams around shared objectives with the client, co-developing plans for mutual success, and proactively identifying ways to add value beyond day-to-day service delivery.
When done well, KAM becomes one of the most powerful growth engines for a professional services firm. It deepens client trust, sharpens strategic focus, and drives disproportionate revenue from your most important accounts. The impact of KAM on B2B firms has been well documented in research, showing KAM boosts B2B firms’ market and financial performance by building key competitive advantages and deeper client relationships.
Looking back, with more than a few KAM initiatives under my belt, here are 10 key lessons I wish I had known from the outset.
1. Key account management is a firm-wide initiative, not just a BD initiative
Ignoring this can be a deal breaker. KAM isn’t just about business development – it’s about long-term strategic account development that delivers on the firm’s overall strategy. Treating it as a BD or marketing project creates silos, resistance, and short-term thinking.
Firms that succeed make KAM everyone’s responsibility. HR ensures client relationship partners are supported. Finance creates reporting that reflects account health, not just revenue. Delivery teams prioritise key clients when allocating resources. This unified approach can help ensure key clients receive consistent, high-quality service across all touchpoints with a firm.
When the whole firm sees KAM as central to its strategy, it can gain real momentum.
2. Be clear about your client engagement strategy and make sure your KAM aligns to it
Your KAM elevator pitch should answer the question: “Why are we doing this?”
Without that north star, your efforts can become scattered and tactical. With it, your firm can prioritise investments that build deeper, more valuable client relationships.
Before launching your program, you need to be able to articulate how KAM supports your overall positioning and differentiators in the market. A good test is making sure every senior leader can explain it in plain English.
3. Secure firm-wide alignment and commitment
KAM thrives when leadership visibly champions it. That means firm-wide engagement, repeated communication, and a clear explanation of how it benefits everyone – not just client-facing teams.
There’s something I call the “1,000 conversations” rule: building buy-in requires relentless storytelling. Every senior leader should be able to explain why KAM matters, how it creates value, and what success looks like.
I’ve previously written about the importance of getting leadership buy-in to maximise your client experience strategy. The same applies to KAM. If you want to get anything done in a professional services firm, it needs leadership support.
4. Use market data and client insights for strategic account planning
At Beaton, clients consistently tell us how they use our research, data and insights to drive a sustained change program. Data is your co-pilot in charting any new strategy. Regularly gathering and analysing client success metrics ensures your KAM program stays relevant and responsive.
Closed-loop feedback mechanisms – where client insights lead to measurable internal actions – help bring the client into the process. Utilising a survey software can help.
During the planning stage, if you can bring the client in as an active participant in shaping their account plan, you’re far more likely to have success. Co-creating an account plan ensures the strategy reflects the client’s real priorities, not just your assumptions about them. It also signals genuine partnership – illustrating that you value their insights and are invested in their long-term goals, not just short-term revenue.
5. Start where your firm is at
There’s no universal starting line. Some firms have scattered account plans but no structure. Others may have attempted KAM before but struggled to execute and embed it.
Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the good. Acknowledge where you are today and build from there. Leverage existing efforts, proven advocates and “quick wins” to create early momentum. This builds credibility while you design the more formal framework.
As Bain & Company experts Michael Mankins and Patrick Litré say, “Transformation succeeds when it starts with traction.”
Key account management requires buy-in from leaders across the firm, not just in BD or marketing departments.
6. Focus on high-value accounts and quality over quantity
Too many “key” accounts dilute your impact. This is where many firms stumble – nominating 50 accounts as valuable and then under-serving them all.
Focus is important. Start with a manageable number of accounts based on clear criteria such as profitability, growth potential, strategic alignment, and relationship strength. Observing and tracking factors like the client size, revenue potential, strategic alignment with the firm, historical engagement, and future growth prospects, can help measure the potential value and long-term viability of a relationship.
This approach not only helps the firm add value to the client’s business, positioning the firm as a trusted partner. It can help ensure greater job satisfaction and talent retention of client-facing professionals.
7. Establish HR support for client relationship leads
Client relationship leads are central to the success of KAM. They are directly responsible for nurturing and growing the firm’s most important relationships. But nobody is born a relationship lead.
They need structured support – training in consultative relationship building, coaching on influence and account planning, and clear career incentives. HR must play a proactive role in equipping relationship leads with the mindset and toolkit to thrive.
Leadership should work with HR to implement initiatives that help relationship leads develop these skills and encourage them to strive for excellence in KAM. For example, by tying career progression to key account success and relationship-building. In this way you can encourage relationship leads to align their personal efforts with the long-term goals of the firm, ultimately driving better outcomes for both the firm and its clients.
8. Develop multi-level relationships across the firm
Keeping one contact person in charge of an entire client relationship is a vulnerability for the firm. If that person leaves, changes roles, or becomes unavailable due to illness or travel, the relationship can weaken or even collapse. The client may feel abandoned or disconnected, which can jeopardise retention and revenue.
Having several people from different levels and functions in your firm connected to various client stakeholders will create a better experience for your client, too. Clients in B2B professional services are often complex organisations with multiple stakeholders involved in the projects your firm will work on. Offering multiple experts from different teams in your firm is a more valuable service to the client, and may even help your firm upsell and cross-sell additional services.
As part of our strategic account management process at Beaton, we help you map firm-to-client connections at multiple levels – from partner to partner, senior associate to department lead, analyst to analyst. This builds greater loyalty and makes the relationship harder for competitors to disrupt.
Every senior leader should be able to explain why KAM matters, how it creates value, and what success looks like ... If you want to get anything done in a professional services firm, it needs leadership support.
9. Regularly measure client success metrics
You can’t manage what you don’t measure.
Establish clear key performance indicators (KPIs) to track the health and growth of each account objectively. Include factors that go beyond standard financial KPIs such as client satisfaction, engagement, and progress toward specific business objectives. Regularly reviewing these metrics helps identify areas for improvement and uncover opportunities for growth.
Communicate your metrics relentlessly and make achieving them a priority. Do so internally as part of your “1,000 conversations”, as well as externally with the client. Bringing the client into a conversation about your goals transparently builds trust, strengthens the partnership, and ensures client success remains a shared priority.
10. Use technology judiciously
Technology can turbocharge KAM – but don’t let the tail wag the dog. It’s important that technology supports rather than dominates the KAM process.
CRM systems, analytics dashboards, feedback platforms and collaboration tools can improve efficiency and visibility, but they are enablers, not the engine. The real engine is trust and human connection.
Technology should never replace the personal human touch that is critical for building long-lasting client relationships. In an increasingly digital landscape, you may find many clients are looking for more face-to-face meetings and human connections in business. Human interaction might be a critical differentiator for your firm. Moreover, personal engagement, face-to-face meetings, and meaningful conversations are essential for building trust and understanding client needs on a deeper level.
Final thoughts
Every organisation is different, but these lessons are universally valuable. Understanding that KAM is a strategic, firm-wide initiative, not just a BD function, sets the foundation for success.
With the right structure, visible leadership commitment, and an obsession with delivering measurable client value, firms can build enduring, profitable relationships with their most important clients. A well-executed KAM program will not only drive client engagement but also enhance sales performance, ensuring sustainable growth and long-term success.
Maximise the value of your key clients
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