Page 4 - MDPs - Chapter 14 - Multidisciplinayr Practice and Partnershps
P. 4
CHAPTER 14
Multidisciplinary Organizations (MDOs), the Competitive Alternative to
the Big 5
Multidisciplinary services are here to stay. The Big 5 professional service firms are able to offer legal
services in more than 150 countries directly from their offices. They have also formed networks.
Combined, they now have 8,000 attorneys practicing law.
What alternatives does the independent professional service firm have? Are the only alternatives to
either: (1) join an MDP, (2) become an MDP or (3) confine practice to litigation where MDPs may not
practice?
This chapter discusses how service providers of all sizes will be able to offer the full range of services
through Multidisciplinary Organizations (MDOs). In a MDO professional service providers maintain their
independence but geometrically expand their referral base and gain access to the full range of services to
offer clients. The chapter will also analyze how large independent service providers, such as law,
consulting and accounting firms, can create an organization to compete directly with the Big 5.
iii
Multidisciplinary Organizations (MDOs), the Competitive Alternative to
the Big 5
Multidisciplinary services are here to stay. The Big 5 professional service firms are able to offer legal
services in more than 150 countries directly from their offices. They have also formed networks.
Combined, they now have 8,000 attorneys practicing law.
What alternatives does the independent professional service firm have? Are the only alternatives to
either: (1) join an MDP, (2) become an MDP or (3) confine practice to litigation where MDPs may not
practice?
This chapter discusses how service providers of all sizes will be able to offer the full range of services
through Multidisciplinary Organizations (MDOs). In a MDO professional service providers maintain their
independence but geometrically expand their referral base and gain access to the full range of services to
offer clients. The chapter will also analyze how large independent service providers, such as law,
consulting and accounting firms, can create an organization to compete directly with the Big 5.
iii
