For many years, senior IP experts could build authority through technical knowledge, legal precision and analytical depth. These things still matter. In complex IP work, they matter a great deal.

But they no longer explain why some experts become trusted strategic advisors, while others remain highly competent specialists who are only brought in once the problem has already been defined.

The difference becomes visible in moments when clients are not simply asking for an answer. They are trying to make sense of a decision.

A product launch is approaching, but the competitive landscape is unclear. A technology has strong potential, but its commercial direction is still open. A company is entering a new market, defending its position, or deciding how much risk it can afford to take. In these situations, clients rarely need more information alone. They need someone who helps them understand what the information means.

This is where the role of senior IP experts is shifting.

Orientation, judgment, narrative coherence

Clients still expect expertise and analysis. But from the people they truly rely on, they increasingly expect three more things.

Orientation means helping clients see where they are, what matters most and what could happen next, reducing complexity without oversimplifying it. Many clients are surrounded by data, internal pressure and competing priorities. A senior expert creates value by helping them distinguish between what is urgent, what is strategically relevant and what should not distract them.

Judgment goes further. What is legally possible may not be commercially wise. What is technically defensible may not support the company’s long-term ambition. What looks like a narrow IP decision may influence pricing power, investor confidence or negotiation strength. Clients expect senior IP experts to recognise these connections and help them make better decisions.

Narrative coherence is the least visible of the three, and the most underestimated. It is not storytelling in a superficial sense. It is the ability to create a clear line of meaning between the facts, the risk, the opportunity, and the recommendation. In complex environments, clients do not only evaluate what you say. They evaluate whether they can follow your thinking and whether your advice helps them explain the decision to others.

This matters because IP decisions rarely stay within the IP function. They need to be understood by founders, management teams, investors, R&D and business units. If the IP expert cannot help create a shared understanding across these audiences, the strongest analysis may still fail to influence the outcome.

Communication is part of the work

Communication is often treated as something that happens after the real work is done. In reality, it is part of how expert value becomes visible.

A client may not need to know every argument behind a recommendation. They need to understand the two or three factors that change the decision. They may not need a long picture of the entire IP landscape. They need a clear view of what it means for their next move. They do not need to hear everything that could go wrong. They need a structured view of which risks are acceptable, which are manageable, and which should change the strategy.

The way a recommendation is framed can determine whether it is understood as a technical note, a legal warning, or a strategic contribution. That framing is not separate from the expert’s value: it is part of it.

What this means for senior partners

This has direct implications for how senior partners in IP firms position themselves and their teams externally.

Many want to be seen as strategic advisors, but their external communication still positions them as technical specialists. Their articles explain legal developments but rarely show how they think about business implications. Their profiles list experience but do not make their perspective clear. What clients are actually looking for, orientation, judgment, coherence, remains invisible from the outside.

In markets where several firms offer comparable credentials and service areas, this is where the real difference lies. And these differences rarely become visible by accident. They need to be identified and expressed with clarity, both at the individual level and in how the firm presents its senior expertise to the market.

What feels like “just how we work” may be precisely the reason a client should choose you. The task is to make that visible.

For senior IP experts, this may be one of the most important positioning challenges of the coming years. As technology, competition and client expectations evolve, expertise will remain essential. But clients will increasingly look for partners who help them navigate uncertainty, not only interpret information.

The question is not only whether you have the expertise clients need.

The question is whether your clients can clearly see what your expertise helps them do.

Until then, a question to reflect on:

When clients think of you today, do they mainly associate you with answers — or with the judgment that helps them make better decisions?

About the columnist

Giulia Donato
Branding & Communication Advisor | Executive Coach | Lecturer
people & brand strategies
www.donatostrategies.com