This month’s Member Spotlight features Sameer Dhargalkar, Manager, Business Development and Market Intelligence, at Ogilvy Renault LLP.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up and how has your career path developed from there?
I wanted to be a biologist. I grew up in St. John’s, Newfoundland and in high school and university, I studied the sciences. One day, while working on my Masters thesis, alone in a lab peering down a microscope, a switch went off in my head. I realized that as a fairly social person, I needed a different career path. After much soul searching, I halted my Masters and went into the MBA program. I completed an internship with Foreign Affairs and International Trade at the High Commission in Hong Kong, helping to promote Canadian companies in South East Asia. After graduation, this internship led directly to a four-year stint as a Business Development Officer with the Canadian Consulate in New York focusing on the technology sector. I eventually made the transition into the technology private sector. A few years later, being a fairly creative person, I wanted to scratch the right side of my brain, so I ventured to the west coast to attend a well known film and design program. I returned to the east coast thereafter, eventually ending up in Toronto and continuing my work in the technology sector.
How did you get started in the legal arena?
I was drawn into the legal field by a recruiter looking for a business development manager at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. It was challenging, given that law firms were only just beginning to embrace business development at that time. I enjoyed deepening my exposure to the corporate client base in Canada and bringing a more rigorous process and methodology to legal business development. After two years with BLG, I joined Ogilvy Renault LLP as the Business Development & Market Intelligence Manager. I’ve been there for the past two and a half years.
What do you love about your work?
I enjoy collaborating with our lawyers and senior management to identify and determine strategies to generate new business. I also really enjoy working with our marketing team. They’re a talented group who are very skilled at what they do. It’s very collegial here. We have fun while doing what we do.
What is your biggest challenge at work?
One of the biggest challenges from a market intelligence perspective is getting relevant information in a timely manner to the right decision makers at our firm. We are making great strides to leverage the intelligence in the firm to develop new business opportunities. The legal industry in Canada is still relatively new to market intelligence but the buy-in from our lawyers is positive, allowing this service to improve and grow.
When did you join LMA and how has it helped your career?
I joined when the Toronto chapter was started. I had joined the international organization years ago, but there wasn’t much Canada-specific content at that time and I found that associations like the Legal Sales and Services Organization afforded learning opportunities specific to business development. With the Toronto LMA chapter newly invigorated, I find the networking and educational aspects of LMA valuable – the opportunity to talk with industry peers, bouncing ideas off each other, sharing issues and challenges, and learning from that.
What are you passionate about outside of your work?
I have a real passion for photography, particularly in the Toronto urban setting. However, I take an inordinate number of shots of my dog, Loki. As a technology geek, I am gadget-obsessed. If only our IT department would support an iPhone!