For generations, professional services firms have followed a familiar naming formula: take the founders' or partners' last names, put them together, and call it a day.
From law firms like Kirkland & Ellis and Latham & Watkins to accounting giants like Deloitte and Ernst & Young, surnames have long dominated the professional services landscape. These names carry a sense of history, credibility, and tradition. After all, when clients are trusting someone with their legal matters, finances, or business strategy, reputation matters.
But as professional services firms evolve, expand into new markets, and compete for clients, the traditional naming convention is being reconsidered.
Today, some firms are embracing shorter, more distinctive names, while others are moving away from people's names entirely.
So, should your professional services firm carry its founders' or partners' names, or is it time to think beyond tradition?
The history behind founders' names in professional services
The tradition of naming businesses after their founders has deep roots in professional services, particularly in the legal industry.Historically, law firms were built around individual practitioners and partnerships. A lawyer's name was closely tied to their reputation, expertise, and relationships. As firms grew, additional partners' names were often added, creating the multi-surname convention we recognize today.
For much of the 20th century, this wasn't simply a matter of preference. Professional ethics rules in the United States generally prohibited law firms from using trade names, requiring them to operate under the names of lawyers associated with the practice.
These restrictions gradually changed, allowing firms greater flexibility to adopt brand names, provided they weren't false or misleading.
Despite the evolution of these rules, the tradition has remained remarkably strong.
Consider firms like Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom or Sullivan & Cromwell. Their names originated with individuals, but over decades they became institutional brands with reputations extending far beyond their founding partners.
The same pattern can be seen in accounting, consulting, architecture, advertising, and other professional services industries.
But just because a naming convention is traditional doesn't necessarily mean it's the best strategic choice for every business.
When does using a founder's name make sense?
In the Entrepreneur article, Should You Name Your Business After Yourself?, Heirloom principal Rob Meyerson explores situations where using a personal name can be a smart branding decision.
His central argument is that there isn't a universally correct answer. The right naming approach depends on the business, its audience, and its long-term goals.
For professional services firms, several of his considerations are particularly relevant.
1. When the founder already has an established reputation
If a founder is well-known and respected within an industry, their name may already carry valuable brand equity.
Think of a respected attorney launching an independent practice or a recognized financial advisor starting a consultancy. Their established reputation can provide an immediate advantage in attracting clients.
Rather than building recognition from scratch, the business can leverage the trust and professional credibility that already exist.
2. When personal relationships are central to the business
Professional services are often built on trust. Clients aren't simply purchasing a product; they're hiring people whose expertise, judgment, and experience they depend on.
A founder-based name can reinforce that personal connection, making the firm feel more approachable and accountable.
For boutique law firms, advisory practices, and independent consultancies, this personal association can be an advantage.
3. When the name is distinctive and memorable
As Rob points out, a successful name needs to balance simplicity with distinctiveness.
A name that's easy to pronounce and remember can be valuable, but a surname isn't automatically distinctive just because it's personal.
In fact, professional services firms face an unusual challenge: so many competitors use the same surname-based formula that even uncommon names can begin to blend together.
The result is an industry filled with names that communicate professionalism but don't help with differentiation.
The challenges of naming a firm after its founders
While founder-based names offer advantages, they can also present challenges as a business evolves.
Lack of differentiation
When dozens of firms use similar combinations of surnames, initials, and professional designations, it becomes difficult for any one name to stand out.
In advertising, for example, famous firms over the decades have included DDB, BBDO, W+K, Y&R, FCB, TBWA, IPG, WPP, and JWT.
When last names and initialisms start to blur together in an industry, professional services firms may be trading perceived stature and credibility for a lack of distinctiveness and memorability.
Limitations on growth
What happens when a founding partner retires? When the business expands into new service categories? Or when the firm acquires another company?
A name closely tied to specific individuals can create challenges as the organization changes.
For firms pursuing acquisitions or planning for long-term growth, an independent brand name may provide greater flexibility.
Perceived size and scale
Another consideration Rob highlights is that a personal name can sometimes make a business sound smaller.
That perception might be beneficial for a boutique practice emphasizing personal attention, but less advantageous for a firm positioning itself as a large, multidisciplinary organization.
How professional services naming has evolved
Some of the world's most recognizable professional services businesses demonstrate how naming strategies can evolve alongside broader business ambitions.
PwC: Simplifying without losing heritage
When Price Waterhouse and Coopers & Lybrand merged in 1998, the resulting organization became PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The name preserved the histories of both firms but created an unusually long corporate moniker.
In 2010, the organization formally shortened its brand name to PwC.
The change didn't eliminate its heritage. Instead, it created a simpler, more recognizable identity while retaining the equity associated with the established business.
Accenture: Creating a brand beyond the founder
One of the clearest examples of moving beyond a legacy name is Accenture.
Previously known as Andersen Consulting, the organization adopted the Accenture name in 2001 following its separation from Arthur Andersen.
Evoking the phrase "accent on the future," the new name helped communicate an independent identity centered on forward-thinking consulting and technology.
Rather than relying on a founder's surname, Accenture created a distinctive brand capable of supporting its global ambitions.
Dentons: Unifying firms under one identity
The global law firm Dentons was established in 2013 through the combination of SNR Denton, Salans, and Fraser Milner Casgrain.
Rather than combining all the legacy names into one lengthy title, the organization adopted “Dentons,” retaining one of the oldest surnames in the mix—that of Samuel Denton, an English solicitor who established a law firm in London in 1788.
The name retained a connection to its history while providing a more streamlined identity for an international firm.
These examples represent different approaches to professional services naming: abbreviation, reinvention, and consolidation.
What they share is an understanding that a firm's name should support its business strategy, not simply reflect its history.
The shift toward more distinctive professional services brands
As professional services firms become increasingly sophisticated in their marketing and branding, there's a growing opportunity to look beyond traditional naming conventions.
A strategically developed name can communicate ideas that surnames alone may not.
A new name might suggest a firm's philosophy, highlight its positioning, evoke a particular feeling, or simply create a memorable identity in an otherwise conventional category.
Consider the advantages of an independent brand name:
Differentiation: A distinctive name can help the business stand apart from competitors with similar-sounding names.
Flexibility: A broader identity can accommodate new services, markets, acquisitions, and future leadership changes.
Brand positioning: An original name can express ideas or associations relevant to the firm's expertise and approach.
Organizational identity: A standalone brand can represent the collective business rather than only its founding partners.
Of course, choosing an original name isn't necessarily easier.
It requires a thoughtful naming process, competitive research, legal screening, and a clear understanding of the brand's strategic direction.
And while an evocative or invented name may be more distinctive, it doesn't automatically communicate the credibility that an established founder's name might already possess.
So, should your firm use the founders' or partners’ names?
The answer comes down to what you want your brand to accomplish.
For a boutique professional services firm built around a recognizable individual, using a founder's name may be an excellent strategy.
For an ambitious organization planning to expand across industries, markets, or service offerings, a more independent identity might make sense.
Before deciding, consider a few important questions:
Does the founder's name already carry recognition and credibility with the intended audience?
Is the name distinctive enough to stand out from competitors?
Does the name reflect the size, capabilities, and positioning of the business?
Can the name support future growth, acquisitions, or succession?
Does it help communicate what makes the firm different?
In his Entrepreneur article, Rob suggests an especially useful approach for businesses weighing these options: explore original naming possibilities before comparing them against the founder's name.
Rather than assuming one approach is best, evaluate both against the business's long-term goals.
And for established professional services firms, it's important to remember that changing a name isn't always necessary. A name that's been built into a respected brand over decades may carry significant value worth preserving.
The right name should work for your future, not just your past
Professional services naming has come a long way from the days when combining partners' surnames was the default, or even the only permitted option.
Some of the world's most respected professional services brands continue to carry the names of their founders, but others have built equally powerful identities through entirely different approaches.
The strongest name isn't necessarily the most traditional or the most creative. It's the one that best supports the business behind it.
Whether you're naming a new firm, navigating a merger, or evaluating an established brand, the decision should begin with strategy.
At Heirloom, we help businesses develop names and brand identities designed to create meaningful differentiation and support long-term growth.
Thinking about what's next for your firm's brand? Let's find a name that can grow with you. Get in touch.