A few interesting notes:
If you missed reading Bruce MacEwen's posts about the post-recession legal economy, you can either scroll through his blog or read it as an e-book (which is what I did, so I could read it on a plane on the way to a client's firm retreat).
Must read.
Insightful article on cultural differences and how we see the world here.
Like it or not, we are - and have been - working in a global marketplace where people have different world views. This article illustrates a few examples of how a US-centric viewpoint is not shared by others that we work with around the world.
I am fortunate to have clients across North America, Asia, the Caribbean and EU. I agree with Mark Herrmann when he writes:
"I was convinced that there are times when you and someone from another country will see an issue entirely differently, and speaking forthrightly about cultural differences might help you to work together more effectively."
Jeffrey Lowe of Major Lindsay Africa shares 13 insights on the future of law firms. Worth a read, especially the parts of growing and stagnent markets. He too emphasizes the need to develop competent leadership in law firms:
"Now more than ever, firms that lack competent leaders, sound strategies or both will be extremely vulnerable. Some firms have already begun to gravitate toward more professional managers/leaders, forcing partners to cede some measure of control to professional business men and women who are more accustomed to managing in these types of competitive environments (though this has not always been successful). Succession will be a huge issue in the decade ahead, and it is unclear whether the traditional “player/coach” model can survive in the 21st century."
Thank you John Remsen and Jeffrey Horn for these great tips.
Spot on.
Interesting essay by Ben W. Heineman, Jr., is Distinguished Senior Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Program on the Legal Profession on the Yale Law Journal, calling for leadership training and experience for law students:
"To prepare for contemporary leadership, one set of courses would be the study of organizational theory and behavior, of moral and ethical (not just legal) reasoning in an institutional context, and leadership styles and methods. Another example would be broader interdisciplinary courses on key international issues: global security, global economic integration, and global institution-building. Such courses could be complemented by developing for-credit semesters at law schools abroad (Beijing, Heidelberg, London, Paris).
More ambitiously, we should bust the barriers between law, business, and public policy schools and offer truly integrated joint degree programs in three, not four, years. Such three year JD-MBA or JD-MPP programs would based on the premise, well understood but not publicly acknowledged, that the second and third years of law school are progressively more repetitive and less valuable to students.
Finally, law schools should involve the profession more frequently and more intensely in their intellectual life (for example, practicing lawyers are today on the cutting edge of many global issues). Indeed, it may be time for a candid discussion of whether the faculty at law schools looks down on the profession—and on teaching broader skills for those who would become leaders—and exploration of what this implies for a professional school.
In sum, law schools should, of course, continue to teach core legal competencies, but they should more systematically teach, in tandem with others, the “complementary competencies” required for students who today will likely have diverse careers and hopefully achieve positions of leadership and responsibility. These students need “general professional education”—a “major” in law, business, or public policy, with “minors” in the other two professional disciplines (or in relevant social sciences). An emphasis on leadership ultimately requires a re-think not just of legal education but of the necessary interrelationship between law, business, and public policy schools."
Me: Amen.
Hildebrandt's 2013 Client Advisory is out. The outlook is somewhat dire. Part II "How to Succeed in the New Market" recommends (paraphrased by me with my comments in parentheses)
1. Listen to your clients (really. seriously this time. Now. Go visit and stop selling. Listen and act.)
2. Redesign your delivery model to match your clients' needs and your strategy. (You can't be successful with alternative fees by thinking and measuring contribution by the billable hour. Gotta redesign your service delivery, even if it hurts).
3. Leadership is critical. (There are a lot of changes going on in law firms today. Leadership is critical for intentional and focused change.)
What are you doing this week to listen, innovate and lead?
I recently had an opportunity to refer Jordan Furlong to a law firm to speak on the future of law practice. Jordan has some unique insights into law firm management, including this article on women in the practice of law. Read the entire article on Jordan's blog, www.law21.ca
"Here’s my theory: women aren’t leaving law firms at an abnormal rate. They’re leaving law firms at a perfectly rational and normal rate. It’s men who are staying in law firms at an abnormal rate. Women aren’t the faulty outliers; men are.
When you look at the situation that way, a lot of things start to make sense. Women who enter law firms quickly and accurately diagnose that these are amateurish organizations that employ archaic workflow systems, inept pricing mechanisms, skewed compensation structures, and largely ineffective management, not to mention a whole lotta personal dysfunction. The typical contemporary law firm is nobody’s idea of a good business model, a satisfying workplace, or a solid bet for long-term future success. It shouldn’t surprise us that women abandon this model in droves. The question we ought to be asking ourselves is, why are men sticking with it in greater numbers than should rationally be expected?
Certainly, there are any number of advantages presented to men by the typical law firm model — we created it in our own image, after all. Head and shoulders above all these benefits is the time- and effort-based pricing and reward system. Men continue to shoulder much less of the burden of family and household care than women do, giving them more time to devote to the firm. And since time is the currency of law firm financial success and the measure of law firm dedication, it’s no wonder that men find the environment attractive and rewarding in that regard. The mystery is why we put up with all the other unpleasant, unresponsive and dehumanizing aspects of the model. Why do we accept and endorse a system that delivers exactly one benefit to us (revenue) at the cost of so many other disadvantages to us, to our erstwhile female colleagues, and especially, to our clients?" more
NY Times Article on the future of BigLaw looking a lot like Axiom Legal.
"What happened to the legal industry?
The problem, many lawyers say, is “P.P.P.” (Some firms call it P.E.P.) P.P.P. stands for profit per partner. (P.E.P. is shorthand for profit per equity partner.) It has become the ultimate metric for measuring success among law firms. When American Lawyer magazine began publishing a ranking based on profit per partner in the early 1980s, it revolutionized the industry, but it also arguably led to a dangerous race among firms that left clients as a secondary priority.
Indeed, says Mr. Harris of Axiom, about three decades ago “the interests of law firms went from serving the clients to serving themselves.”
As Michael H. Trotter, a partner at Taylor English Duma in Atlanta, says in his book “Declining Prospects” that there are only a few ways to increase profit per partner. One way is for firms to “charge their clients more for what they do”; another is for them to “do more work for their clients by working more hours or using more lawyers”; a third is to acquire more clients; and the last option is for firms to “reduce their overhead by paying less rent, restraining the compensation of their lawyer-employees and other personnel.”
None of those options appear to be in the client’s interest at all.
This is not a new lament.
A decade ago, Robert E. Hirshon, then president of the American Bar Association, declared that “the billable hour is fundamentally about quantity over quality, repetition over creativity.”
He explained that “because a lawyer’s time is not an elastic variable, increased billable-hour requirements are squeezing out other aspects of what it means to be a lawyer.”
The focus on profits per partner is one reason so many companies have increasingly tried to move legal work away from big firms and have hired internal lawyers. And that means, Mr. Trotter says, that “the leverage that law firms have utilized to generate profits will go down and they aren’t going to need as many associates.”
If you haven't read Ann Lee Gibson's blog lately, you should check it out. I especially like today's feature, You Know Your Law Firm is in Trouble when...
Ann speaks not just from experience, but from hard data. For the 15+ years I've know her, she's been tracking the Amlaw 200 (and more), scouring data to look for trends and red flags that indicate trouble or success. Here are some of my favorites: (uh.. which is all of them).
"Twenty ways to know your firm’s in serious trouble …
1. You dread coming to work.
2. Partners’ doors are closed all the time.
3. The coffee’s gotten worse.
4. Firm revenue and headcount have shrunk, and net operating income has fallen even more.
5. Profits per equity partner are shrinking or flat, kept aloft by partner de-equitizations.
6. The only thing growing at your firm is the number of non-equity partners.
7. Women at your firm are third-class citizens, not firm leaders or full equity partners.
8. You don’t recruit government officials without business because you can’t afford to invest in them.
9. There’s a big donut hole in your firm’s partnership, where future leaders used to be.
10. All the firm’s largest client relationships are controlled (“tattooed”) by the firm’s oldest partners.
11. Clients are viewed primarily as revenue sources, not objects of real affection and service.
12. Partners won't delegate work to other lawyers until they make their own production numbers.
13. Equity partner compensation is decided by a few partners, black-box style.
14. Your firm has downsized marketing and eliminated the CMO position.
15. You’re still using MS Office 2003.
16. You haven’t had a real firm retreat in years.
17. Your firm has recently been sued for malpractice, discrimination and/or sexual harassment.
18. Clients have started to ask you about the firm’s health.
19. You’re open to a combination, but “worthy” firms’ leaders won’t take a meet and greet.
20. You’ve finally started to say the M-word, assuring reporters your firm is not interested in a merger."
Ron Friedman spoke at a recent ARK seminar on legal pricing. Here is a summary of his tweet notes. Having a client-focused pricing strategy has become critical for successful busienss development.
Some that jumped out at me:
Ron has a brilliant blog on law practice management. Worth following.
Read article here.
Interesting thoughts on how to apply a business concept to family management. How can your family be less tired and less stressed? Check out the TED talk.
One of my clients is looking to hire an experienced business development manager. It's a great firm with strong clients. Here's the Job Description and contact info:
Business Development Manager, IP Practice
Workman Nydegger, PC
Status: Full Time, Exempt
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Reports to: Managing Shareholder and Business Development
Committee
Workman Nydegger, PC is a leading intellectual property law firm that serves global and national companies in technology, life sciences, pharmaceutical, telecommunications and energy fields. We are seeking a Business Development Manager (BDM) who will assist in the development of, and lead the marketing and business development initiatives of the firm and support individual efforts.
Job Description
The BDM will work closely with the Business Development Committee, the firm’s attorneys and staff to define and implement the firm’s marketing and business development plan. The BDM is the sole business development/marketing professional in the firm, and will coordinate efforts with other staff, attorneys, external consultants and resources. This is a new position in the firm.
At the firm level, the BDM will work with firm leadership to define and execute a comprehensive long-range and near-term business development plan. The BDM will also be responsible for development and implementation of a marketing plan, (possibly in cooperation with outside public relations specialists) to further the firm's business development objectives. The BDM will work with firm management to develop and implement means for periodic assessment of the effectiveness of the plan and propose those actions necessary to implement improvements.
At the individual attorney level, the BDM will assist attorneys in the development and execution of their individual business development plans, and will help to ensure that those plans are consistent with the firm's goals and objectives. The BDM will provide counsel on such matters as strategy, identification and development of opportunities, client relationship building and maintenance, and marketing and sales techniques, while taking a firm-wide view towards inclusive participation across the firm to maximize client relationship and growth opportunities.
Specifically, the BDM duties include:
Qualifications
Compensation: Commensurate with experience. Outstanding benefits package offered.
To apply: Please submit a resume, references and writing samples to Shauna Huston at shuston@wnlaw.com
I hope to see you at one of these conferences at which I'll be speaking:
Professional Legal Management Conference
Atlanta, GA
October 17, 2012
http://www.atlanta-ala.com/en/cev/324
Marketing Partner Forum
Rancho Palos Verdes CA
January 16-18, 2013
https://westlegaledcenter.com/program_guide/course_detail.jsf?courseId=44296943
Association of Legal Administrators Annual Conference
Washington, D.C.
April 14 - 17, 2013
http://www.alanet.org/conf/2013
One of the most frequent questions I receive from law firm leaders today is "how should I manage this new generation?"
The Millennial Generation (born from 1981-2000) have been entering the workforce for more than a decade now. Baby Boomer and Generation X leaders are sometimes perplexed with this tech-savvy, multi-tasking and ambitious group of professionals.
Who are the Millennials?
The Millennial Generation are said to be "trophy kids" raised by "helicopter parents." Their parents — often Generation Xers who grew up as "latchkey kids" with two working parents or a single working parent — tend to compensate for their lack of available parents by becoming very involved in their child’s activities. Millennials are used to having a parent "helicopter" in to save the day, whether it is forgetting their lunch at school or, as I have heard, appearing alongside their child at their first job interview.
Afraid of communicating a negative self-image, parents of Millennials made sure that everyone is a winner in childhood competitions, so everyone gets a trophy in youth sports and activities. This is the "E" generation — a generation with high expectations of themselves and their workplace; a generation that feels entitled to a wide range of benefits from society and a generation that is highly enthusiastic about work and life.
For Millennials, work is not a place to go; rather it is a thing to do (and something that can be done anywhere, from home to Starbucks to the office). More than other generations, they will surf jobs to be open to new opportunities. In general, they have a distaste for menial work and red tape. While they crave feedback, they have difficulties with conflict and negative feedback. "Paying your dues" is something your grandfather did at work, and is not for them. One HR manager told me: "Some Millennials seem to want to fit their work around their personal life, and not the other way around."
Despite these negative stereotypes, Milliennials have a lot to offer their employers. In school, they were subjected to years of group projects, resulting in better teamwork and collaboration skills than prior generations. They are highly networked, skilled at using social and virtual networks to accomplish goals. They are optimistic about the future. They want to save the world and focus their altruism through volunteerism, pro bono work and philanthropy.
Perhaps the most vexing characteristic of this generation to law firm leaders is their attitudes and behaviors at work. To some Baby Boomer and Gen X managers, Millennials have appeared unengaged with work, aloof and entitled. These issues often arise around the issue of work/life balance. Millennials are perceived by Baby Boomers (who are sometimes seen as workaholics) and Gen Xers (who felt like they had to work hard to compete with Boomers) managers as wanting too much life balance and not enough work.
How to Manage Millennials
The goal in managing Millennials is to help them find the balance they seek while getting work done (and done well). Here are some tips on managing Millennials:
1. Be the leader. Have a clear vision of the future for your team. Clearly communicate expectations to every team member. Give very specific direction, especially for new team members. Focus on encouraging positive behavior and attitudes. Don’t forget your role as a mentor.
2. Give meaning to work. Demonstrate how work makes a difference to clients, the firm and the community. Communicate the why, not just the how. Find ways for your team to give back, including group volunteer or pro bono projects.
3. Give feedback. Develop a team culture where constructive feedback among all team members is the norm. Don’t wait until the annual review to give feedback. Integrate feedback into your daily management routine.
4. Share power. Respect their ideas and contribution. Find ways to give them a say in decisions and access to management without abdicating your role as leader. Focus on participatory leadership without making it a democracy.
5. Provide a clear path for advancement. Provide options to advance in the department. Illustrate a career path. Promote from within as much as possible. Support learning opportunities, including LMA and industry conference participation. Open the doors for experiential and on-the-job training in other disciplines.
6. Reward and encourage. Understand what motivates each individual team member and find ways to reward her or his effort and results with personalized rewards. Focus on performance-based incentives such as time off, sports or concert tickets, additional training or conference attendance. Reward performance publicly and with fairness. How you reward people should reflect the values of the team and firm.
7. Be flexible. Understand that how the world works is changing and be open to flexible work arrangements. Focus on the quality and completion of projects, not location. Understanding that face-to-face time is important in many jobs, be clear with team members what is negotiable and what is not regarding work location.
8. Encourage team work. Millennials will naturally want to work in small groups. Communicate that it is OK to work in groups, with certain parameters, such as deadlines, work quality and accountability. Be clear with the limits you set. Find a conference room or other shared space reserved for team work. Track contribution to team work and give feedback to both under contributors and over contributors.
9. Create community. Millennials look to work as a social outlet. Find time and ways for team members to get to know each other on a personal level. Bring back the monthly team lunches, go bowling or skiing together, take the team to happy hour to celebrate a team success. Have fun.
10. Leverage their strengths. Look to the Millennials on your team to tackle technology-oriented projects such as coaching lawyers on how to use LinkedIn or Twitter. Let them use their extensive network to build relationships with peers in client industry associations. Plug into their altruistic nature to lead firm volunteer and pro bono efforts.
For Millennials who want to succeed in a Boomer and X’er dominated work place, consider this advice:
1. Learn the language of success. Understand the "optics" of your behavior, including use of smartphones, how you dress, when you arrive and leave work. Showing old fashioned manners, listening carefully and being grateful will earn points with Boomers.
2. Use your strengths. Find ways to leverage technology to do your job more effectively and efficiently. Be a leader in your firm and the community.
3. Build your network. Tap into your network to make introductions to others for business development.
4. Show initiative and autonomy. Most jobs don’t have a definitive checklist or path to get the "A." It is better to try and fail (and learn from your mistakes) than not to take any action at all. Communicate often and ask questions.
5. Realize that constructive feedback is a gift. Welcome feedback to improve your performance and career options. Don’t take it personally.
Whenever a new generation enters the workplace, a shift occurs. How people get work done changes. The entrance of this generation will be no different. How law firm leaders manage these enthusiastic, optimistic and ambitious employees will determine whether their teams succeed.
Mark Beese is President of Leadership for Lawyers, LLC. He helps lawyers and law firm leaders become more effective leaders and business developers through consultation, training and coaching. Mark may be reached at mark@leadershipforlawyers.com. Originally published in ALM’s Marketing the Law Firm Newsletter, July 2012. www.leadershipforlawyers.com.
Earlier this month I was a panelist in a webinar sponsored by the Social Media Special Interest Group (SIG) of the Legal Marketing Association. Our topic was how to use video in the legal marketing media mix. My co-panelists were two brilliant marketing innovators, Adam Stock, CMO of Allen Makins and Adam Severson, CMO of Baker Donelson. Adam, Adam and I have all used video to effectively market lawyers and their services. The webinar was a primer on legal marketing videos
Why use video?
“Web pages that feature video are 40 to 50 times more likely to end up on the
first page of Google” said Adam Stock, “Google loves video. It is great for SEO”(Search Engine
Optimization). The Allen Makins web site
saw an increase of 30% more traffic after they started to use video on their
home page. The site now features more
than 150 videos.
“Video gives you the ability to deliver emotion like no other media. It is the best way to capture an attorney’s personality. Clients hire lawyers, not firms. Video gives clients a chance to get to know our lawyers” claimed Stock.
“At Allen Matkins we took an approach of experimenting by creating videos of types of communications we would normally do with clients. This provided us a basis for comparing the performance of videos to written/online communications formats. The strategy that we used and the results that we got are summarized in this video that was created for the 2012 LMA Your Honor Awards.”
Adam Seversen saw an increase in web traffic of more than 500% once they started using video to promote their “Entrepreneurial Minute Videos”. Baker Donelson sends a weekly email to a growing list to promote their Emerging Companies industry group, featuring a one to three minute video on topics of interest to entrepreneurs. The practice group page quickly became the most visited practice group page on their web site. The email featuring the video tip of the week also has attracted attention of traditional media and has been reposted on industry blogs.
“Well produced video on law firm web sites builds credibility for the attorneys and the firm” said Mark Beese. “Video is also very mobile-device friendly. As much as 30% of law firm web traffic originates from a phone or tablet.”
When to use video?
The panelists have used video in a variety of ways, including:
- Micro-sites promoting a particular industry or practice group. Videos become mini-news stories to illustrate an aspect of the law or how a court ruling could affect clients.
- Event invitations or announcements – Use a brief video to create excitement around a conference, seminar or merger announcement.
- Community involvement. Video is a powerful tool to communicate stories, including how an attorney’s involvement in a charity makes a difference in people’s lives.
- Highlight and recognize clients of the firm (with their written permission).
- Introducing a new service, product or solution to a complex problem.
- Email newsletters, blogs and throughout your web site.
- Internal communications about a new initiative, service or practice group.
How do I start using video?
- Start with something newsworthy. Consider creating a video for what you might include in a client newsletter. Promote by email, blog and social media. Avoid boring “about the firm” or “attorney bio” videos. Snooze.
- Consider hiring a professional videographer/editor to start out. Aim for broadcast-level production levels. After you get a hang for it, considering buying a quality HD camera, editing software and training someone in your firm to edit and produce videos.
- Animations, professional titling and graphics make a video more like what people are used to seeing on television, and therefore appear more professional.
- Be aware of small things that can be a distraction, such as background noise and bad lighting.
- Keep the video length to no longer than three to five minutes.
- Host your video on Youtube.com and imbed the link to your website or blog page.
- Look to promote your video content through social media and distribution channels such as JDSupra.com and conveycontent.com.
Sample Videos:
Adam Severson:
Internal Launch Video developed for Faegre Baker Daniels to generate excitement and enthusiasm for the merger
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KMPPU78hJE
Promotional video for a litigation conference invitation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLPGNwIbOUg
Entrepreneur Minute videos
http://www.bakerdonelson.com/emerging-companies/
Introduction of new lateral to firm
Adam Stock
Legal Alerts. Changes in the law intended for clients and potential clients.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K2v8GZ1MbU
Video Press Releases/Thought Leadership. Industry survey results and insights.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ex7x2VSbK4
Events/Thought Leadership. Industry developments.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARMUxE4QEdU
Community Involvement. Used on our website for clients and recruitment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4K4ReNZg3w
Mark Beese:
Legal Marketing Insights – 25 Interviews of marketing and business development professionals used for online training and knowledge sharing.
https://legalmarketing.conveycontent.com/
Holland & Hart's Business Class Series (video profiles right column)
One of the things I like about LMA conferences is the opportunity to hear other people's success stories. You can always count on Gail Lamarche to tell a story weaved with wisdom and practical advice on leading a marketing effort in a legal environment. Here is Gail's story on encouraging attorneys to engage in social media.
Thanks to ConveyContent.com and Copper Legal for editing and hosting the videos.
Tasneem is a new coach at Akina, a business development coaching firm and a very talented legal marketer. I occasssionaly compete with Akina for business development training and coaching work. I have great respect for their approach and capabilities in this area. In this short video, Tasneem talks about what goes into a successful business development coaching program. Thanks again to Convey Content and Copper Legal for editing the videos and hosting the site.
When consulting with law firms, I frequently get asked about the future of law practice. What will it look like? How will firms compete? How will services be delivered? How will it be priced?
I think I saw a glimpse of the future in what Seyfarth Shaw is doing today. Several of their leaders made a presentation on how they use six sigma process improvement tools to improve efficiency and client service and lower cost to the client.
They believe that corporate buyers of legal services want high quality legal work and more predictable and lower legal costs. Cutting rates (and profit margins) is not a sustainable strategy, so they dug in and started to re-design work flows and processes as a manufacturer might value-engineer a production process. Using "lean" process improvement tools, they found ways to save clients as much as 50% off their bill while maintaining or improving quality.
Think that will sell?
To clients, yes. But to the partners of the firm who realize that they have to produce twice as much work to get the same revenue, well, that's another kettle of fish. Profit margins increase and client loyalty improves, but the essence of the law firm revenue and compensation model changes significantly. I have so much respect for any firm who can make such significant cultural change to not only serve clients but to essentially set the standard for a new way think about delivering legal services.
Interested in learning more? Read these articles:
Re-Engineering the Practice of Law - New York Times
Six Sigma Makes a Comeback - Business Week
Seyfarth Shaw Says Six Sigma Method Has Cut Client Fees by Up to 50%
New Buzz Phrase in Efficiency Efforts: Process Management
Making It Lean: Lisa Damon, Seyfarth Shaw
and information on Seyfarth Lean Consulting.
If Seyfarth Shaw can make the implementation (and cultural change) stick, they will certainly have a competitive advantage serving cost conscious corporations.
At the 2012 Legal Marketing Association annual conference, I had an opportunity to interview some brilliant legal marketing veterans, including Roberta Montafia. Roberta is a former CMO, LMA President and a Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management. She is also the founder of an innovative networking training program called Legal Mocktail, where lawyers learn how to network with a purpose. Here are a few of Roberta's top tips for legal networking. Thanks to Convey Content and Copper Services for setting up the legalmarketing.conveycontent.com site.