Make More Rain : hr, compensation

Secondments: A Sound Law Firm Tactic

Admin — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 19:37:00 GMT

The terms ‘secondment’ and ‘secondees’ aren’t used much in the U.S. Nor is the tactic (by whatever name) used often by midrange law firms. Secondees are usually young associates who for an intermediate term (several months to a year) are given over to clients as temporary additions to their in-house legal team. Internationally the practice is more common, especially in the U.K. It has expanded beyond secondment assignment just for young associations to include senior members of the law firm.

There are good reasons for the strategy. First and foremost is the relationship building aspect between the law firm and the client. Because secondees are usually provided at a bargain price, the client views the arrangement as the law firm making an investment in them. For midrange firms, a secondment strategy lowers the risk of adding to its legal team. Adding new associates is an expensive undertaking. The cost comes right out of partner profits and many experts believe that it takes as long as three years before the cash flow from the additional associate becomes positive. The smaller the firm, the greater the relative impact on existing law firm partners. Having an ongoing secondment program can help finance those additions.

The relationship with insiders that secondees develop during their tenure with the client will surely prove to be valuable in terms of retention and expansion of the business relationship between the client and the law firm. And the law firm builds a team with a far greater awareness of service quality concerns of all clients.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris®. For information about Juris products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:

877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.

Who Says Associates Are Miserable?

Admin — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 17:40:00 GMT

Not the American Lawyer, at least not the publication’s August 2007 issue reporting on the most recent survey conducted by the National Association for Law Placement.

After reading so many stories about the burnout demands being placed on associates, I was as surprised as you probably will be with the survey’s finding that associate job satisfaction was 3.81 on a five-point scale. Of course, the key here is that the survey does not focus exclusively on the AmLaw 200 group or the high-pressure firms in cities like New York, so it is a good dose of reality with respect to the law firm community at large.

There are, however, certain realities confronting law firms. Most associates entering the practice do not plan on spending their lives in private practice. Only 22.9 percent anticipate remaining in their firm for five years and only about 12 percent expect to become partners in the current firm. Another striking statistic is that in half the cases, the law firms appear happy to see the departing associates move on.

Is this really that bad? One of the great things about earning a law degree and passing the bar is that you are immediately a lawyer. You don’t have to spend years working your way up the organizational ladder to become a professional. That law degree and the time spent in the profession are a spring board for many law school graduates to enter the business world. It isn’t all bad for the law firm. Smart law firms can take advantage of their relationship with alumni to build and retain business. Granted, law firms also lose associates to lateral hires. Likewise, some associates leave to create their own law firm. But even that doesn’t have to be adversarial. Law firms refer business and the law firm that cultivates its alumni relations can be on the winning side of those referrals.

Yes, law firms can look for ways to reduce turnover. They can improve their selection process. But in large measure, law firms have to accept the fact that not all associates plan to make a career of it. Laws firms need practices in place to make the best of that reality.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris®. For information about Juris products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:

877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.

Lawyer Mothers

Admin — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 17:25:41 GMT

The August 2007 California Lawyer included a lengthy article titled “Mothers {IN LAW}” by Laura McClure that carried the subtitle A new generation of women is changing the way law firms operate.

Whenever I write about this subject, I get e-mail reminding me that the work/life balance dilemma is not a gender issue. When I mention the demand of child rearing, I am reminded that some men now take on that role. Nevertheless, the importance of this issue has grown with the increase of women in the talent pool. And regardless of the exceptions, the role of child rearing still falls predominantely on mothers both married and single.

Why is the issue so important for law firm leaders? It is simple: 50 percent or more of the new lawyers are women. Somehow, some way, law firms have to discover how to become a friendlier place for mothers. I do believe that the most profound quote in the article was that of Jennifer Altfeld Landau, a partner in the Los Angeles office of Sidley Austin. She said, “Of course it’s possible to have it all. The secret is that you can’t have it all, all of the time….”

We are driven by our personal “goals” and motherhood is on the list, along with other goals, for the majority of women professionals. Within any business, each member of the team has a “role” to play. There is a relationship between a person’s goals and the role they are expected to perform. An organization cannot expect people to successfully perform in roles that do not match their goals—you can’t motivate people to succeed in roles inconsistent with their goals without conflict. Likewise, our goals as individuals may not be achievable unless our role in the business is changed. Roles and goals must be in harmony.

That harmony between the motherhood goal and the role expected of mothers in the work force is what is missing in most law firms today. To accommodate talented and contributing individuals, management must be willing to vary the “roles”, the “organizational expectations”, available to individuals. It means that “work flexibility” has to be accompanied by “role flexibility.” To provide work hour and workplace flexibility without a matching “role” is simply a recipe for failure. It does not mean that the role they can play is any less important or that it is not an important role in the enterprise’s pursuit of its objectives.

Carving out a compatible “role” is going to be hard for many firms especially midrange firms. Those that do can tap a highly capable segment of the talent pool. Those that don’t succeed at carving out such roles will be at a disadvantage when it comes to recruiting young female associates. For many midrange firms, their best opportunity for tapping this important segment of the talent pool is to be an inviting and attractive place for full-time reentry into the profession as the demands of child rearing diminish with time.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris®. For information about Juris products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:

877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.

New Law Firm Associates Can Be Profitable in Year One

Admin — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 16:40:33 GMT

I love it when someone fnally says, “The Emperor has No Clothes!”

In this case, the emperor is the preponderance of law firm consultants on the speaking circuits of legal community conferences. The frequent refrain is that it takes three to five years before graduate level hires become profitable associates. I admit that I sometimes defer to those arguments, which are based on “cash basis" accounting and "full absorption" cost allocation. The full absorption approach is sound in the long term, but for midrange law firms with existing space and capacity to support new hires, it is often invalid when one views the impact of new hires over the immediate next three- to five-year period. As for the cash accounting aspect, new associates can be a drain on cash during the period they are filling their pipeline with uncollected fees. Adding too many too fast can get a law firm into trouble. However, I might add that the fact that law firms have almost a half year of uncollected fees (unbilled or billed but uncollected) is at the heart of that problem. It doesn’t have to be that way.

John Iezzi, CPA is the author of Results-Oriented Financial Management: A Guide to Law Firm Financial Performance, published by the American Bar Association. He knows of what he speaks when he says the emperor has no clothes. Writing in Law Office Management & Administration Report published by IOMA, he refutes their claims that associates are unprofitable in their initial years. He notes that it is “absolutely ludicrous to think that law firms cannot profit from even the newest associate, assuming the management process occurs properly.” He then proceeds to back up his statements with tables and examples.

If you need to counter the “New Associates are Unprofitable” argument in your law firm, you might want to contact John Iezzi at jgiezzi@iexxigroup.com.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center: 877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.

Law Firm Leaders Need a New Accounting Method

Admin — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 17:06:00 GMT

I cannot imagine running a business using the cash basis of accounting. The off balance sheet treatment of uncollected fees is, in my mind, the culprit behind the five- or six-month pipeline between the time work is done and money gets in the bank. The cash basis of accounting yields a misleading picture about the health of the law firm. For example, you could send everyone on vacation for a month and, from a financial standpoint, revenues and expenses for the month would not even show a dip.

With the cash accounting method, what shows up as revenue every month has no relationship to the work done. And on the expense side, law firms can decide to reduce expenses in any month simply by holding payment off until the next month. So one has to ask why the cash method is the predominant one used by midrange law firms. I limited my comment to midrange-size law firms because the AmLaw Firms have moved to corporate-style financials systems.

First, the cash method is preferred for tax purposes and most law firms do not have the sophistication in systems and finance staff to report both ways. Applying the accrual method to a law firm is not an exact science. Reserves are needed to reflect the likelihood that a portion of billed fees will not be collected. In other words, you have to estimate what portion will be realized. That step is relatively easy compared to the next step: evaluating the firms “inventory” or work in process. It is hard work, but making judgments and estimates is an essential part of the management process.

I firmly believe that the cash method is taking money out of the pockets of partners, and I know from experience that many firms who ran out of cash never saw the train wreck coming. Cash accounting is a backward-looking measure that has no relevance to where the firm is or what is ahead for it.

There is a management concept called the “No Cost Consultant”. It conveys the idea that if the benefit resulting from the consultant's advice offsets the cost of using the consultant, consultants are a free “resource”. The notion being conveyed is that when you are headed into something material where you lack the prerequisite “know-how”, you should not hesitate to engage someone who does. That same concept applies to financial management in the law firm. The cost of upgrading your accounting resources with a qualified controller or C level financial manager is likely to be “free”—the added cost will be more than offset by the resulting improvement in financial performance.

The consulting community repeats a consistent refrain—law firms would benefit from increased management. Most midrange law firms have a leader. What most of those leaders need is someone with the financial know-how needed to put the firm’s workflow and management information on a corporate level.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:

877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.

Lateral Hiring by Law Firms Fill The Gap

Admin — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 17:33:00 GMT

Lateral recruiting is only going to increase as a tactic for replenishing and building the professional ranks of midrange law firms.

Midrange firms are increasingly questioning the economics of the graduate approach, especially when you consider the time and investment required to recruit at the law school level. Midrange firms can’t compete on an equal economic footing with Big Law when it comes to the top 10 percent of law school graduates. And they really don’t have an effective way to gauge the future success prospects of available graduates. Without practice experience and the emotional and business development that comes with on-the-job training, new graduates are just warm bodies. A number of experts indicate that it takes about three years before a firm has fully recovered its cumulative investment in an associate hired directly out of law school. It takes two to five more years before these professionals become strategic building blocks for the firm’s future. Yet, the new graduate approach has a high turnover track record!

On the other hand, laterals have a track record that partners feel like they can get their hands around. They can understand it. They can make judgments about it. And they expect laterals to be positive cash generators as soon as the pipeline (work in process and fees receivable) can be filled. Laterals can be hired to fill specific needs—geographic, practice areas, specialized expertise, etc.

Midrange firms are waking up to the succession issues they face and to what is increasingly referred to as the "gap". Firm leaders and rainmakers are bunched together in the age range of 56 to 70. Their younger attorneys tend to be under 39. The gap refers to the missing 40 to 55 age group. That is the prime age for rainmaking and transition into leadership roles.

Lateral hiring or merger is the only way an increasing number of firms have to solve the gap problem.

In a recent presentation Marci Krufta with Altman Weil pointed out that many of the candidates for law firms on the hunt for lateral hires are stars in their existing law firms. But they don’t feel they are being treated fairly for their contribution. That is often a product of their existing law firm’s compensation formula that overcompensates less productive senior members through “origination" credits. While it isn’t all about the money, attracting and retaining laterals is all about fairness and compensating professionals based on relative contribution. Law firms that provide lifetime origination credit or that shoulder significant unfunded obligations to partners nearing retirement will find these stars beyond their reach.

In his post on Adam Smith, Esq. titled Are You Recruiting Warlords or Partners?, Bruce MacEwen writes one of the most insightful essays on lateral hiring I have ever read. If you are hiring to fill the gap, take Bruce’s advice. Hire the person not their portable book, and don’t expect them to hit the ground running.

Media and Communication Training Increases Law Firm Income

Admin — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 16:51:25 GMT

I’ve mentioned the Pincus Group in a previous post titled Communications and Presentation Skills for the Attorney. They are a communications and media training company. I’m sure there are others out there as well. However, I have worked with the Pincus Group and seen their results. You need to know about them and organizations like theirs. Why? Because, effective communication is the essential ingredient for individual and organizational success. Why would you wing something so important to success when there is an alternative—professional media and communication training?

Most of us think of public speaking when the topic of communication skills comes up. Public speaking is important, and doing so can pay off for the attorney and the law firm, but only if you’re good at it. You can be with training. But public speaking is just a side issue. We spend our day communicating. Yet, developing your message and staying on message aren’t natural skills. Communication is the key to persuasion and relationship development. We develop new business through communications. We recruit new talent through communication. We develop our relationship with clients through communications. We win victories and settle disputes around conference tables and in court through our communication skills.

You can’t get elected for office unless your craft the right message and then stay on message. That skill is no less important for the law firm leader or working attorney. Without training, there is a vicious pitfall just waiting for you—the reporter. Without professional training, you will not be a happy camper later when reading the reporter’s story.

Providing the law firm’s players with professional media and communication training is an income-enhancing move for the law firm. It will improve rainmaking and client satisfaction. It will improve the results you achieve as a lawyer. It will kick the law firm’s reputation up another notch!

The Pincus Group is located in D.C., but they will do group training for your law firm anywhere that's convenient for you. Sessions are customized for individual needs but all involve interactive practice with Pincus’ seasoned coaches. Your team learns by doing, enhancing skills with videotaped exercises specifically designed for them. Training sessions can be tailored for half-day, full-day or two-day sessions.

In addition to training for your own law firm, consider your firm’s clients. As their trusted advisor, you may have business executives among your clients for whom media training would make an important difference to the success of the business or the venture being pursued with your assistance. Such training is especially important for businesses seeking investment funds or considering a public offering.

For more information, visit thePincus web site or call Aileen Pincus at 301/938-690 or reach her by e-mail at apincus@thepincusgroup.com.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

Law Firm Scheduling, Is Continuity Good or Bad?

Admin — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:54:18 GMT

In responding to a question, David Maister wrote the following:

“Ultimately, clients care about quality, efficiency and service - continuity is just a short-hand rule-of-thumb to try to get to these things. If you can be more thoughtful about how you achieve these things, they will give you more leeway in pursuing your other goals and won't insist on always seeing the same faces. And, with more thoughtful staffing, you'll be able to improve leverage, profits, learning and morale.”

The work one gets determines the future of the individual attorney. Give them limited exposure, the same old stuff or the same clients year after year, and you will neglect the full opportunity to enhance the value and potential of the attorney. You are likely to lose them to someone who they think is more concerned about their professional development. It is over the professional development issue that most associates switch firms.

The problem appears to be a general lack of centralized schedule management in midrange law firms. Someone other than each individual partner needs to manage firm-wide scheduling. An alternative is needed to the frequently seen model where work is doled out by partners to “their associates” or “their favorite associates.” There has to be a counterweight to the easy and expedient “continuity” method that leaves associates stuck working with the same partner, same client, and/or on the same style matter.

For an enterprise whose factory floor is composed of talented people rather than machines, it is surprising that more technology is not available and used for managing the maintenance (professional development) and scheduling of the firm’s production resources (its professional talent). This is one of the areas of future product development that the Juris team has been considering. Technology is one thing; having a culture that makes scheduling a strategic issue must come first. How do you have the best people and the best future leaders without making their development a priority? How can you do that if scheduling is not a key tactic in that pursuit?

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

Law Firms Should Look for Industry Knowledge when Recruiting

Admin — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 17:21:00 GMT

Yesterday’s post was a reminder that when hiring new talent, the firm needed to look for candidates who have the personality and fire in their belly to bring new business to the law firm. While those traits are needed by the law firm, it turns out that they are not that important in the minds of your existing clients. Perhaps a better way to say it is that the client is looking for more than just a personality.

Most mid-sized law firms are in the B2B business. B2B, of course, is the new age shorthand for an enterprise (a business) that provides services or sells products to other businesses. Law firms are viewed as businesses by their business customers.

The April 2006 Harvard Business Review reports that a Zurich, Switzerland team carried out extensive research to determine the difference between what customers wanted in a company's representative and what the providers looked for while recruiting new team members.

Customers placed considerable value on whether the provider’s representative understood the customer’s business and industry; whereas, industry knowledge was near the bottom of the qualifications that providers looked for when recruiting.

Philip Kreindler and Copal Rajguru with Infoteam Sales Process Consulting in Zurich said, "Our survey suggests that vendors would be wise to put industry and subject matter expertise ahead of social skills when it comes to recruitment." The point was made that instead of learning industry subject matter on the job, the ideal candidate brings that knowledge with them.

That characteristic is usually available to the law firm only through lateral hires. But in that regard, it is clear that knowledge of industries targeted by a law firm should be high on the list of qualifications when searching for a lateral prospect.

The question this raises is: "Does industry and customer knowledge trump relationship building skills?" I’m not sure these are separate skills. Relationship building requires one to have an honest and sincere interest in the other party. To acquire customer and industry knowledge requires that interest, and the more you know, the more interested you become in contributing to both.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

What Does a Paperclip Have to Do With Law Firm Management?

Admin — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 17:36:35 GMT

Law firms depend on customers and that takes lawyers who can attract them. Some people have an ability to do it better than others. From this day forward, let a paperclip remind you that looking for that ability is an important part of managing the recruiting process.

Law Practice Management’s post Trade a Paper Clip for a House tells the story of the blog one red paperclip. “What 26-year-old Kyle MacDonald announced on his one red paperclip blog was his intention to trade up his one red paperclip until eventually he winds up with a house. Implausible? Ridiculous? Impossible? Well, he seems well on his way.”

The Law Practice Management blog relates the story to convey a message: When hiring, look for candidates who have the personality and fire in their belly that will bring new business to the law firm.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

The Underproductive Partner

Admin — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 18:22:29 GMT

Back on January 18, 2006, Ed Wesemann posted Avoiding the Nuclear Option, which addressed the issue of the underproductive partner.

Ed listed the following likely causes for this turn of events:

The partner is lazy
An outside event—midlife crisis, drugs, alcohol, health or emotional problems
The area of law in which attorney practiced no longer keeps the partner fully productive

Wesemann’s observation is that the latter reason is the most common and suggests that the partner can be redeemed by retooling the partner for a new and growing practice area. I wish I could agree with Ed about the practice area problem. I do agree that a previously successful partner isn’t likely to suddenly become lazy.

My experience is that the personal issues are the most common and they are the most difficult for the law firm to resolve. Granted, drugs and alcohol are relatively clear issues, and the partner can either make a comeback or continue to spiral downward. The area that appears most difficult is the loss of energy that occurs in what should be the final 10 to 15 years of a successful career. At times, it is often related to health issues. I don’t have a good answer for it once it becomes a problem. But I do stress that the firm should have a formal program for involving each individual attorney in successful planning around 50 or 55 years of age.

The firm needs to know what the attorney is thinking. The attorney’s interests and goals concerning retirement should be openly discussed at this point, and the discussion should be updated each year to detect any changes in the partner’s thinking. The firm needs to know if the attorney is beginning to consider early retirement. The firm needs to know and participate in the decision, certainly if the attorney is considering working as long as he or she is productive. By 55, the role of the attorney should begin to shift away from client control to management, supervision, mentoring and new business development. Client relationships, practice area knowledge and relationships should be transitioning from the senior attorney to the newer ranks of the firm’s leadership.

If the firm’s expectations for its maturing partner changes in synch with the transitioning role described above, then the standards by which performance is judged should also change. Likewise, best practices would call for compensation plans that have the flexibility to compensate the maturing partner differently. “Old guys bring wisdom and experience—not muscle—to the hunt.”

But what if you have a problem that has to be addressed? I believe in a process called “three-step termination”.

Step one: Meet and reach an agreement about the problem. [If an agreement can not be reached, go directly to step three.]
Step two: Agree on a solution to the problem and a target date. [If an agreement can not be reach go directly to step three.]
Step three: End or terminate the relationship.

It is called the “three-step termination” because the odds are that the termination is where it will lead. But there are exceptions. Sometimes, steps one and two solve the problem. The partner or employee returns to being a positive, happy contributor, and the firm wins by saving a valuable member of the professional team. As Ed says, don’t go straight to the Nuclear Option. Take the time to understand the cause. Maybe they are being judged in the wrong categories or they need to retool for a different area of law. If you have a problem that cannot be allowed to continue, then agree on a plan. Only go nuclear if the plan is not followed to a successful resolution of the problem.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

Practice Interest; the other major reason for lateral moves of attorneys

Admin — Mon, 27 Mar 2006 18:34:00 GMT

Previous posts have already identified that disappointment in self-development tops the list of reasons for lateral moves. But there are other important motives.

The second strongest reason for lateral moves is the practice interest of the attorney. This reason is probably supported by financial interest. At risk are the attorneys who are rising stars in a particular practice area. These attorneys are the major force behind a growing practice area. They are the reason clients are joining and staying with their current firm. They often feel that, given the business they are generating and are responsible for, they are not receiving the appropriate recognition or compensation.

These practice area stars, both current partners and senior associates, are likely targets for the firm that is strategically interested in entering or expanding the area. They are the same attorneys that are most likely to walk out of their existing firm’s door with a good measure to the business.

They are an opportunity for other firms and their potential loss is a risk to their current firm. They are an example of the need for managing partners and the senior leaders of the firm to engage in active evaluation and communication with their partners. This includes assessing their satisfaction and dissatisfactions with their place in the firm. It means having fair compensation systems and appropriate recognition and compensation for those responsible for generating business and maintaining client relationships. It also illustrates the risk of having a “one attorney/one client relationship”. Many firms double up—having a partner other than the responsible attorney meet regularly with the client for feedback. Doing so demonstrates through action the depth of the organizational strength provided by the law firm.

Of course, from the recruiting firm’s standpoint, the mission is to take advantage of the exiting law firm’s failure to exercise best practices in retaining its star performers. A major concern of the recruiting firm should be the issue of possible dilution of existing partners’ earnings. Will the addition of the lateral be a positive contribution to the firm rather than dilute the interest of existing firm members? Make sure that the book of business expected to follow the lateral is not overestimated. Make sure that the candidate fully understands and accepts as fair the new compensation system of his new home firm. No matter how good this addition looks, the firm should not forgo its customary selection procedure and due diligence steps. If it is too good to be true, it usually is.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

Morepartnerincome.com celebrates a milestone

Admin — Fri, 24 Mar 2006 18:13:16 GMT

www.morepartnerincome.com celebrated its one-year anniversary this month. The first post was March 16, 2005. The number of page views has grown every month from its beginning to last month’s volume of 45,000 views --and it is still climbing. This month’s volume is on track to exceed 50,000 views serving over 15,000 distinct hosts.

It has been my pleasure to share with readers the collective experience of the Juris® professional services team. I have always been a little disappointed by the volume of reader comments attached to each post, but from the readership volume and the private e-mails I have received from law firm managing partners located across in the United States and abroad, readers have found the information helpful.

Comments to posts are always welcome. You are also welcome to suggest a subject or issue you would like to see addressed on the blog. E-mail morepartnerincome@juris.com. If I use your suggestion I will send you a money green morepartnerincome.com hat for your next partner outing.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

Keys to Successful Strategic Planning

Admin — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 18:33:45 GMT

Guest author: John Remsen, Jr.

Many midsized firms seem to think that strategic planning is for larger firms. However, any firm with an eye toward the future can benefit from the process. Planning can help a firm develop a consensus on key big-picture issues, promote internal communication within the firm, inspire attorneys to get out and do things they wouldn’t otherwise do, and help the firm allocate its resources more effectively. With leadership, commitment, and a good strategic plan, any firm can develop a profitable practice working with clients it enjoys and in the areas of law it finds most appealing.

Establish a Sense of Urgency: A sufficient number of lawyers in the firm must believe that it is no longer “business as usual” and that strategic direction is necessary if the firm is to survive and prosper in the years ahead. They must instill and constantly reinforce a sense of urgency that change is necessary.

Commitment from Firm Leadership: Firm leadership (or at least a critical majority) must have a genuine commitment to develop and implement a strategic plan. Without strong leadership and passionate commitment, it is still “business as usual,” despite the rhetoric. Under these circumstances, the firm’s efforts are doomed to fail.

Involve all Partners in the Process: At the end of the day, the owners of the firm must buy into and support the plan. By involving each of them in the process through a series of one-on-one meetings and/or in a group brainstorming session, each partner will feel a part of the planning process. The likelihood of success jumps dramatically. Associates and staff must also buy into the future of the firm. Special programs that enlist their support will add to the plan’s successful implementation.

Keep the Plan Simple and Focused: If the firm is developing its first strategic plan, it should keep the plan simple and focused. Most firms try to take on too much too fast and wind up accomplishing little. With a realistic plan and by starting slowly, the firm is able to maintain its focus on the most important projects. The firm can always add to the plan later. A law firm is wise to start slow, publicize success, and grow from there.

Create a Plan that Lives and Breathes: Once a strategic plan is adopted, it does no good to set it aside, never to be looked at until the following year, if at all. The plan should be a flexible and dynamic instrument. Its principles should be incorporated into the firm’s day-to-day operations. Firm leadership should communicate the goals and objectives of the plan often and in a variety of ways throughout the firm. Make sure everybody has a copy. Review it at internal meetings. Update it often. All important decisions should be considered in the context of the plan. If the firm makes decisions contrary to what is contained in the plan, it needs a new plan.

Establish Accountability: Nothing happens without accountability. For most firms, this is best accomplished at monthly meetings of small groups (five to six individuals) of attorneys, often organized by practice group. There must be a strong group leader and meetings should have an agenda and meeting notes. Assignments must be made and progress must be monitored.

Measure and Reward Desired Behavior: Simply stated, the firm needs to measure and reward desired behavior. If the firm wants its partners to spend time training younger associates, the investment of non-billable time in the firm’s future must be measured and rewarded. If the firm determines that business development is important, it should reward it through recognition, origination credit, and/or by measuring and rewarding effort. Otherwise, behavior changes will not occur. Without incentives (or disincentives), it’s “business as usual” and there is little change.

Giving Everybody A Role to Play: There is no right or wrong answer here, but the firm must determine each attorney’s role when it comes to investing in the firm’s future. What about associates? Is it the same for everybody, or do we ask different attorneys to take on different responsibilities?

Making it Happen: The strategic plan is not an end, in and of itself. It is a process through which a law firm contemplates its future and determines how it will allocate resources to take it where it wants to go. Without implementation, a strategic plan is worthless. Planning should never replace and distract from the doing part of the equation. Implementation must be given the highest priority.

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About the author: John Remsen, Jr. is the principal of The Remsen Group, a marketing consulting firm that works exclusively with law firms. He is the past president of the Southeastern chapter of the Legal Marketing Association and served on its national Board of Directors. He is a member of the editorial board of The Managing Partner Advocate. He can be reached at 404.885.9100 or jremsen@theremsengroup.com.

Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income, go to www.Juris.com.

This article is copyrighted separately and published in morepartnerincome.com with the permission of the copyright holder.
© 2006, The Remsen Group.

An MBA program for law firm managers

Admin — Wed, 22 Mar 2006 18:33:00 GMT

Bruce MacEwen gives the details of the New York City based MBA program on his blog Adam Smith, Esq. Bruce is a member of the faculty.

The addition of an MBA program exclusively for law firm managers is a valuable contribution to the legal community. Now if Bruce could just get SUNY/Stone Brook to go online with their program, we would really have something. I would like to see an MBA program targeted to midsized firm managers that is accessible anytime/anywhere.

Midsized law firms are actually doing pretty well financially due to the intrinsic favorable characteristics of a law firm as a business. At the same time, virtually all firms are underperforming compared to what they could be achieving. Most are not paying enough attention to continuity issues. They tend to be accidentally successful, failing to have enough forward-looking systems to see a train wreck that might be just around the corner. In a nutshell, they lack trained management skills.

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