What are founding or managing partners going to do with themselves once they retire? This question comes up regularly when consulting with law firms about succession planning issues. Law firms commonly struggle with succession planning in part because of their inability to find a satisfactory post-retirement role for the senior lawyer. Some of the difficulty […]
Law firm leaders tend to assume that they can’t afford to hire a new lawyer or staff member. In my experience as a consultant to law firms, I’ve learned that you can’t take the phrase “can’t afford” literally. “Can’t afford’ doesn’t mean the same thing as “too expensive.” Here are three recent examples that illustrate […]
By now you should have already attended at least three networking events and reached out to at least three people who referred you business last year. If the prior sentence is at all familiar to the language you use inside your own head, I have two words of advice—please stop. Specifically, please stop thinking this […]
Many service-oriented businesses, including law firms, thrive when they have a steady stream of repeat business. Given that it is generally much more expensive and time consuming to attract a new client than to keep an existing one, it is critical to understand what causes a long-term client to leave for a competitor. In my […]
Too many people fall victim to the fallacy that New Year’s resolutions work. They don’t–and for a very good reason. Many of the most important goals that people want to accomplish require regular attention. Whether you want to lose weight, improve a personal relationship, or grow your book of business, you can’t get there by […]
A wise and accomplished financial advisor recently told me that her clients will happily talk about most aspects of their financial reality and goals except for one–cash flow. They will share their dreams of retiring in an exotic locale, funding college for their children and grandchildren, but won’t without prompting mention that they have less […]
The content between Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump wasn’t exactly inspiring. It did, however, demonstrate three truths about communicating a message that is particularly applicable to law firms that want to grow. 1. A Memorable Brand Goes A Very Long Way: However you feel about Donald Trump as a candidate or as the incoming President, […]
Too many law firm leaders subscribe to a plug-and-play mentality when it comes to hiring. They believe that you can take someone who has certain skills and essentially get them to produce effectively in a short period of time. Firms recognize that the new hire needs to learn about the firm’s time entry, billing, and […]
Many law firms mismanage how they compensate associates. Consider the following real-life examples: A law firm that represents consumers in litigation has to scramble because a key associate gives notice and the firm ends up increasing the associate’s pay by more than 30 percent to keep her. Some associates at a corporate transactional firm are […]
Law firms chronically under invest in training and developing their people. One manifestation of this is the curious persistence of the part-time, combo secretary/paralegal/office manager role in many firms with more than five attorneys. For a variety of reasons, too many law firm managing partners and executive committees are reluctant to hire professional, full-time office […]