Eight adults per minute turn sixty-five and by 2020, 20% of the workforce will be 65 or older. In law firms, the problem is exacerbated as senior rainmakers aged 60 or older often control 50% or more of the client base and key relationships, and often serve in key leadership positions. According to studies conducted…
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All of the research on gender bias and communications indicates that there are significant differences in the way men and women communicate. Men often are direct, women indirect. For men, communication helps achieve a goal, provides an answer; for women, it is more of a process, they want to tell a story and make a…
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Despite the progress women have achieved in general and in law firms, many women continue to express frustration about how to compete and be successful as they climb the career ladder. Enlightened firms have tried to tackle unconscious bias through mandatory training and intentionally putting more women in management positions. Some clients have gone…
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Our last article The Millennial Generation in Law Firms – How to Attract and Retain Gen Ys focused on several aspects of the workplace that appeal to millennials and must be present in order for your firm to avoid the common turnover so prevalent in this generation. According to a Clutch HR survey, 40% of…
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The law firm model likely will change in the coming years as described in our article The Shape of Things to Come – Tradition Gives Way to a New Model! These changes may result in the hiring of fewer traditional lawyers out of law school and the advancement of fewer associates to partnership, the hiring…
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In 2017, lawyers will be under more pressure than ever to succeed at business development, and yet many of them remain skeptical about whether or not CMOs, CBDOs and their teams really add value. Even at firms with the most enlightened partners in leadership roles, the role and effectiveness of business development and marketing is…
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Our last blog post, “Law Firm Partnership Part 1: Do True Partnerships Still Exist?” explored the changes that have occurred in the partnership model in recent decades and the core aspects to healthy partnerships. In this post, we will examine the qualities needed to advance to equity partner status and what it takes to be…
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Our last post Why Aren’t There More Women Leaders and Why Should Firms Care? addressed many of the reasons that women are not advancing to top levels in their firms. Many of the impediments and biases we summarized also can be found in the discrepancies between male and female compensation for equity partners. According to “Closing the Gap,” a…
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As law firms continue to strive to run themselves as businesses, more are hiring senior level business executives who do not have law degrees or who have joint JD/MBA degrees but who likely have more experience in business than practicing law. Most law firm CEOs in the US and UK, however, are lawyers, many of whom still…
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2012 brought a great deal of attention to many challenges facing and created by our current legal education system. As recently as early December, Jordan Furlong weighed in with his post “How to kill (or save) a law school.” Brian Tamanaha’s extremely well-written and researched book “Failing Law Schools,” published in 2012, describes in great detail why the system…
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A growing number of women are placing a higher priority on having a high paying career than they did fifteen years ago. According to a Pew Research Study, while women have surpassed men in education achievement since 1999, 66% of women between the age of 18 and 34 now cite a high-paying career as high priority…
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In September, a group of high level leaders in the legal profession will convene in New York City to “solve the worst legal job market in 20 years.” Those invited to the meeting by New York City Bar Association President Carey Dunne will be asked to identify the causes for these woes and to make recommendations to…
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There is a big difference between the role of a mentor and that of a sponsor. While effective mentors can be important for career success, effective sponsors are critical. According to Collins World English Dictionary, A mentor is “a wise or trusted adviser or guide.” To mentor is to “act as a mentor to someone; to train someone.”…
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