In our post Who Do Law Firms Compete with and Why? we described the fierce competition that law firms face today, noting that much of that competition is increasingly coming from non-law firm legal services providers, consulting firms and the Big 4, which have some of the largest law firms in the world outside the…
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In our prior post, Industry Group Strategy Part 1 – What are They and Why Have IGs? we clarified the difference between sectors and industries and discussed the benefits and goals of having them. In law firms, Industry Groups, like client teams, straddle multiple practice groups and lawyers may be members of several practice groups…
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Many law firms have formed industry groups, but are they defining and managing them correctly and effectively? In many cases, no. In some instances, firms are not even using the correct nomenclature. In others, they list so many industry groups on their web sites that it is clear this is more of a marketing tactic…
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[Note: This article is being published with the permission of our client, Morgan Lewis & Bockius.] Two of our previous posts on collaboration, True Collaboration Drives Profitability and Collaboration: The Next Law Firm Frontier, discussed the benefits of collaborative cultures and approaches to client representation. But both articles also alluded to the reasons why collaboration…
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Collaboration in the workplace is widely recognized as an important success factor in the most effective organizations. It is necessary in order to build and share knowledge, accelerate innovation, break down silos and facilitate connectivity. A recent Harvard study found that managers and employees now spend 50% or more time in collaborative activities than they…
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Law firms are facing stiff competition when it comes to holding onto their clients, much less gaining market share. Given the flat growth in available legal work, law firms have been having to “steal” work from other firms to gain share. BTI Consulting’s Market Outlook and Client Service Review 2017 reports that while legal spending…
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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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Citi Private Bank has released its third quarter report on law firm growth and it indicates a slow-down since their mid-year report. The following findings are important to note: Demand was nearly flat at .3% Revenue growth other than due to billing rate increases was only .3% Firms have seen an increase in compensation expenses…
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Leadership is not a title or a position. The best leaders have developed competencies that enable them to drive their firms forward, think conceptually and strategically and effectively build and rely on teams and networks. According to the 2016 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends report, eighty-nine percent of companies see leadership as an important or…
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Our two prior blog posts examined a number of trends, challenges and changes that will affect legal service businesses of the future. “Legal service business” is used here intentionally to suggest that many legal services of the future will more frequently be provided by non-traditional law firms (many of which won’t even be called or…
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In Part 1 of 3: The Next Normal – Will the Traditional Law Firm Model Survive?, we suggested that the traditional firm model will not survive in the future (or perhaps even the present for many.) The law firm or legal service organization of the future will employ numerous types of people who have various skills,…
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This article is the first in a series to look at the “Next Normal” for law firms. Part 1 focuses on the traditional law firm model and why it is unlikely to remain as it is, Part 2 focuses on lawyer skills and talent management in the future, and Part 3 will address whether and…
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Two things are clear right now. First, dramatic changes have already occurred and will continue to occur in the legal profession (actually, most are affecting all sectors of the economy.) Second, these and other new changes will be permanent, i.e., this is not a pendulum swing that will swing back. The marketplace is driving these…
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Like many things occurring in the profession right now, this is a trend that is here to stay. Clients want their legal work done faster, cheaper and smarter and they know that there are good practices in place in other professions and businesses that can be adapted to the practice of law. Companies like GE…
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All the disruption, uncertainty and competition afflicting law firms today is creating a lot of anxiety and fear. Plenty of lawyers are questioning why they chose law as a profession and whether they should retool into another career, law firm leaders question how they will lead their firms through this time of turbulence, and most…
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