Tall Poppy Syndrome and Origination Credit
Law firms talk a good game about sophisticated management but often, just when a firm reaches the verge of running like a business, its culture gets in the way. Case in point is business origination: should it be measured, how should it be measured and what do we do with the data? Almost 25% of […]
The New Direction of Law Firm Leadership
There is no law firm management topic about which more has been written than Leadership. The presumption at the base of most of these discussions is that the most successful professional service firms have the best leaders. And that prompts all sorts of further discussion about leadership styles, techniques, and the eternal debate as to […]
The Tall Poppy Syndrome and Origination Credit
Law firms talk a good game about sophisticated management but often, just when a firm reaches the verge of running like a business, its culture gets in the way. Case in point is business origination: should it be measured, how should it be measured and what do we do with the data? Almost 25% of […]
Is It Time to Abandon Your Firm’s Business Model?
“Big Law is dying” That’s the theme of thousands of articles and blog posts that show up on our desktops every week. Mainly the writers are wringing their hands about the disruption that is occurring to the traditional business models of large law firms. But if we can divert our attention from the pity party […]
Managing Expectations: Compensating Unique Lateral Partners
Occasionally firms are presented with a unique opportunity to attract a senior in-house lawyer or governmental official as a lateral partner. If such a person becomes successful, the rewards to the firm can be staggering. But the failure rate of lawyers who intend to build a practice from scratch, regardless of their credentials, is high. […]
The Value of Partnership
I frequently hear Managing Partners comment that associates are different today than they used to be. “Different” is, of course, often code for “not as good.” We talk about Gen X and Gen Next in our efforts to understand what motivates young lawyers. But, at the same time, it is worth noting that the structure […]