Employer

Long before most mergers are put to a vote, merger committees define and analyze the new firm's financial prospects, practice opportunities, governance structure, technology needs, marketing plan, and a host of related issues. Unfortunately, some firms thoroughly analyze the merger; agree to merge; but then stumble through the integration process. READ MORE >

Recently, it seems that most publications focusing on the state of the legal industry include a line or two on firms that are looking for merger partners, that are involved in merger negotiations or whose partners have voted to merge. For many firms, the desire to merge stems from one of two forces operating outside the legal market. READ MORE >

Changing Market for Legal Services Places New Focus on Practice Management

Law firms are recognizing that the days of operating like a regulated industry are fading fast. Like the airline, telecom, and rail businesses in prior years, forward-thinking law firms understand that they are operating in an increasingly competitive marketplace and that they must transform themselves in order to thrive. Practice management is one of the key components in this transformation for law firms to be successful in the long term. Today’s law firms face significant internal and external challenges as they strive to increase net income per partner and compete for both clients and lawyers in the legal marketplace. Traditional models for law firm success that are outdated and law firms are realizing the need to reinvent themselves in order to survive. Common pressures facing law firms and law firm management today include: READ MORE >

It's no secret that there is an intensifying rush to consolidate within the legal profession. And of course, we expect the future to bring larger and increasingly complex mergers to the legal profession. Those are likely to include transatlantic combinations—and even multidisciplinary ones. READ MORE >

Firms that take the time to address business fundamentals now will be stronger now than they were before.

This is an ideal time to look at the fundamentals underpinning a law firm's business. We see four areas – costs, lawyer performance, client relations, and strategic focus – as requiring the most attention from firm management right now. Addressing these will ensure that a firm can take full advantage of what is available to strengthen it for the future. READ MORE >

• Firms need to think strategically to remain competitive while also retaining strong management systems.
• Strategic thinking entails constant evaluation of the firm and its attorneys.
• Many professional firms enter into growth planning for the wrong reasons.
• Read below to find out more.

The legal profession is more exciting than ever. Changes that revolutionize the business world provide law firms with the greatest opportunities and challenges they ever have seen. READ MORE >

In the early 2000s, in the midst of an extremely strong legal market, a surprisingly large number of law firms failed or restructured every year. Today it is more of the same; numerous firms with varying practices, geographic positions, and sizes, collapsed. Now, as they prepare to enter 2012, an uncertain economic climate has many firms concerned about their short- and long-term survival. READ MORE >

One of the most significant challenges for law firms in the current economic and competitive climate is managing effectively both their strategic development and operational performance. The strategic development is concerned with achieving agreed mid-long term strategic objectives and a future market position which provides a platform for building some form of sustainable competitiveness. Operational management, in contrast, is essentially concerned with the current, more immediate, financial and economic performance achieved including the servicing and winning of clients and achievement of other key related performance targets (covering, for example, HR, service standards, etc.). READ MORE >

How can you know if your firm is at serious risk? And, what can you do to avoid trouble on the horizon? The following are some important short- to mid-term warning signs: READ MORE >

In the past, many law firm leaders proclaimed, ''Last year was our best year ever.'' Now, after years of double-digit revenue growth, the leaders are asking, ''How can we position ourselves?'' Partners at law firms of all sizes are becoming anxious about their firm's performance. Firms are beginning to re-evaluate their expense structure as well as their revenue production capabilities. READ MORE >

As law firms review their capitalization, they need to consider the costs of operations and strategic initiatives as well as those events that cannot be anticipated. READ MORE >

Some of these warning signs are economic based, and are thus ''measurable,'' while others involve intangibles and perceptions (e.g., a low level of trust among the partners, lack of leadership, or lack of planning), which are more difficult to detect from within. Here are a few economic based warning signs to watch in your firm. READ MORE >

Just what is going on here? Consider these headlines: READ MORE >

Several years ago, an article appeared in the McKinsey Quarterly commenting on the state of the legal profession. READ MORE >

When two firms merge, it is an opportune time to take a fresh look and reassess the combined firm's practice management structure. Strong practice management may enable the newly combined firm to achieve higher profitability, obtain higher value work and enhance its client base. Even though the legal profession has experienced a period of peak profitability, most law firms have not fully capitalized upon their size and resources because they are still operating along office lines, or even worse, individual partner lines. READ MORE >

In its February 4, 2002 issue, Fortune magazine published its fifth annual list of the ''100 Best Places to Work.'' Four law firms were included on the list for the third time, this year with the following rankings: Alston & Bird, number 9; Fenwick & West number 14; McCutchen Doyle Brown & Enersen, number 54; and Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, number 78. The qualities and cultures of these four firms, which ultimately landed them on the list with the likes of Cisco Systems, Goldman Sachs, Charles Schwab, Microsoft and Intel, are in many ways similar. Most notable are a strong and positive culture, open and honest communication, and strong firm and practice management. READ MORE >

Many law firms have grown dramatically over the past few years. The challenge for any firm that has experienced fast growth is to be able to capitalize on the firm's new platform. The larger and more diverse and dispersed a firm becomes, the more attention must be focused on managing it. The reality is that growing a firm requires substantial investment in effective management to ensure the firm gets an acceptable return on its investment in growth. READ MORE >

Many law firms have been implementing new practice group structures—or have made significant changes to their existing structures—in recent years. While one managing partner told us, ''Practice group management is the latest consulting trick to sell,'' most medium and large firms have come to understand that centralized firm management alone is not the most effective way to manage the multi-million dollar businesses that law firms have become. READ MORE >

To prosper and grow, law firms of all sizes must create strategic business plans for their individual practice groups. A good strategic plan may be as simple as three to five goals with action plans designed to implement them. READ MORE >

Changing Market for Legal Services Places New Focus on Practice Management

Law firms are recognizing that the days of operating like a regulated industry are fading fast. Like the airline, telecom, and rail businesses in prior years, forward-thinking law firms understand that they are operating in an increasingly competitive marketplace and that they must transform themselves in order to thrive. Practice management is one of the key components in this transformation for law firms to be successful in the long term. READ MORE >

Take steps now to be a victor in the ongoing war for legal talent

As needs for legal services become increasingly complex and sophisticated, law firms must attract and retain talent that has not only the requisite intellectual and legal skills, but also keen business acumen. READ MORE >

Obtaining client feedback serves many purposes—from helping firms make decisions based on fact to testing assumptions for initiatives to providing a mechanism for comparison with competitors. Most important a feedback program assesses client satisfaction and provides a road map for improvement. READ MORE >

In 1977 at the World Future Society conference in Boston, Ken Olsen, Chief Executive Officer of Digital Equipment Corporation, predicted that ''there is no place for the computer in the home.'' At the time, Mr. Olsen and DEC were the darlings of Wall Street. Many observers expected DEC to overtake IBM as the world's leading computer company. So much for predictions from experts. READ MORE >

One of the most significant challenges for law firms in the current economic and competitive climate is managing effectively both their strategic development and operational performance. The strategic development is concerned with achieving agreed mid-long term strategic objectives and a future market position which provides a platform for building some form of sustainable competitiveness. Operational management, in contrast, is essentially concerned with the current, more immediate, financial and economic performance achieved including the servicing and winning of clients and achievement of other key related performance targets (covering, for example, HR, service standards, etc.). READ MORE >

In every law firm there is a period during the year when the tension rises in anticipation of the announcement of new admissions to the equity. The period in many firms is characterized by high levels of secrecy, hurried meetings behind closed doors and a sense of political gamesmanship. READ MORE >