I was recently asked how a law firm management philosophy relates to the strategic planning process. It was a great question, because how we manage a firm (or plan to manage a firm) must either be aligned with firm culture, or set out to consciously adjust firm culture. So how we plan sets the tone [...]
In my last post, I talked about predicting our shifting client base. Today I’m going to touch on the shifting demographics of our talent pool – lawyers and staff. I’ve been researching demographic shifts in the US for a client, and came up with some surprising statistics. For example: For the next 20 years in [...]
Despite hiccups on vaccine receipt and distribution, we now know that by the end of the year, there’s a very good chance we’ll all be back to normal. That means there’s still another considerable block of time to get through first. We don’t want to be in either survival or neutral mode forever. So as [...]
(This post first appeared in SLAW) Most firms have come to appreciate the value of practice groups in their management and marketing; but not everyone knows why they are more powerful than operating without them, which may result in their under-utilization. In this post I’ll explain the evolution of practice groups, what they look like [...]
I have a lot of time for Law Firm Marketing Researcher Michael Rynowecer. So, when his blog “The Mad Clientist” arrives in my inbox, I usually read it. The latest edition highlights recent research his company, BTI Consulting, regarding the current US law firm mood, seven months into the pandemic. For fun, I thought I’d [...]
Great marketing isn’t a single action; rather it’s a series of connected actions, each one building from the other for the purpose of creating a mutually beneficial and ideally ongoing relationship. This is a difficult lesson for lawyers to get, for three main reasons. Most lawyers don’t like marketing. It isn’t why they joined the [...]
(This article first appeared in SLAW) The line between bad strategy and a law firm collapse is as thin as a noose. Yet law firms practice bad strategy on a regular basis. Take heed from the lessons of a very public breakdown. A client recently gave me a copy of Norman Bacal’s book “Breakdown, the Inside [...]
Like most businesses, small to medium-sized law firms depend on business as usual to meet their revenue targets and cover expenses. Most can withstand an economic downturn, the loss of an important client, the sudden need for new technology hardware, etc. Preparing for a longer-term threat is a different. We are facing a pandemic. While [...]
By definition, make or break decisions occur when we have the least amount of time and emotional control to make them. How can we make the best possible decision in the worst possible circumstances? Management is about dealing with people and things – including events. We can’t possible manage every timekeeper, every moment of the [...]
Over the next ten or so years, we will see a marketplace-shifting change in law firm ownership as baby boomers retire and decide what to do with their practice. This is a time of high angst for those about to leave the law, and potentially a remarkable opportunity for the more entrepreneurial and thick- stomached [...]