The Lawyer's Guide to the Future of Practice Management
Simon Drane, Jennifer Roberts, Robert Millard, Katherine Thomas, Clare Harman Clark, Janvi Patel, Arthur G Greene, Zev J Eigen, Christie Guimond, Langdon Morris, Patrick J McKenna, Michael Roster, Ailish Hogan, Patrick J Lamb, Phyllis Weiss Haserot, Lucinda Troostwyk, Bailey Bosch
Published: 2021
Pages: 174
eBook: 9781787426702
Expert opinion, guidance, and market knowledge on what today's legal marketplace might look like tomorrow.
Table of Contents
Cover | Cover | |
---|---|---|
Title page | i | |
Copyright page | ii | |
Contents | iii | |
Executive summary | ix | |
About the authors | xv | |
Part one: Technology | 1 | |
Chapter 1: How data will enable the shift towards the productization of legal services | 3 | |
Summary | 3 | |
A business model in transition driven by data | 3 | |
Changes in consumption of data | 5 | |
Data-driven customers driving changes | 6 | |
Productization underpinned by data | 7 | |
Conclusion | 11 | |
Chapter 2: How data is transforming the relationship between lawyer and client | 13 | |
How is data being used? | 13 | |
Data at the firm-level | 15 | |
Data, data, data | 18 | |
Leveraging data into actionable client analytics | 20 | |
Operationalizing innovation | 22 | |
A space for innovation | 22 | |
Conclusion | 23 | |
Chapter 3: Blockchain’s likely impact on law firm business models | 25 | |
Impact on client legal needs | 28 | |
Opportunities to enhance efficiency and performance within law firms | 30 | |
Where Blockchains will likely compete with law firms | 31 | |
How will Blockchains affect the fundamental business model of law firms? | 31 | |
What law firms should be doing now | 34 | |
In conclusion | 35 | |
Part two: People and culture | 37 | |
Chapter 4: Flexible working arrangements – the next stage from the “office nine-to-five” | 39 | |
What is flexible work? | 40 | |
Work hasn’t always been this way | 41 | |
Why is flexible working seen as primarily a woman’s issue? | 42 | |
The organizational benefits of flexible work | 42 | |
Forming flexible working arrangements | 46 | |
Summary | 47 | |
Chapter 5: Modern career trajectories – is partnership still the end goal? | 49 | |
The path to partner | 49 | |
The lay of the land | 50 | |
A bridge to brave new worlds | 53 | |
Conclusion | 54 | |
Chapter 6: The law department of the future – What will good look like? | 57 | |
Skills | 57 | |
Creating the right culture | 59 | |
Succession planning | 59 | |
The future of work | 60 | |
Technology | 61 | |
Chapter 7: How to survive and succeed leading a multi-generational practice group | 63 | |
Challenges | 64 | |
Solutions | 65 | |
Action steps to manage change | 66 | |
Chapter 8: Promoting firm goals through effective associate compensation approaches | 75 | |
An integrated approach to associate compensation | 75 | |
Methods of associate compensation | 76 | |
Comments on various approaches | 77 | |
Integrating all aspects of the associate program | 79 | |
Partner track or contract associates | 83 | |
Recommendations | 83 | |
Final thoughts | 84 | |
Chapter 9: A data scientist’s perspective on law firm profitability | 85 | |
Introduction | 85 | |
The fastest of fast horses: improving collaboration with relational data | 86 | |
The new car: closing the gender pay gap with SaaS | 91 | |
Conclusion | 93 | |
Part four: Strategy | 95 | |
Chapter 10: Adopting a strategic planning approach and leadership for innovation | 97 | |
Innovate or die – the Eastman Kodak story | 98 | |
What really went wrong? | 98 | |
Choosing a leadership model for innovation in the legal industry | 99 | |
Maximizing your leadership model – developing an innovation strategy | 100 | |
Positioning – where are you now? | 101 | |
Strategic choices – where do you want innovation to take you? | 102 | |
Conclusion | 103 | |
Chapter 11: Why innovate? The link between strategy and innovation | 105 | |
World class innovation | 106 | |
A time of change | 107 | |
The impact of technology | 108 | |
Choosing a strategic direction | 110 | |
Chapter 12: The fundamental challenges facing any new or future leader | 113 | |
Do I shake things up or preserve the status quo? | 114 | |
Do I strengthen my bonds with people or maintain a distance? | 115 | |
Do I give the appearance that I know what I’m doing or ask for help? | 116 | |
Do I push for the decision I want or facilitate a shared consensus? | 117 | |
Do I focus on results above all else or accept a degree of uncertainty? | 118 | |
Keep learning as you go | 119 | |
Addendum – where new leaders spend their time | 119 | |
Applying hindsight | 121 | |
Leadership tensions | 123 | |
Chapter 13: The inevitability of multi-disciplinary practices | 129 | |
Stanford construction | 130 | |
European food company | 131 | |
Platforms | 132 | |
Privilege | 133 | |
Conflicts | 134 | |
Possible transition | 134 | |
Chapter 14: The evolving role of the PSL – past, present, and future | 137 | |
Background | 137 | |
How has the role of the PSL evolved? | 137 | |
How have internal perceptions changed? | 138 | |
What about external attitudes? | 139 | |
What are the challenges? | 139 | |
How have the career structure and progression prospects evolved? | 140 | |
What does the international landscape look like? | 141 | |
Conclusion | 141 | |
Chapter 15: The evolving law department – what the future holds | 143 | |
Understanding the role of the law department in a modern business | 144 | |
The future – a more detailed look | 146 | |
Conclusion | 152 |
SIMON DRANE
Simon has held numerous positions within the professional services sector over the last 25 years - at a FTSE 100 legal information solution provider, a legal technology consultancy, a law firm, an accounting firm, and a legal membership organization. Simon has qualifications in law and tax, and deep experience in commercial product strategy. Simon has board level experience of both executive and non-executive roles, and as CEO of a technology start-up. He has a strong track record in creating innovative product strategies resulting in multiple new multi-million pound high growth lines of business. Simon led the new investments product strategy area at LexisNexis and created and launched many of the next generation content and workflow product offerings for lawyers. At the Law Society Simon ran the commercial arm of the organization and restructured a set of commercial investments through taking board seats. He also implemented a new commercial strategy including a significant shift in focus to legal technology innovation, including the launch of a legal tech-focused Barclays EagleLab accelerator. Simon has also held senior knowledge management roles in both law and accounting firms. Simon established earlsferry advisory towards the end of 2018 to help people with their product strategies, whether they are technology businesses, professional services businesses or investors into these spaces.
JENNIFER ROBERTS
Jennifer Roberts manages the strategic research function at Intapp, responsible for the analytics and research component that supports product development and thought leadership for new initiatives. Leveraging her skills to advocate, evangelize and build data-fueled products and insight, she examines theprofessional services industry to drive analytical intelligence that informs strategic decisions and solves organizational needs. Prior to joining Intapp, Jennifer received her MA from the University of Minnesota in advanced statistical methodology and performance measures. ROBERT MILLARD Robert Millard is founder and a partner at Cambridge Strategy Group, a management consultancy based in Cambridge, UK, focused primarily on law and other professional service firms and other deep knowledge enterprises. Rob is immediate past co-chair of the IBA's Law Firm Management Committee and currently serves on the steering committee of the IBA's President's Task Force on the Future of Legal Services.
KATHERINE THOMAS
Katherine Thomas helps legal service providers across the world grow, adapt and increase profitability with her company Katherine Thomas Consulting. With a reputation for strategic thinking combined with a large dose of pragmatism, she advises on strategy, sales, client development and the launch of new products and services. Now a consultant, speaker and coach, she previously established and led the well-known UK newlaw business Vario, a legal services provider with an emphasis on flexibility, for commercial law firm Pinsent Masons. As a result, she has a deep understanding of how alternative approaches to legal services delivery can increase competitiveness.
CLARE HARMAN CLARK
Clare Harman Clark is a senior professional support lawyer at Taylor Wessing LLP, building on a legal career that began with nearly a decade at Clifford Chance and a stint at Russell Cooke. Before retaining as a lawyer, Clare worked as a journalist and within a government press office, and still regularly publishes articles in national and trade press.
JANVI PATEL
Executive chairwoman & founder of Halebury. Janvi Patel is a NewLaw pioneer and has been spearheading operational, structural and cultural change within the legal services industry since starting NewLaw firm Halebury in 2007. Her aim: to create an entirely original business model to service the needs of clients and lawyers at the senior end of the market by offering a range of strategic resourcing options. Ten years on the firm has grown to a team of 35 senior in-house lawyers and has partnerships with clients such at BT, Sky and Virgin Media. It is highly ranked in the Legal 500 for its work in Technology, Media and Telecoms. Halebury has particular expertise in advising on and implementing legal transformation projects for in-house teams and businesses, a consultancy service delivered by former General Counsels and Heads of Legal from businesses such as Cisco, FremantleMedia and ATOS.
PHYLLIS WEISS HASEROT
Practice Development Counsel
ARTHUR G. GREENE
Principal, Boyer Greene LLC
ZEV J. EIGEN
Zev J. Eigen is the founder and chief science officer of Syndio, and a data scientist focused on AI and machine learning applications in HR, labor and employment law, and legal services broadly. He was honored as one of the Financial Times' 10 most innovative lawyers in 2016, as a FastCase50 Innovator of 2016, and as one of "40 Under 40 Rising Legal Stars" by the National Law Journal. He is frequently quoted in the media as an expert on big data solutions, predictive analytics and machine learning, especially as applied to HR and legal services and products.
CHRISTIE GUIMOND
Christie Guimond is an experienced strategy and innovation manager at Bird & Bird LLP, who has worked at the forefront of disruption in the legal industry for over a decade. Her experience includes developing a legal project management capability, introducing widespread legal and operational process improvements, including the implementation of initiatives such as smarter working and the adoption of emerging technology solutions. She also monitors the changing legal landscape and advises senior executives and in-house teams on how to respond to these changes.
LANGDON MORRIS
Founder, Innovation Labs
PATRICK J MCKENNA
Author, lecturer, strategist, and advisor to the leaders of premier law firms
MICHAEL ROSTER
Michael Roster was formerly managing partner of Morrison & Foerster's Los Angeles office, co-chair of the firm's Financial Services Practice Group worldwide, and a member of the firm's policy committee. In 1993, Mike was appointed general counsel of Stanford University, Stanford Medical Center, and Stanford Management Company. He was subsequently executive vice president and general counsel of Golden West Financial Corporation. Mike has also served as chair of the Association of Corporate Counsel, as outside director and vice chair of Silicon Valley Bank, chair of the Stanford Alumni Association, steering committee co-chair of ACC's Value Challenge, and chair of two start-up companies. He currently teaches Contract Drafting and Analysis at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law and is a director of MDRC in New York, a nonprofit organization that evaluates the effectiveness of government and other programs affecting lower- and moderate-income families and individuals.
AILISH HOGAN
Ailish Hogan qualified as a solicitor in 2002 and spent four years specialising in corporate finance before joining Taylor Root, a legal recruitment consultancy, in January 2007. Together with her colleague Lucinda - and their collective 20 years recruiting for private practice firms at Taylor Root - she established a dedicated PSL team. They now focus on recruiting professional support lawyers and knowledge managers into a range of City, niche and West End law firms, and work with a wide spectrum of candidates, from those wishing to make their first move into a PSL role to experienced PSLs considering new opportunities.
PATRICK J LAMB
Patrick J Lamb is one of the founding members of Valorem Law Group, LLC. After spending 18 years at an AmLaw 100 firm, including several years as an equity partner, Pat left the firm to join a litigation boutique, where he spent seven years, including six as a member of the firm's management committee. During these years, he was an avid proponent of budgeting and non-hourly fee arrangements. Ultimately coming to the conclusion that firms could not exist in both the hourly and non-hourly worlds, Pat and three colleagues, all big firm refugees, formed Valorem, which began in January 2008 as a non-hourly, value-fee firm. The firm represents businesses in complex disputes, and has more than doubled in size since its inception. Described by one in-house lawyer as "one of the few lawyers who gets it", Pat was named a legal rebel by the American Bar Association in 2009 and is a frequent speaker on value fees and the role of project management in the successful use of value fees. He began writing the popular blog `In Search Of Perfect Client Service' in 2005.