On the Job

Have a job description. If one doesn't exist, write it. With this guide, list the tasks you feel are important, and prioritize. Set some personal goals that include when each task will be completed and at what level of attainment. If you have a firm marketing plan, your job is easier, as most of your work will be delineated in the marketing objectives of the firm.

Meet with your manager in person and go over this list to verify that your assumptions are attuned. Be flexible and allow some negotiation as to the deadline, measurement and anticipated level of completion. What you're aiming for is a set of assignments that are specific, measurable and have an assigned date for achievement. Work hard at this, because you need to get precise and unequivocal agreement. Then, you will have your performance plan.

Know What You Want

Decide what reward (money, recognition, resources, freedom, etc) you want for accomplishing the assignments as agreed upon. Discuss this with your manager, and discard the ones that are deemed clearly outside the control or influence of your supervisor. Agree at the start what reward(s) you will earn for accomplishing all the work as set forth in your work plan.

Set a separate reward for accomplishments “significantly beyond” the assigned levels. And agree ahead of time on what that phrase means for each job, either in accelerated deadlines or higher level of success. This is the “carrot” for you and should stretch both you and the firm.

Check In Regularly

Make an effort to check in several times during the year (four is minimum, in my mind) with your manager(s) and see how you are doing. You want to ensure they are paying sufficient attention. These meetings would not be on the minutiae of daily tasks and responsibilities, but would be to mark exactly where in time and level of completion you are on each of the components of your performance plan.

Be prepared to both celebrate the successful accomplishment of an objective and to renegotiate deadlines and levels of achievement, if necessary. You will already know what assignments are going well and the ones that simply cannot get done as first planned. Even take off an assignment and substitute another one that fits the firm's objectives better, now that some time has passed and circumstances have changed.

With these steps, you set achievable goals and reasonable deadlines. You get concrete feedback and strive for exact rewards, instead of working feverishly on the hope that someone will notice and you'll derive some benefit. Yet, it does not prevent quick changes in direction to take advantage of unforeseen opportunities.

Next month, we'll look at ways to move this same kind of system into the department you manage.

In law firms, it can be difficult ' sometimes impossible ' to get actionable feedback from responsible partners or administrative management on how well a marketing professional is doing his or her job. While nice, I'm not talking about the “attagirl”s or “you go boy”s that might come from many of lawyers and co-workers as support and encouragement or intermittent salary hikes. I'm referring to a regular, systematic process that lets you know whether your assignments and objectives are being achieved as the firm expects.

Two components underlie this silence: vague job goals and haphazard (or non-existent) appraisal procedures. However, you can take some steps to specify your job objectives and encourage your manager(s) to note the work you accomplish, even if this requires focused energy and political savvy.

Manage Expectations

Have a job description. If one doesn't exist, write it. With this guide, list the tasks you feel are important, and prioritize. Set some personal goals that include when each task will be completed and at what level of attainment. If you have a firm marketing plan, your job is easier, as most of your work will be delineated in the marketing objectives of the firm.

Meet with your manager in person and go over this list to verify that your assumptions are attuned. Be flexible and allow some negotiation as to the deadline, measurement and anticipated level of completion. What you're aiming for is a set of assignments that are specific, measurable and have an assigned date for achievement. Work hard at this, because you need to get precise and unequivocal agreement. Then, you will have your performance plan.

Know What You Want

Decide what reward (money, recognition, resources, freedom, etc) you want for accomplishing the assignments as agreed upon. Discuss this with your manager, and discard the ones that are deemed clearly outside the control or influence of your supervisor. Agree at the start what reward(s) you will earn for accomplishing all the work as set forth in your work plan.

Set a separate reward for accomplishments “significantly beyond” the assigned levels. And agree ahead of time on what that phrase means for each job, either in accelerated deadlines or higher level of success. This is the “carrot” for you and should stretch both you and the firm.

Check In Regularly

Make an effort to check in several times during the year (four is minimum, in my mind) with your manager(s) and see how you are doing. You want to ensure they are paying sufficient attention. These meetings would not be on the minutiae of daily tasks and responsibilities, but would be to mark exactly where in time and level of completion you are on each of the components of your performance plan.

Be prepared to both celebrate the successful accomplishment of an objective and to renegotiate deadlines and levels of achievement, if necessary. You will already know what assignments are going well and the ones that simply cannot get done as first planned. Even take off an assignment and substitute another one that fits the firm's objectives better, now that some time has passed and circumstances have changed.

With these steps, you set achievable goals and reasonable deadlines. You get concrete feedback and strive for exact rewards, instead of working feverishly on the hope that someone will notice and you'll derive some benefit. Yet, it does not prevent quick changes in direction to take advantage of unforeseen opportunities.

Next month, we'll look at ways to move this same kind of system into the department you manage.