<b>Op-Ed:</b> The Year of the Dinosaur: Being Oblivious to the Obvious

What's in a name? Apparently nothing! Over the past several months, we have seen many top rainmakers leave firms that are considered to be the “creme de la creme” of the profession for “greener” pastures and assurances that they can continue to practice law, keep their clients and remain viable. There is no surprise to this trend that can be summed us as follows: Money talks and, in some cases, mandatory retirement walks.

What makes this trend all the more interesting is the fact that coupled with these departures is a sense that the firms from which the partners are leaving seem to be oblivious to the obvious: You, and you know who you are, have become irrelevant and for lack of better terminology ' You are a dinosaur! These are the firms that once were the bastions of greatness; where every young law student vied for a position as a summer associate and with any luck a permanent position with the “chance” to capture that brass ring and become a partner; and where just uttering the name of the firm conjured up … ah yes … “being among the elite.” Not anymore. These firms who relish in Chippendale furniture, important art, Bokara rugs and spiral staircases are now looking at the prospect of having to face up to the fact that they need something more than a name to keep people engaged.

And what about their image? Enter marketing … well sort of. While these firms have created marketing departments with countless numbers of staff, the leaders of these firms haven't a clue as to what marketing is or what it can do or cannot do. These “titans” have made it clear to the Chief Marketing Officer that “We really don't need marketing so here's what we want you to do … nothing. Well maybe you can keep our name out there, but not out there too much because our clients don't like that; and well maybe you can have some of us speak at conferences, but not too many conferences because after all … everybody knows who we are; and we certainly don't need to work together (in an interdisciplinary practice group setting) because our “eat what you kill” (or worse yet “lockstep”) compensation system keeps all of us who are important happy, fat and fed.”

Ridiculous? You bet, but this is actually the conversation in many of the firms that I call “Jurassic period firms” (hereinafter referred to as the JPF) ' firms that have heretofore relied solely on their name and reputation to keep their clients. Again, not anymore. Enter the new breed of U.S.-based firms ' smart, entrepreneurial, aggressive and hungry. With fabulous marketing programs, yes programs, led by sophisticated marketing-savvy leadership, these firms are eating the lunch of the JPF. They may not be getting the big deals, although many have, but they are getting their foot in the door and frankly, that's all it takes to grow a client, one matter at a time. These national firms have the ability to attract rainmakers with significant books of business; have global reaches; and a competitive spirit. These are the firms of the future.

The JPF “just don't get it” and they never will until their Bokaras are faded and their coffers are nearly empty. But don't feel sorry for the partners of these firms. They will not suffer because, as we all are aware, they have made it big back in the days when they were the “end all and be all” of the legal profession. And the good news for these partners is that their firms will not disappear. What these firms will be forced to do is reinvent themselves and yes, marketing will play a major role in that reinvention. Of course, the marketing professionals will need to be a different breed than are presently ensconced in these firms. The marketing professionals will be, I believe, sophisticated individuals who come not from the world of law, but from the world of business. In other words, these JPF will come to realize that in order to survive and thrive, they will be required to go the route of the financial and business sectors and find individuals who can reinvent and reinvigorate these firms. They will work to create a new image for these firms and, yes, the partners will be listening. And they will be listening because it will be to their detriment not to.

Consider the fact that JPF to which I refer have chairs or managing partners whose average age is 58. Most of these people never needed marketing to succeed, nor did they ever believe that marketing would come to their firm. When you speak to these partners, they will tell you that they have institutional clients whose general counsels are their “friends, neighbors and/or golf buddies” and that for 50-plus years, their firm has done great work for these clients. So, in essence all is well, and there is no need to create a marketing or business development program. They will also tell you that publicity comes their way naturally because they handle the biggest, the best, and the most important matters that Corporate America has to offer. Remembering something I alluded to at the beginning of this piece: It only takes one matter to get in the door. That door could be a tax matter, an intellectual property matter or even a T&E matter.

For the new breed of U.S-based firms who have what I call “real deal” marketing, the “door opener” leads to a conversation with inside counsel that goes something like this: “I want to thank you for giving us the opportunity to work with you on this matter. I know you have a lot of firms with whom you work and that there are a lot of firms out there from which to choose to do the vast amount of legal work that you have, but we have some unique capabilities that we believe match your needs. [Now someone in the law firm's marketing department has already done the research so that the needs of the inside counsel are known.] Perhaps, though, you might want to join me on an informal basis for breakfast, lunch, dinner [spectator sport event, theater, etc.] to meet a couple of my other partners so that we can explore the range of possibilities.”

The message to the JPF firms is a simple one: You have been warned. Your days are numbered. You need to go into “Survivor” mode – outlast, outplay, outwit. The days of being “elite” (defined as the best or most skilled members of a given privileged, social group) are coming to an “end” (defined as to cease or die).

' Elizabeth Anne “Betiayn” Tursi, Editor-in-Chief

What's in a name? Apparently nothing! Over the past several months, we have seen many top rainmakers leave firms that are considered to be the “creme de la creme” of the profession for “greener” pastures and assurances that they can continue to practice law, keep their clients and remain viable. There is no surprise to this trend that can be summed us as follows: Money talks and, in some cases, mandatory retirement walks.

What makes this trend all the more interesting is the fact that coupled with these departures is a sense that the firms from which the partners are leaving seem to be oblivious to the obvious: You, and you know who you are, have become irrelevant and for lack of better terminology ' You are a dinosaur! These are the firms that once were the bastions of greatness; where every young law student vied for a position as a summer associate and with any luck a permanent position with the “chance” to capture that brass ring and become a partner; and where just uttering the name of the firm conjured up … ah yes … “being among the elite.” Not anymore. These firms who relish in Chippendale furniture, important art, Bokara rugs and spiral staircases are now looking at the prospect of having to face up to the fact that they need something more than a name to keep people engaged.

And what about their image? Enter marketing … well sort of. While these firms have created marketing departments with countless numbers of staff, the leaders of these firms haven't a clue as to what marketing is or what it can do or cannot do. These “titans” have made it clear to the Chief Marketing Officer that “We really don't need marketing so here's what we want you to do … nothing. Well maybe you can keep our name out there, but not out there too much because our clients don't like that; and well maybe you can have some of us speak at conferences, but not too many conferences because after all … everybody knows who we are; and we certainly don't need to work together (in an interdisciplinary practice group setting) because our “eat what you kill” (or worse yet “lockstep”) compensation system keeps all of us who are important happy, fat and fed.”

Ridiculous? You bet, but this is actually the conversation in many of the firms that I call “Jurassic period firms” (hereinafter referred to as the JPF) ' firms that have heretofore relied solely on their name and reputation to keep their clients. Again, not anymore. Enter the new breed of U.S.-based firms ' smart, entrepreneurial, aggressive and hungry. With fabulous marketing programs, yes programs, led by sophisticated marketing-savvy leadership, these firms are eating the lunch of the JPF. They may not be getting the big deals, although many have, but they are getting their foot in the door and frankly, that's all it takes to grow a client, one matter at a time. These national firms have the ability to attract rainmakers with significant books of business; have global reaches; and a competitive spirit. These are the firms of the future.

The JPF “just don't get it” and they never will until their Bokaras are faded and their coffers are nearly empty. But don't feel sorry for the partners of these firms. They will not suffer because, as we all are aware, they have made it big back in the days when they were the “end all and be all” of the legal profession. And the good news for these partners is that their firms will not disappear. What these firms will be forced to do is reinvent themselves and yes, marketing will play a major role in that reinvention. Of course, the marketing professionals will need to be a different breed than are presently ensconced in these firms. The marketing professionals will be, I believe, sophisticated individuals who come not from the world of law, but from the world of business. In other words, these JPF will come to realize that in order to survive and thrive, they will be required to go the route of the financial and business sectors and find individuals who can reinvent and reinvigorate these firms. They will work to create a new image for these firms and, yes, the partners will be listening. And they will be listening because it will be to their detriment not to.

Consider the fact that JPF to which I refer have chairs or managing partners whose average age is 58. Most of these people never needed marketing to succeed, nor did they ever believe that marketing would come to their firm. When you speak to these partners, they will tell you that they have institutional clients whose general counsels are their “friends, neighbors and/or golf buddies” and that for 50-plus years, their firm has done great work for these clients. So, in essence all is well, and there is no need to create a marketing or business development program. They will also tell you that publicity comes their way naturally because they handle the biggest, the best, and the most important matters that Corporate America has to offer. Remembering something I alluded to at the beginning of this piece: It only takes one matter to get in the door. That door could be a tax matter, an intellectual property matter or even a T&E matter.

For the new breed of U.S-based firms who have what I call “real deal” marketing, the “door opener” leads to a conversation with inside counsel that goes something like this: “I want to thank you for giving us the opportunity to work with you on this matter. I know you have a lot of firms with whom you work and that there are a lot of firms out there from which to choose to do the vast amount of legal work that you have, but we have some unique capabilities that we believe match your needs. [Now someone in the law firm's marketing department has already done the research so that the needs of the inside counsel are known.] Perhaps, though, you might want to join me on an informal basis for breakfast, lunch, dinner [spectator sport event, theater, etc.] to meet a couple of my other partners so that we can explore the range of possibilities.”

The message to the JPF firms is a simple one: You have been warned. Your days are numbered. You need to go into “Survivor” mode – outlast, outplay, outwit. The days of being “elite” (defined as the best or most skilled members of a given privileged, social group) are coming to an “end” (defined as to cease or die).

' Elizabeth Anne “Betiayn” Tursi, Editor-in-Chief