Getting Things Done (And Developing Law Firm Leaders) Through Project Teams

Most lawyers are exceptional problem solvers. Solving problems is imperative to their success as attorneys. However, in our law firm strategic planning and management consulting work, we sometimes find that when the research has been compiled, the discussions completed and the plan written, the planning group congratulates each other on a job well done and then moves on to other business. Mission accomplished! They have solved the problem of assessing their market situation and preparing a plan. In extreme cases, the plan is rarely spoken of again.

But documenting a good plan, with clear goals and priorities, is only the first step. Making decisions is a poor substitute for action. Now something has to get done and somebody has to do it. Frankly, developing a strategic plan is a wasted exercise if not followed by action plans ' and then action.

In our experience, what separates leading firms from the pack is not elegant strategy or specially gifted thinking. What characterizes high-performing firms is the disciplined implementation of common-sense goals. Rigorous execution of business initiatives isn't sexy, just successful.

The Project Team Approach

Once a plan is ratified, management should move immediately to implementation ' prioritizing the business goals and assigning responsibilities for action. We recommend the use of temporary project teams to get important projects completed efficiently and effectively while also improving teamwork, stoking creativity and developing management competency throughout the firm.

The project team approach has been employed with great success in corporations and many law firms for years. The following guide will help you create project teams to get things done in your firm.

The Project Charter

A good project can be described in a page or two known as a project charter. The charter defines the project's objectives, assigns the project team, establishes clear deadlines for the work and makes available any resources needed by the team. See the sidebar on page 4, “A Sample Project Charter,” for an example.

The project charter contains the following elements:

Project Name

Presumably, you have more than one thing to do in your firm. Give each project a name and number. The number simply indicates the order in which each project was assigned, not their relative importance or priority. The third project is called Project #3 plus a short, descriptive name.

Charter Objective

State the broad objective of the project in plain language. This is different from the specific objectives and deliverables to be defined later. Following are a few examples of a charter objective:

• Improve the flow of information in and out of our time and billing system.
• Assess the profitability of the firm's ten largest clients.
• Develop a plan to acquire two significant new pieces of Labor & Employment business.
• Select an e-discovery vendor to replace [Vendor X].
• Evaluate the pros and cons of outsourcing legal work to India.
• Improve the process and outcomes of our lateral recruiting efforts.

Firm management must decide when constructing the charter how much authority to delegate to the project team. Are they evaluating, recommending or implementing? Are any recommendations “out of bounds”?

Project Owner

The project owner is a leader or manager in the firm who will oversee the project, to whom the project team reports. The project owner should not actively work on the project. He or she briefs the project leader, then serves as a sounding board and resource during the work of the project team. The team's final report will be issued to the project owner according to the time and manner specified in the charter.

In a smaller firm, the managing partner or administrator may serve as project owner for most projects. In a larger firm, the project owner could be the chief operating officer, chief financial officer, chief marketing officer, chief information/technology officer, recruiting partner or another decision maker'whoever is appropriate, depending on the subject matter. It is not always necessary that the project owner have direct oversight for the area under review. It may be appropriate, for example, to conduct a third party review of the firm's lateral recruiting procedures or collections practices. A defensive project owner may prejudice the work of the team or distort the team's findings and recommendations to protect his or her interests.

Project Leader

The project leader is primarily responsible for directing the work of the project team and is accountable for meeting all project objectives by the stated deadlines. He or she is given the “what” (the objectives, parameters, deadlines and team roster) and determines the “how” (who will do what to achieve the objectives). The project leader should be given a great deal of latitude in how the work of the project gets accomplished. Resist the temptation to “check in” with the project leader aside from the stated deadlines.

Project Team

The project team is the group (typically four to seven persons) who will work together on the project. Project leaders and team members are usually expected to carry out their normal responsibilities while also serving on the project.

A benefit of project teams is that the short-term work assignments bring people together from different parts of the firm ' different practice groups, functional groups, offices, even different generations. Placing timekeepers and non-timekeepers together as collaborators can help bridge the chasm that exists in many firms and may tap hidden creativity and capability that was previously unexpressed.

Project teams should be selected to achieve the following aims:

• Capability ' the team will be able to understand and execute the project.
• Diversity ' the team represents a variety of perspectives. This is important to avoid “groupthink” and because flashes of insight frequently come from outside the group that is closest to the problem.
• Inclusion ' the team includes at least one member who would not normally be invited, such as a legal assistant or young associate, to help develop the project leader's ability to direct a disparate group of people and to assess the capacities of those invited to participate. (Your firm needs non-lawyer leaders too.)

Project leaders should encourage participation and contribution from all team members. Many organizations have identified future leaders through their work on project teams.

Project Objectives

Earlier, we set forth the charter objective. Now we spell out the specific goals and tasks to be accomplished by the team. Here's how that might look for two of the examples used above:

• Charter Objective: Assess the profitability of the firm's ten largest clients.
• Project Objectives:
• Identify the firm's ten largest clients for last year based on total fee receipts. If considerations other than total fee receipts are applied to come up with the list of ten, explain how the list was compiled.
• Assess the bottom line profitability to the firm for each client. This should be a financial calculation, without regard to intangibles. Explain your methodology.
• Discuss the implications of your findings.
• Make recommendations to firm management to improve overall profitability.

In this example, someone from the firm's accounting department should be on (or available to) the team to facilitate data gathering. Management would have to decide whether having a partner on the team who represents a large, less profitable client would be helpful or counterproductive. This may depend on the partner, the compensation system and what management expects the team to find.

Here's a second example:

Charter Objective: Evaluate the pros and cons of outsourcing legal work to India.

Project Objectives: List and assess the pros and cons generally of outsourcing legal work to India. Summarize your overall assessment.

• Discuss the kinds of legal work that are well suited for outsourcing.
• Recommend whether the firm should outsource legal work to India, and if yes, what kind of work and how much of it. Be as specific as possible.
• If yes, recommend a short list of vendors to consider.
• Discuss the implications of outsourcing legal work to India. If the team recommends doing so, also recommend safeguards to protect the firm.

The project objectives make clear what will have been accomplished at the end of the project. They should give good direction to the team without biasing its work.

Parameters

Set forth any parameters or constraints to be observed by the project team, including monetary and other resources available to them during the course of the project.

• Budget ' How much money is available to the project team? Does the team have full authority over how this money is spent? May the team request additional funds if needed?
• Resources ' May firm leaders be interviewed if deemed necessary by the Project Leader? Can others in the firm be consulted? What firm information is available to the team? Can the team hire outside assistance (such as vendors or temporary employees) as needed within the project budget?

It may be hard to know in advance what it will cost to fulfill the charter objective. Management should establish a fixed budget (a not-to-exceed figure rather than a range) and let the project team ask for additional resources if needed. You can always say no.

Deadlines

For a small project, one final deadline is all that is needed. For a larger project, the project team should be given at least one interim deadline to report findings to date, lay out next steps, request additional resources or an extension to their deadline if needed, and receive feedback from the project owner. Interim deadlines will help minimize the effects of Parkinson's Law (“work expands to fill the time available for its completion”) as well as the human propensity to do all the work just before it is due.

Any events that bear upon the project deadline could be noted here, such as a meeting of the Executive Committee or the partnership at which the project team's findings would be discussed or a date by which a final decision must be made by the firm.

Deadlines should be clear both in terms of due dates and also what is expected at each milestone. (A verbal update? A written report? A presentation to management?) Be clear regarding expectations and space the deadlines appropriately given the project's complexity and any anticipated scheduling difficulties.

Keys to Success

A well-designed project will have the following characteristics:

• Clarity ' It all begins with an unambiguous charter that sets forth clear objectives and deadlines.
• Importance ' The project must matter. Smart people know when they've been assigned busywork. Do not assign a project if completing the project will not advance the firm in some way. Projects should be thoughtfully designed and should be prioritized so that only important work is being done in the project teams.
• Accountability ' The project team is accountable to the project owner and the project owner cares about the success of the project.
• Participation ' Every member of the project team contributes to the project, although not necessarily equally.
• Continuity ' Generally, the team that is assigned to the project should complete the project, although substitutions can be made by the project leader if approved or delegated by the project owner. Someone may not have time available to participate, for example, or may be disruptive to the rest of the team.
• Momentum ' The spacing and pace of deadlines should require the team to meet and do work related to the project on an ongoing basis. It is difficult to revive any project once momentum has waned. The rule is “get to it and get it done.”
• Action ' Firm management must do something with the results. Members of the project team will be deflated if they submit their report and are rewarded with silence. Moreover, any other project teams will quickly conclude that their efforts are not likely to receive management attention. Management is not obligated to agree with a project team's findings nor implement its recommendations, but the team should know it has been heard and that its work is appreciated.

Conclusion

The project team methodology described in this article presents simple guidelines for assigning temporary work teams to important business projects. There is no reason why multiple project teams cannot operate concurrently and we recommend doing so. Prepare to be surprised by how much your firm can accomplish!

---

                      A Sample Project Charter

Project #1

Acquiring New Labor & Employment Business

Issued: Sept. 1, 2009.

Charter Objective: Develop a plan to acquire two significant new pieces of Labor & Employment business.

Project Owner: Celia Mack.

Project Leader: Tim Mulholland.

Project Team: Anna Martinez, Dan Martin, Molly Meister, David Merton, Manny Minton.

Project Objectives:

The object is to acquire a significant piece of Labor & Employment business on the east coast from a west coast client and another on the west coast from an east coast client. The team may define “significant” with input from Cyndi Morton.

The final deliverable is a clear, detailed plan of action. The plan should specify the clients to be targeted as well as the actions to be taken and related deadlines. The action plan can assign responsibilities to persons not on the project team.

Parameters:

Relevant billing attorneys can and should be consulted as needed.

Travel expenses and catering for in-person meeting(s) are approved if deemed necessary by the project leader.

The project team may request data and services from the firm's accounting, library, marketing and research staffs as needed. A billing code has been established for the team's use of our online research databases.

Deadlines:

• First team meeting within 14 days.
• Verbal status report due to project owner by Sept. 30, 2009.
• Written plan due Nov. 15, 2009.

---

Eric A. Seeger, a member of this newsletter's Board of Editors, is a law firm strategy consultant with Altman Weil, Inc. in Newtown Square, PA. He can be reached at 610-886-2000 or [email protected].

Most lawyers are exceptional problem solvers. Solving problems is imperative to their success as attorneys. However, in our law firm strategic planning and management consulting work, we sometimes find that when the research has been compiled, the discussions completed and the plan written, the planning group congratulates each other on a job well done and then moves on to other business. Mission accomplished! They have solved the problem of assessing their market situation and preparing a plan. In extreme cases, the plan is rarely spoken of again.

But documenting a good plan, with clear goals and priorities, is only the first step. Making decisions is a poor substitute for action. Now something has to get done and somebody has to do it. Frankly, developing a strategic plan is a wasted exercise if not followed by action plans ' and then action.

In our experience, what separates leading firms from the pack is not elegant strategy or specially gifted thinking. What characterizes high-performing firms is the disciplined implementation of common-sense goals. Rigorous execution of business initiatives isn't sexy, just successful.

The Project Team Approach

Once a plan is ratified, management should move immediately to implementation ' prioritizing the business goals and assigning responsibilities for action. We recommend the use of temporary project teams to get important projects completed efficiently and effectively while also improving teamwork, stoking creativity and developing management competency throughout the firm.

The project team approach has been employed with great success in corporations and many law firms for years. The following guide will help you create project teams to get things done in your firm.

The Project Charter

A good project can be described in a page or two known as a project charter. The charter defines the project's objectives, assigns the project team, establishes clear deadlines for the work and makes available any resources needed by the team. See the sidebar on page 4, “A Sample Project Charter,” for an example.

The project charter contains the following elements:

Project Name

Presumably, you have more than one thing to do in your firm. Give each project a name and number. The number simply indicates the order in which each project was assigned, not their relative importance or priority. The third project is called Project #3 plus a short, descriptive name.

Charter Objective

State the broad objective of the project in plain language. This is different from the specific objectives and deliverables to be defined later. Following are a few examples of a charter objective:

• Improve the flow of information in and out of our time and billing system.
• Assess the profitability of the firm's ten largest clients.
• Develop a plan to acquire two significant new pieces of Labor & Employment business.
• Select an e-discovery vendor to replace [Vendor X].
• Evaluate the pros and cons of outsourcing legal work to India.
• Improve the process and outcomes of our lateral recruiting efforts.

Firm management must decide when constructing the charter how much authority to delegate to the project team. Are they evaluating, recommending or implementing? Are any recommendations “out of bounds”?

Project Owner

The project owner is a leader or manager in the firm who will oversee the project, to whom the project team reports. The project owner should not actively work on the project. He or she briefs the project leader, then serves as a sounding board and resource during the work of the project team. The team's final report will be issued to the project owner according to the time and manner specified in the charter.

In a smaller firm, the managing partner or administrator may serve as project owner for most projects. In a larger firm, the project owner could be the chief operating officer, chief financial officer, chief marketing officer, chief information/technology officer, recruiting partner or another decision maker'whoever is appropriate, depending on the subject matter. It is not always necessary that the project owner have direct oversight for the area under review. It may be appropriate, for example, to conduct a third party review of the firm's lateral recruiting procedures or collections practices. A defensive project owner may prejudice the work of the team or distort the team's findings and recommendations to protect his or her interests.

Project Leader

The project leader is primarily responsible for directing the work of the project team and is accountable for meeting all project objectives by the stated deadlines. He or she is given the “what” (the objectives, parameters, deadlines and team roster) and determines the “how” (who will do what to achieve the objectives). The project leader should be given a great deal of latitude in how the work of the project gets accomplished. Resist the temptation to “check in” with the project leader aside from the stated deadlines.

Project Team

The project team is the group (typically four to seven persons) who will work together on the project. Project leaders and team members are usually expected to carry out their normal responsibilities while also serving on the project.

A benefit of project teams is that the short-term work assignments bring people together from different parts of the firm ' different practice groups, functional groups, offices, even different generations. Placing timekeepers and non-timekeepers together as collaborators can help bridge the chasm that exists in many firms and may tap hidden creativity and capability that was previously unexpressed.

Project teams should be selected to achieve the following aims:

• Capability ' the team will be able to understand and execute the project.
• Diversity ' the team represents a variety of perspectives. This is important to avoid “groupthink” and because flashes of insight frequently come from outside the group that is closest to the problem.
• Inclusion ' the team includes at least one member who would not normally be invited, such as a legal assistant or young associate, to help develop the project leader's ability to direct a disparate group of people and to assess the capacities of those invited to participate. (Your firm needs non-lawyer leaders too.)

Project leaders should encourage participation and contribution from all team members. Many organizations have identified future leaders through their work on project teams.

Project Objectives

Earlier, we set forth the charter objective. Now we spell out the specific goals and tasks to be accomplished by the team. Here's how that might look for two of the examples used above:

• Charter Objective: Assess the profitability of the firm's ten largest clients.
• Project Objectives:
• Identify the firm's ten largest clients for last year based on total fee receipts. If considerations other than total fee receipts are applied to come up with the list of ten, explain how the list was compiled.
• Assess the bottom line profitability to the firm for each client. This should be a financial calculation, without regard to intangibles. Explain your methodology.
• Discuss the implications of your findings.
• Make recommendations to firm management to improve overall profitability.

In this example, someone from the firm's accounting department should be on (or available to) the team to facilitate data gathering. Management would have to decide whether having a partner on the team who represents a large, less profitable client would be helpful or counterproductive. This may depend on the partner, the compensation system and what management expects the team to find.

Here's a second example:

Charter Objective: Evaluate the pros and cons of outsourcing legal work to India.

Project Objectives: List and assess the pros and cons generally of outsourcing legal work to India. Summarize your overall assessment.

• Discuss the kinds of legal work that are well suited for outsourcing.
• Recommend whether the firm should outsource legal work to India, and if yes, what kind of work and how much of it. Be as specific as possible.
• If yes, recommend a short list of vendors to consider.
• Discuss the implications of outsourcing legal work to India. If the team recommends doing so, also recommend safeguards to protect the firm.

The project objectives make clear what will have been accomplished at the end of the project. They should give good direction to the team without biasing its work.

Parameters

Set forth any parameters or constraints to be observed by the project team, including monetary and other resources available to them during the course of the project.

• Budget ' How much money is available to the project team? Does the team have full authority over how this money is spent? May the team request additional funds if needed?
• Resources ' May firm leaders be interviewed if deemed necessary by the Project Leader? Can others in the firm be consulted? What firm information is available to the team? Can the team hire outside assistance (such as vendors or temporary employees) as needed within the project budget?

It may be hard to know in advance what it will cost to fulfill the charter objective. Management should establish a fixed budget (a not-to-exceed figure rather than a range) and let the project team ask for additional resources if needed. You can always say no.

Deadlines

For a small project, one final deadline is all that is needed. For a larger project, the project team should be given at least one interim deadline to report findings to date, lay out next steps, request additional resources or an extension to their deadline if needed, and receive feedback from the project owner. Interim deadlines will help minimize the effects of Parkinson's Law (“work expands to fill the time available for its completion”) as well as the human propensity to do all the work just before it is due.

Any events that bear upon the project deadline could be noted here, such as a meeting of the Executive Committee or the partnership at which the project team's findings would be discussed or a date by which a final decision must be made by the firm.

Deadlines should be clear both in terms of due dates and also what is expected at each milestone. (A verbal update? A written report? A presentation to management?) Be clear regarding expectations and space the deadlines appropriately given the project's complexity and any anticipated scheduling difficulties.

Keys to Success

A well-designed project will have the following characteristics:

• Clarity ' It all begins with an unambiguous charter that sets forth clear objectives and deadlines.
• Importance ' The project must matter. Smart people know when they've been assigned busywork. Do not assign a project if completing the project will not advance the firm in some way. Projects should be thoughtfully designed and should be prioritized so that only important work is being done in the project teams.
• Accountability ' The project team is accountable to the project owner and the project owner cares about the success of the project.
• Participation ' Every member of the project team contributes to the project, although not necessarily equally.
• Continuity ' Generally, the team that is assigned to the project should complete the project, although substitutions can be made by the project leader if approved or delegated by the project owner. Someone may not have time available to participate, for example, or may be disruptive to the rest of the team.
• Momentum ' The spacing and pace of deadlines should require the team to meet and do work related to the project on an ongoing basis. It is difficult to revive any project once momentum has waned. The rule is “get to it and get it done.”
• Action ' Firm management must do something with the results. Members of the project team will be deflated if they submit their report and are rewarded with silence. Moreover, any other project teams will quickly conclude that their efforts are not likely to receive management attention. Management is not obligated to agree with a project team's findings nor implement its recommendations, but the team should know it has been heard and that its work is appreciated.

Conclusion

The project team methodology described in this article presents simple guidelines for assigning temporary work teams to important business projects. There is no reason why multiple project teams cannot operate concurrently and we recommend doing so. Prepare to be surprised by how much your firm can accomplish!

---

                      A Sample Project Charter

Project #1

Acquiring New Labor & Employment Business

Issued: Sept. 1, 2009.

Charter Objective: Develop a plan to acquire two significant new pieces of Labor & Employment business.

Project Owner: Celia Mack.

Project Leader: Tim Mulholland.

Project Team: Anna Martinez, Dan Martin, Molly Meister, David Merton, Manny Minton.

Project Objectives:

The object is to acquire a significant piece of Labor & Employment business on the east coast from a west coast client and another on the west coast from an east coast client. The team may define “significant” with input from Cyndi Morton.

The final deliverable is a clear, detailed plan of action. The plan should specify the clients to be targeted as well as the actions to be taken and related deadlines. The action plan can assign responsibilities to persons not on the project team.

Parameters:

Relevant billing attorneys can and should be consulted as needed.

Travel expenses and catering for in-person meeting(s) are approved if deemed necessary by the project leader.

The project team may request data and services from the firm's accounting, library, marketing and research staffs as needed. A billing code has been established for the team's use of our online research databases.

Deadlines:

• First team meeting within 14 days.
• Verbal status report due to project owner by Sept. 30, 2009.
• Written plan due Nov. 15, 2009.

---

Eric A. Seeger, a member of this newsletter's Board of Editors, is a law firm strategy consultant with Altman Weil, Inc. in Newtown Square, PA. He can be reached at 610-886-2000 or [email protected].