Leadership and the 21st-Century Law Firm

Existing Leaders

Does this mean there is no place for existing attorney law firm leaders? In a word, “No” ” because people can adapt and change, but this sort of individual transition leading to organizational change is harder, takes longer and is less likely to succeed than one predicated on identifying, developing and supporting emerging leaders that already have the competencies and skills (see first sidebar below) to lead 21st-century law firms. These “new” leaders will also be more willing to make the sort of firm wide governance, business and staffing model changes necessary to move the firm into this century. Given the speed of change spurred on by technology, the increasingly loud and collective voice for change from in-house counsel, and the maturing attorney population in private practice, time is of the essence. However, replacing existing attorney leaders with new leaders who come exclusively from the same law schools, think, act and react the same way, will not serve the modern law firm well. The “new leaders for the new normal” need to be drawn from a broader talent pool, one that is more diverse than ever before and one that includes attorneys and other skilled professionals. Law firms need their attorney leaders to be people who think differently, lead/manage differently and have different opinions but, are no less committed to the highest standards of professionalism, ethics, quality legal advice, and client service.

Non-Attorney Talent

Most law firms have embraced aspects of this change through the employment of the non-attorney talent referred to earlier. However, leaders in these areas, Chiefs, Directors and Senior Managers, too often complain they are under-utilized and under-employed. If you took a poll of many non-attorney professionals in too many law firms, it would show that the most senior professionals continue to strive for the autonomy they need to get the job done, derive some measure of job satisfaction, and act as a trusted adviser. Leadership of 21st-century law firms is not just about leading attorneys, it is about leading a multidisciplinary group of talented professionals working and collaborating to one end, to achieve the firm”s business performance goals.

Outstanding leadership in today”s law firms will not happen by accident. Leadership of these firms cannot be by default. These are no longer part-time roles for amateurs with no training or experience in organizational development or business management. The competencies and skills of these leaders needs to match what any organization would expect of those at the helm of multi-million and even multi-billion dollar organizations. After all, if a client of any one of your firms sought advice on whether or not to invest in a multi-million dollar company where the leadership had minimal training or prior experience on-the-job, your attorneys would urge caution, probably quite a lot of caution ” yes?

Embracing Change

Change is always difficult. Given the current global financial crisis, any change will be viewed with increased skepticism and scrutiny. Caution is good. An absence of change is not. When it is all said and done, the best model of leadership development in law firms for the “new normal” will involve firms: 1) taking their own best advice and entrenching their best practices; 2) acknowledging that change is upon us as a profession and an industry; 3)recognizing the need to change; 4) identifying and developing leaders with, and assessing them against, the competencies and skills referred to earlier; 5) developing and implementing well thought out, customized, planned and measured initiatives/programs like those outlined in the second sidebar below; and 6) proactively seeking out leaders with the competencies and skills referred to earlier.

And yes, actually changing!

Leadership Competencies and Skills for 21st-Century Law Firms

” Innovation, creativity, thought leadership and vision

” Adaptability and flexibility

” Change agent and leader

” Excellent communicator

” *Outstanding social skills

” *Ability to build and sustain extensive networks and relationships

” *Highly self-aware

” *Empathetic

” *People motivator

” Champion and leader of diversity and inclusion policies and their implementation

” Succession planner

” Business acumen (ranging from effective and efficient matter management to strategic and business planning)

*See Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence (1995, New York)

Leadership Development Checklist

” Someone who has firm-wide responsibility to proactively identify, develop, ensure there is support for and measure the success of leadership initiatives.

” A process/programs to identify, support and assess leadership talent which may include:

• Job descriptions for leadership roles.
• Key Performance Indicators or Competencies that provide a blueprint to guide leadership development success (leadership career paths). and may be assessed through '
• Annual leadership-based performance reviews a few years before the person is due to take on a leadership role, including upward and preferably 360 leadership reviews from direct reports, peers, mentors and clients.
• Leadership Selection Centers in addition to or substitution for annual performance reviews.
• On-the-job or shadowing opportunities through “Deputy” or other types of succession based roles/responsibilities.
• Leadership training from the day the person starts until he/she leaves the firm (early engagement is essential).
• Executive coaching so that what leaders learn is put into action.
• Mentors who know how to mentor, want to mentor and understand their actions hold the key to talent retention, succession planning and the longevity of the firm.

Terri Mottershead is the founding Principal of Mottershead Consulting ” Change and Talent Development Strategists (www.mottershead consulting.com). She has more than 28 years of legal industry experience. Reach her at [email protected] or 415-812-1825.

A recent quick search using a couple of popular search engines under “law firm leadership” brought up over 37 million hits on one site and over 42 million on the other. These numbers increase daily. While this is not hard data by any measure, it is indicative of the topical nature and interest in this subject. The hard evidence that supports this suggestion has emerged in the form of the ever increasing number of public and in-house leadership training programs and executive leadership coaching for senior associates and partners in law firms. Law firms have recently recognized the need to do more to identify and develop future leaders. While these steps have been important they are not enough. As changes in the industry and profession continue to emerge it seems that leadership of 21st-century law firms may be increasingly less about doing more and more about doing things differently.

”New” Leaders

So how different is different? We know law firm business models have changed. We know law firm staffing models have changed. We know that the practice of law has changed. We know many firms have an attorney workforce comprised of four different generations of attorneys with very different work and personal needs and expectations. We know many law firms employ highly skilled professionals in finance, marketing/business development, IT, HR, professional development, diversity and inclusion, pro bono, and knowledge management who also have different but equally important work and personal needs. We can debate the extent of these changes. We can argue their pros and cons. We can resist and we can defend against change but, for all the Star Trek fans out there, the Borg and we all know that “resistance is futile.” The sort of change we are experiencing in the legal industry and profession is not the status quo plus a few tweaks here and there, it is a paradigm shift and whatever got us here will definitely not get us there!

Existing Leaders

Does this mean there is no place for existing attorney law firm leaders? In a word, “No” ” because people can adapt and change, but this sort of individual transition leading to organizational change is harder, takes longer and is less likely to succeed than one predicated on identifying, developing and supporting emerging leaders that already have the competencies and skills (see first sidebar below) to lead 21st-century law firms. These “new” leaders will also be more willing to make the sort of firm wide governance, business and staffing model changes necessary to move the firm into this century. Given the speed of change spurred on by technology, the increasingly loud and collective voice for change from in-house counsel, and the maturing attorney population in private practice, time is of the essence. However, replacing existing attorney leaders with new leaders who come exclusively from the same law schools, think, act and react the same way, will not serve the modern law firm well. The “new leaders for the new normal” need to be drawn from a broader talent pool, one that is more diverse than ever before and one that includes attorneys and other skilled professionals. Law firms need their attorney leaders to be people who think differently, lead/manage differently and have different opinions but, are no less committed to the highest standards of professionalism, ethics, quality legal advice, and client service.

Non-Attorney Talent

Most law firms have embraced aspects of this change through the employment of the non-attorney talent referred to earlier. However, leaders in these areas, Chiefs, Directors and Senior Managers, too often complain they are under-utilized and under-employed. If you took a poll of many non-attorney professionals in too many law firms, it would show that the most senior professionals continue to strive for the autonomy they need to get the job done, derive some measure of job satisfaction, and act as a trusted adviser. Leadership of 21st-century law firms is not just about leading attorneys, it is about leading a multidisciplinary group of talented professionals working and collaborating to one end, to achieve the firm”s business performance goals.

Outstanding leadership in today”s law firms will not happen by accident. Leadership of these firms cannot be by default. These are no longer part-time roles for amateurs with no training or experience in organizational development or business management. The competencies and skills of these leaders needs to match what any organization would expect of those at the helm of multi-million and even multi-billion dollar organizations. After all, if a client of any one of your firms sought advice on whether or not to invest in a multi-million dollar company where the leadership had minimal training or prior experience on-the-job, your attorneys would urge caution, probably quite a lot of caution ” yes?

Embracing Change

Change is always difficult. Given the current global financial crisis, any change will be viewed with increased skepticism and scrutiny. Caution is good. An absence of change is not. When it is all said and done, the best model of leadership development in law firms for the “new normal” will involve firms: 1) taking their own best advice and entrenching their best practices; 2) acknowledging that change is upon us as a profession and an industry; 3)recognizing the need to change; 4) identifying and developing leaders with, and assessing them against, the competencies and skills referred to earlier; 5) developing and implementing well thought out, customized, planned and measured initiatives/programs like those outlined in the second sidebar below; and 6) proactively seeking out leaders with the competencies and skills referred to earlier.

And yes, actually changing!

Leadership Competencies and Skills for 21st-Century Law Firms

” Innovation, creativity, thought leadership and vision

” Adaptability and flexibility

” Change agent and leader

” Excellent communicator

” *Outstanding social skills

” *Ability to build and sustain extensive networks and relationships

” *Highly self-aware

” *Empathetic

” *People motivator

” Champion and leader of diversity and inclusion policies and their implementation

” Succession planner

” Business acumen (ranging from effective and efficient matter management to strategic and business planning)

*See Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence (1995, New York)

Leadership Development Checklist

” Someone who has firm-wide responsibility to proactively identify, develop, ensure there is support for and measure the success of leadership initiatives.

” A process/programs to identify, support and assess leadership talent which may include:

• Job descriptions for leadership roles.
• Key Performance Indicators or Competencies that provide a blueprint to guide leadership development success (leadership career paths). and may be assessed through '
• Annual leadership-based performance reviews a few years before the person is due to take on a leadership role, including upward and preferably 360 leadership reviews from direct reports, peers, mentors and clients.
• Leadership Selection Centers in addition to or substitution for annual performance reviews.
• On-the-job or shadowing opportunities through “Deputy” or other types of succession based roles/responsibilities.
• Leadership training from the day the person starts until he/she leaves the firm (early engagement is essential).
• Executive coaching so that what leaders learn is put into action.
• Mentors who know how to mentor, want to mentor and understand their actions hold the key to talent retention, succession planning and the longevity of the firm.

Terri Mottershead is the founding Principal of Mottershead Consulting ” Change and Talent Development Strategists (www.mottershead consulting.com). She has more than 28 years of legal industry experience. Reach her at [email protected] or 415-812-1825.