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Post #561 – Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Two New Law Practice Management Books
It has been my pleasure to have contributed chapters and been quoted in TWO great new books just released by Managing Partner Magazine and Ark Publishing
 Implementing An Effective Change Management Strategy is written by Neryl East, MA, PhD and provides a snapshot into the latest thinking about how organizations around the world are approaching change. It taps into “the expertise of some international thought leaders in foreshadowing best-practice change management into the future.”
Neryl’s book examines the tools currently being used, highlights the key challenges faced and provides a framework for implementing successful change initiatives within your own organization. Specifically, this report will enable you to:
- Use proven tools and methods for implementing and managing change successfully;
- Identify and overcome the organizational and cultural barriers to change;
- Successfully balance people, process and technology through change;
- Develop an effective strategy for communicating change;
- Identify the necessary leadership skills and roles of management during change; and
- Develop a resilient, change-ready firm.
 Strategy Development For Practice Group Leaders, authored by Caroline Poyton looks at the role of the practice group leader within the context of this more difficult and changing environment, in which the practice group leader needs to be fully engaged not only with the demands of his or her own team, but also with the practice group’s position within the changing strategy of the business as a whole.
This report assesses the new role of the practice group leader, the tools they will need, and the management strategies they will need to implement within the changing legal landscape, highlighting issues including: the practice group leader for the 21st century law firm; what it means to be a practice group leader today; measuring and improving performance and profitability; recruitment, retention and talent development at the practice group level; marketing and CRM strategies for practice group leaders including the role of social media marketing in profile raising techniques; and successor issues – what happens when a great practice group leader announces their departure? And what can firms do to cushion the potential blow?
To purchase your copy visit the managing partner magazine book store.
Post #560 – Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Should A Managing Partner Exercise Power?
 In his newest book, Power: Why Some People Have it and Others Don’t, Jeffrey Pfeffer, a notable author and professor at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, gives us the tools we need to effectively understand and use power. This is a subject that we explore with new firm leaders in our First 100 Days program and so I was eager to learn what advise he might offer for those about to take charge:
• First, you have to recognize that power is mostly taken, not given.
Pfeffer quotes Peter Ueberroth (who organized the 1984 Summer Olympics and went on to become Major League Baseball’s Commissioner and head of the US Olympic Committee), as saying that power is 80 per cent taken and only 20 per cent given. In other words, if you want power, you have to grab it. So, when you see opportunities to extend the scope of your influence, seize them; and when you spot a power vacuum, fill it.
• Second, you need to understand the importance of your personal network and work relentlessly to improve it.
Pfeffer recounts a conversation he had with Chip Conley, CEO of Joie de Vivre hotels. Conley pointed out that most people think of networking as a task, like taking out the trash. But no one tries to get better at taking out the trash. You can, however, get better at networking; and it’s important for people who are trying to gain more power to do so. With this in mind, Pfeffer recommends you think of networking as a skill ‘like speaking French or playing the piano’.
• Third, if you want power, you have to work to stand out.
Growing up, we are often taught to be timid: ask permission; wait your turn; stay in line; don’t attract attention. But to get power, you have take the risk that comes with raising your head above the parapet. “Risk,” says Pfeffer, “is just as important in human capital markets as it is in financial capital markets. No risk; no reward.” Early in your career, it can help to volunteer for a task that others have shunned or to jump into a newly created role. The logic? It’s easier to stand out when you have your own niche and easier to get ahead when you don’t have to expend a lot of energy fending off rivals for a coveted post.
• Fourth, the pursuit of power requires persistence.
Too often, Pfeffer argues, we look at powerful leaders and assume they got there without stumbling. But every great leader, from Abraham Lincoln to Steve Jobs, has encountered failure. The difference between those who go on to become powerful leaders and those who don’t rests on how they react to reversals. If they accept failure as a verdict of fate, they will sink into anonymity. If, on the other hand, they learn from the blow – if it strengthens their resolve and prompts them to search for lessons, they will rise higher. Pfeffer cites the example of Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank, co-founders of The Home Depot: “That story begins with two words: ‘You’re fired’.” In 1978, Marcus and Blank were fired from Handy Dan Home Improvement Centres in a dispute with the largest shareholder – despite the fact that, as president and CFO, the pair had led the business to record earnings. The setback proved to be the impetus Marcus and Blank needed to chase their dream of building an entirely new sort of super-scale DIY chain.
Post #559 – Thursday, September 1, 2011
The Fall 2011 Issue of International Review Is Now Available
Once again I am hopeful that you will find this latest issue of International Review to contain a number of practical ideas, tips and techniques on law firm strategy and leadership that you can put to use immediately.
 • Overcoming The Hurdles To Executing Your Strategic Plan
To effectively transform your best intentions into best practices, there are several common hurdles that you need to overcome.
• McKenna On Leading Change In Your Law Firm
An interview by Nerly East
While the statistics on the failure of change programs can be daunting, McKenna says there is hope, but it has to do with how change is approached.
• Who Likes You? And Who Doesn’t?
by David H. Maister
Strategy means that to have some people really like what you have, it is necessary that some other people do not like what you offer.
• Announcing: Serving At The Pleasure Of My Partners
A new book from the Managing Partner’s LAB and published by Thomson Reuters
• Handling Partners With Strong Views
How do you handle the partner who holds strong beliefs on high-stake topics and demonstrates little willingness to either listen or consider alternative views?
• The Challenge of Sharing Leadership
There is a growing trend towards a model of shared leadership – where a number of lawyers all continue to practice even while having firm leadership responsibilities.
• Announcing: LAW FIRM LEADERS
A new group started on LinkedIn specifically and exclusively for law firm leaders.
I am pleased to have been putting out this magazine for some years now. It essentially started when I first began mailing copies of periodic articles I had authored to select managing partners back in the Fall of 1998. Today, I am (to the best of my knowledge) the only law firm consultant to publish his own magazine for firm leaders.
If for some reason, you haven’t received your Fall 2011 International Review magazine, either click on the cover above to download a PDF copy or kindly shoot me a note and I will be pleased to get a hard copy sent off in the mail to you.
Post #558 – Thursday, September 1, 2011
Recent Presentations
 I had the pleasure of attending and presenting at two separate educational events during August both of which were hosted by Ark at the University of Chicago. I received the participant’s feedback today and extend my personal thanks to everyone who invested the time to attend and participate in these events and provide their written feedback to the conference sponsors.
CONFERENCE – OVERCOMING LAWYERS RESISTANCE TO CHANGE
This is the third annual conference that we have done on the subject of change
RATING AS CONFERENCE CHAIRMAN: 6.7 OUT OF 7.0
ALL CRITIQUES RECEIVED:
Very personably and engaging. A pleasure to listen to thoughout the day.
Best time management I have ever seen for a seminar!
RATING AS PRESENTER: 6.7 OUT OF 7.0
ALL CRITIQUES RECEIVED:
Perfect.
Great data from surveys. Helpful concrete suggestions.
Good presentation.
Maybe the best of the day.
Excellent speaker.
Excellent use of academic work.
Excellent talk and suggestions!!!!
Mr McKenna's presentation was worth the trip to Chicago. I wish I had seen this from the first day I set foot in a law firm.
 FIRING ON ALL CYLINDERS – WORKSHOP FOR PRACTICE GROUP LEADERS
I am delighted to be able to conduct this workshop twice a year and only sorry that my colleague Jack Butler from Skaden Arps was not able to join this group for his usual luncheon talk.
RATING AS WORKSHOP LEADER: 6.75 OUT OF 7.0
ALL CRITIQUES RECEIVED:
Very relevant; addressed issues of the group.
Good energy
Has practical advice.
Enjoyed the presentation. Was expecting a few more concrete suggestions rather than the more global topics.
Very interesting workshop.
Got lots of ideas.
Patrick McKenna is extremely knowledgeable and his real world experiences allow attendees to easily apply the lessons.
Post #557 – Thursday, September 1, 2011
More on The Government Debt Conundrum
As August concludes, the dire straits of state and local governments are making themselves known in both sublime and ridiculous ways. A few examples of our decaying Empire:
Just as they needed it most, California tax revenue came in $539 billion below the most recent forecasts – about a 10% shortfall. And California’s official joblessness figure is at 12%. “Every drop in revenues puts us closer to the drastic trigger cuts that could be imposed next year,” claims state controller John Chiang. Result in California’s case: A cut to education spending that could trim the school year by up to seven days in some districts.
Over in New Jersey, Fitch downgraded that State’s credit rating. It was AA. Now it’s AA-. That’s three steps below AAA. The outlook, however, was revised from negative to stable. The problem, according to Fitch? Not enough money to make good on all the pension and health care promises made to retired state workers. And even if there were enough money... there wouldn’t be enough left over for other priorities like property tax relief, schools, and public works. And a recent study discovered fully funding state and local pensions in New Jersey would require taxing every household an extra $2,475 every year for the next 30 years.
The state of Illinois announced that it will no longer pony up for funerals of the indigent. In years gone by, the state budgeted $13 million a year to bury some 12,000 people on public assistance. But this year’s budget was only $1.9 million, and that money ran out last Monday. More than 600 funeral homes have been notified they can no longer count on the state to pick up the bill.
Meanwhile in Rockford, Illinois – where unemployment runs 11.6% – the city is saving a little money by yanking streetlights out of the ground. The city hopes to shave $500,000 off a $2.7 million annual streetlight bill . . . by removing 2,400 lights.
With all the talk of ‘cuts’ and ‘budget reduction’ you might have the idea that the feds are putting the same screws to their budgets as everyone else. You might have thought that much of the recent government spending was temporary ‘stimulus’ spending. If you thought that . . . you would be wrong! The 2011 federal budget is expected to hit an all-time high of $3.6 trillion, more than $100 billion up from last year.
Post # 556 – Saturday, August 13, 2011
Has Google Now Become A Serious Competitor?
 Google has, earlier this week, through its venture capital subsidiary (Google Ventures), made its second investment into the legal market with online legal service Rocket Lawyer.
Rocket Lawyer provides services across a diverse spectrum of tax, estate planning, identity theft, real estate, bankruptcy, patents, insurance and other areas through a subscription-based legal document assembly service backed by lawyers who review the documents for free and offer discounted services for more complicated matters. The company claims that over 15 million small businesses and consumers have used their service.
The most telling statement came from Google Ventures partner Wesley Chan who commented: “We see a large market opportunity for legal solutions that are easily accessible and affordable to users. Rocket Lawyer’s combination of an intuitive user-driven front-end with a strong technology-based platform uniquely positions the company to scale and deliver the type of ‘wow’ user experience that online customers love.”
Earlier this year Google Ventures also invested in LawPivot, which offers crowdsourced legal advice for businesses with or without in-house lawyers. Companies – which will soon pay to use the service – submit a question and LawPivot selects the best lawyers to answer it; the company can choose to receive replies from all, some or one of them, and can then continue the conversation.
While large law firm leaders may shrug and console themselves that these new developments are not too likely to affect their client base, these are in fact good examples of how a disruptive innovation can eventually transform to upset the entire market, provide enhanced value to clients and over a period of time lower prices throughout the existing market, ultimately displacing traditional legal service providers.
Post # 555 – Saturday, August 13, 2011
What Does Your Website Say About Your Firm’s Commitment To Client Service?
 I received an e-mail earlier this week from a colleague informing me of a ‘staggering’ (my description) study wherein the majority of the largest 50 law firms fail to mention any commitment to client service on the most visited pages of their websites.
Each website was evaluated in five main categories of client service commitment.
The first evaluation criteria looked for a simple statement of commitment. Any mention on the Firm’s home page, ‘About Us’, ’Firm Overview’, ‘Our Culture’ or similar pages regarding the Firm’s commitment to, expectation of or recognition for client service or client satisfaction would suffice for credit.
The other four criteria looked for supporting evidence of the Firm’s client service claims. These included:
1. The presence of client testimonials, awards or recognition about the Firm’s client focus, service quality or satisfaction;
2. Written service commitments, service standards or a description of service methods;
3. Other evidence of a commitment to service, focus or intimacy (such as client service teams, a Client Service Director, etc); and,
4. Mention that the firm performs client interviews or formally collects client feedback.
The survey has a possible maximum point total of 11 points.
According to this study, only ten percent (5 firms) of the largest 50 law firms have any meaningful content to explain and provide evidence of a client service commitment on their websites. And, only 4 of the 50 firms mentioned “performing regular formal client interviews or mentioned having formal client feedback programs.”
I find this rather surprising given the intensity with which corporate counsel are evaluating firms and the importance of service. Statistics compiled by Lexis Nexis and The Wicker Park Group found that 100% of in-house counsel visit a law firm’s website when considering a new attorney or new Firm for a case or matter.
The overall impression from this study is that the largest corporate law firms continue to differentiate themselves almost exclusively on their subject matter expertise (legal skill and knowledge) and fail to address the breadth of other considerations buyers of legal services look for in their selection of outside counsel.
What do you think?
Post # 554 – Saturday, August 13, 2011
It’s All About Debt and More Debt
Last week the United States net public debt-to-GDP ratio reached 100%. That is, the federal government's accumulated debt is equal (actually surpassed) the Gross Domestic Product in 2010. After Congress and the Obama administration passed the debt ceiling limit, the Treasury borrowed $238 billion. This brought public debt to $14.58 trillion dollars, slightly higher than the United States GDP in 2010, which was $14.54 trillion.
Debt! It won't go away. It won't say ‘adios.' Like a bad houseguest, it won't leave. The feds have tried to ignore it. They've tried to postpone it. They've tried make the problem go away by stimulating the economy to grow faster. But nothing has worked. Day by day the debt grows larger.
It's also worth looking at which countries that puts the United States in the same league with. According to Agence French-Presse the only countries besides the United States to have a public debt-GDP ratio of 100% are: "Japan (229 percent), Greece (152 percent), Jamaica (137 percent), Lebanon (134 percent), Italy (120 percent), Ireland (114 percent) and Iceland (103 percent)."
Interestingly, there are lots of strange and weird things happening. Consider a few:
• JPMorgan Chase started paying homeowners to stay in their homes, rather than go into foreclosure. How one deal worked: The lender offered to forgive $100,000 in mortgage debt and give the borrower $10,000 in cash at closing if they stayed in the house and facilitated a sale. In this way, the lender avoids foreclosure costs and a big haircut on the loan (abandoned homes are tough sells without a big price cut). The bank loses less. Strange times.
• Also strange: The Bank of New York Mellon started charging its big clients to hold deposits. You know, usually the bank pays you interest on a deposit. Well, with all the turmoil, Mellon found itself awash in deposits as people fled to the safety of cash. Deposits for a bank are a liability. Banks loan it out, but if they don't have demand for good loans, it costs the bank money to hold deposits. So Mellon implemented the 0.13% charge.
• And finally, from Rhode Island, the city of Central Falls declared bankruptcy. State officials tried to persuade retirees to accept voluntary cuts in their benefits. They said no. So the city declared bankruptcy. Now the retirees will probably get much less than they were offered in the compromise. This is going to be a big problem across cities and states nationwide. Central Falls is the canary in the coal mine.
Meanwhile, corporate profits before interest, depreciation, and tax now account for about 35% of gross domestic product, the highest such figure in at least 60 years. Those profits come courtesy, at least in the past couple of years, of deficit spending that helped take up the slack left when consumers realized they couldn't get rich by borrowing against their houses. Profits have also benefited from efficiencies, of course, but that too ultimately has its limits.
The U.S. has off-shored millions of jobs, raising margins, but in so doing has kept wages horribly stagnant. Wages per hour in real terms in the United States are actually down over the past 40 years. Who will buy things, other than the top 1%?
Remember, too, that because wage growth has been suppressed in China by official policy aimed at maximizing exports, the consuming classes there are nowhere near large enough to take up the slack. Don't believe those stories about Chinese driving Buicks and talking on iPhones. There are nowhere near enough of them to keep corporate profits in the United States where they are today.
If you accept that government spending will fall over time, you have to conclude that corporate profits will fall as well. In fact the only way, mathematically, that profits could be maintained at current levels or rise in the face of declining government spending would be for households to save less or borrow more. That isn't happening. Americans hold too much debt, have poor income growth and are in the process of losing faith in those two Easter bunnies of investment: housing and the stock market.
Post #553 – Saturday, July 23 2011
A New Book For Law Firm Leaders
What does a firm managing partner, individual office head, or any leader need to do to be truly effective in their role? A new book released this week, Serving At The Pleasure of My Partners (Thomson Reuters) is comprised of 18 chapters, representing some of the most common questions that leaders have had at the top of their agendas as they take office:
 This book addresses critical questions like:
• When you manage a firm that’s been financially successful in the past but Is reluctant to confront the challenges of tomorrow, what do you do?
• How do you overcome a strong sense of ‘us and them’ amongst the firm’s various offices?
• How might you handle the partner who holds strong beliefs on high-stake topics and demonstrates little willingness to either listen or consider alternative views?
• Where should new leaders best spend their time?
AND MUCH MORE!
ADVANCE PRAISE has been forthcoming from some the acknowledged thought leaders in the professions:
The power of this book is that it does something rare - building it's focused content around the real-world questions that its target audience has, and addressing them with the practical wisdom of those who have been there before.
David H. Maister, author of Managing The Professional Service Firm.
No research exists to help new managing partners understand how they can become more effective faster, so, in some ways, anything that points them in the right direction would help. But this book isn't anything! It is an outstanding description of the issues that new managing partners face together with a practical set of actions that, when followed, will truly make a difference to how any managing partner is 'seen' by their partners and how they feel about themselves - not to mention the discernible impact they will have made in those critical starting weeks. There's absolutely no doubt that every managing partner I know would have benefited hugely from Patrick, Brian and their colleagues' expertise and I know all of the partners about to take on the mantle or thinking of doing so, will be so much wiser from having read this book. I can add no stronger accolade than I wish I'd written it myself!!
Robert J. Lees, consultant to leaders of professional service firms and co-author of When Professionals Have To Lead.
Whether you are charged with leading an accounting, legal, consulting or any professional service firm, Serving At The Pleasure of My Partners is a down-to-earth and practical guide for the new or current managing partner. While nothing can totally prepare any new managing partner for the challenges they will face, this book will be a trusted guide for finding your way down untraveled paths.
August J. Aquila, CEO, AQUILA Global Advisors
Co-author of Client at the Core: Marketing and Managing Today’s Professional Services Firm and selected by Accounting Today as one of the top 100 most influential people in the accounting profession.
New managing partners are faced with learning an essentially new occupation - with limited practical resources at hand and few people they can comfortably turn to for advice and counsel. The questions are many and the direct answers are hard to obtain. Serving At The Pleasure Of My Partners provides an instantly useable remedy via the most common, difficult questions that new managing partners have and the informed answers that McKenna and Burke have pulled together and synthesized from the collective thoughts, counsel and advice of those who have "been there, done that." This work is highly readable, filled with practical and actual - not theoretical - answers.
John Michalik, Executive Director Emeritus, Association of Legal Administrators and author of The Extraordinary Managing Partner: Reaching the Pinnacle of Law Firm Management.
There is little doubt that leadership plays an integral part in law firm performance. This book will be an indispensable resource to new managing partners as it powerfully outlines leadership practice that should help any MP excel. Using a mixture of sage advice and clear examples, these authors cut through the clutter and get right to the heart of the matter.
Robert Sawhney, Managing Director SRC Associates (Hong Kong) and author of Developing a Profitable Practice in Asia.
Leading a law firm is by no means an easy task. Thank goodness for this group of distinguished authors who have joined forces to provide an invaluable resource for today's firm leader. Serving At The Pleasure of My Partners is packed full of real-life scenarios and provides proven, practical guidance for today’s exceptionally busy managing partner.
John Remsen, Jr., President and CEO, The Managing Partner Forum
Visit here for a limited time, special 20% Discount
COMMENT RECEIVED:
Insightful and Highly Practical
Where was this book when I was first coming into leadership and had to attend the school of sink or swim? Serving At The Pleasure of My Partners is a unique and valuable new offering that should benefit any professional charged with leading their peers. Blessed by other management gurus like David Maister (Managing The Professional Service Firm) and Rob Lees (When Professionals Have To Lead) this text contains 18 chapters, representing the more commonly asked questions that any new firm leader struggles with.
The book begins with an excellent Forward entitled The Anxieties of Leadership which intelligently addresses critical questions like; the most common mistakes that new leaders make; what makes transitions go wrong and how mishaps could be avoided; and identifies the biggest surprises that new leaders face.
The chapters are organized into three sections. Managing Your Tenure addresses how you follow a well-loved leader, techniques for getting a handle on the time needed to properly manage, and concludes with an insightful piece on the pros and cons of having term limits to how long a leader might serve.
The second section on Leading People tackles eight different challenges like coping in a culture that your predecessor established; how you deal with a chronic complainer, how you keep morale up, and how you handle boomers approaching retirement. My personal favorite is how you deal with peers who have strong beliefs on high stake topics and demonstrate little willingness to listen. This section concludes with salient advice on how to replace a leader who reports to you, but really isn’t doing the job.
The final section, Leading The Firm embarks upon important issues from how to unite a divided firm with a strong sense of ‘us’ and ‘them’; to how to confront complacency – when you manage a group that’s been successful in the past but is reluctant to confront the challenges of tomorrow. This section closes with a report drawn from some in-depth research on where new leaders spend their time.
This is an extraordinarily useful and practical guide for today’s leader.
Post #552 – Monday, July 18, 2011
Signs of Lasting Change
 There have been a number of articles over the past few years claiming that the profession is undergoing some kind of massive structural shift. Some of them have been interesting, many of them have sounded (at least to me) as fairly hollow.
I was catching up on some reading this past weekend and this one (Law Job Stagnation May Have Started Before The Recession – And It May Be a Sign of Lasting Change) presents some insightful data and is authored by Bill Henderson, a well-respected academic that I’ve had the pleasure of sharing a podium with on a couple of occasions. A few highlights (with my thoughts in brackets):
• Between March 2004 and March 2008, several months before the Wall Street meltdown, the law sector had already shed nearly 20,000 jobs (so we were shedding jobs at the same time we were paying associates ever-increasing starting salaries).
• Since 2007, revenue-per-lawyer has been trending sideways (flat) or down for the majority of the Am Law 100 (so if we can’t improve firm profitability by either simply increasing billable hours or increasing hourly rates, where is our future profitability going to come from?)
• LegalZoom has served more than 1 million customers; the Practical Law Co. has created form documents for sophisticated transactional and compliance issues facing large corporate legal departments; and Cybersettle claims to have resolved more than $1.6 billion worth of cases thus far (and those are a whole new form of competition that larger firms are going to have to contend with).
This article may be well worth having every member of your executive committee read and then think through – “what does this mean to us going forward?”
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