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After any timeout in a close playoff game, Larry Bird would tell the player guarding him exactly who would shoot the ball — usually Larry himself — and from where. Most players either didn’t believe him, became unnerved, or took umbrage with Mr. Bird’s implication about the inability to stop him.

And, Larry Bird would inevitably take the shot according to the play and score.

The Big 4 have revealed on numerous occasions exactly how they are going to market. Their approach includes:

• Going to market by industry
• Selling legal solutions to corporate counsel
• Building as they learn
• Going after regulatory and compliance work

And now EY Law just hired market-leading former CMO Lee Garfinkle, previously with Goodwin, Allen Overy, and Lowenstein to lead the client development efforts with GCs.

According to a study led by Robert Couture, Senior Research Fellow at the Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession, 70% of top global law firm leaders say they’re not making strategic changes in response to the competitive threat from the Big 4 accounting companies. Just like Larry Bird, the Big 4 are telling law firms how they are going to score and win in the marketplace — so how can law firms best defend against it?

The Big 4 know law firms are stretched and fighting a war for talent. They know it’s a good time to approach clients with legal solutions and other small-scale work. The demand is there — the supply isn’t. This gap leaves an opening for credible alternatives. As of last June, at least 29.6% of clients were open to trying Big 4 lawyers — mostly larger clients. The Big 4 are unlikely to grab large litigation and/or big M&A — but they have to start somewhere.

The immediate threat comes more on the talent side where the ex-law firm now Big 4 partners tell us they see a clearer and more predictable career path.

The Big 4 were routinely dismissed as management consultants in their early days — before they grew into the largest management consulting firms in the world. Law is different, but the Big 4 can figure it out, and they have announced their plans as they develop the market.

Law firms have the opportunity to plan for the Big 4’s inevitable grander entrance. The best defense is to build impenetrable client relationships, drive more thought leadership (a Big 4 core market strategy) to the table, and bring business development into the culture of the firm.

You can also read internationally recognized management consultant Patrick J. McKenna’s complimentary guide on industry focus. This is one of the clearest and most practical documents I have seen on the subject. This is your playbook — and unlike Larry bird — he wants to help you win.

There is virtually no downside to these defensive strategies — and you can drive more revenue irrespective of demand. The current growth provides an on-ramp for more legal services. The law firms who jump on first will have the best defense — and more business.

Best in the market ahead.

MBR
The Mad Clientist

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50% of clients want to work 2.4 days remotely. 50% of associates want to work 2.5 days a week remotely. We will call this a match. And, there is one more big thing on which they agree will drive the successful hybrid workplace.

Both groups are adamant about selecting their own remote workdays.

They want to plan and navigate these dates around their lives. Individuals in both groups understand they need to be present for certain meetings, court dates, and similar events — but after these, they want to decide.

Management’s trust and confidence means everything. It’s largely about feeling empowered.

Offering the decision on when to work remotely changes the dynamic of client relationships with outside counsel. Success demands more trust in outside counsel. Law firm success will draw on increased communication, improved planning, well-defined workflows, and a clear understanding of internal and client priorities.

You can use hybrid work to improve client service and strengthen client relationships. We recommend:

• Talking to clients about how they plan to work
• Establishing clear lines of communication for:
  • Approvals
  • Reviews
  • Changes in circumstances
  • New information
  • Immediate needs
• Sharing specifics about deliverables before starting work
• Providing updates early and often

All but the first recommendation are key parts of excellent client service no matter how you work.

89% of corporate counsel want to spend some time working remotely. Only 5% of associates want to work in the office full time — leaving 95% looking for a hybrid workplace — even if it’s one day a week.

Both corporate counsel and associates want the trust and confidence of their respective leadership. It brings engagement and empowerment — powerful drivers behind job satisfaction and retention.

Giving the hybrid choice will become another tool in the war for talent — and is strong enough to outweigh the big raises.

Best of luck in the market and the talent wars.

MBR
The Mad Clientist

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Clients want to know exactly how you train your associates. Not just surface-level answers and statistics. They are looking for content, curriculum, and the frequency of your training. In-house counsel want to understand your legal training, skill training, project management training, client service, and relationship management training.

Top legal decision makers are examining bench skills and strength at large and midsize firms. They see more turnover in their law firms’ attorney ranks and are pushing to see what is behind the front line. You can blame lateral partner moves, partner retirements, staff attrition, and thinning in house staff as the culprits—along with an increase in mistakes and errors. All this undermines their confidence in the firms on which they rely—and just may prevent these firms from getting new assignments.

This is the beginning of a new era where associates are much more important to clients. They are convinced associates will be playing a bigger role simply because law firms are admitting fewer partners while client caseloads get bigger.

Law firms can jump on this trend or fight it. It’s time to showcase your training. How often do you train your associates and on what? Do you design training for each associate class or do all associates get the same training? What do you do to keep your best associates? Some clients are asking how happy the associates are. These clients are doing their due diligence before they invest more in their law firm relationships.

Client interest in associates adds one more element to strengthen your client relationships. Now is the time to start asking clients what they would like to see. It’s also time to include associate training in your pitches. You can showcase your talent development skills and how happy your associates are. Happy associates are more engaged and likely to stay longer—and make a better impression on clients. Clients want to know you are all over this because it impacts them and their future—as it does yours.

Look for me to talk more about the associate experience in upcoming blogs. Be sure to subscribe to stay ahead of the game.

MBR

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Associates want more than money. They want some recognition—not much, but some—and they want to feel like they have a future. A big part of this sense of future is feeling like their firm is investing in them. Law firms can take immediate steps to make the future more obvious and brighter.

Ask associates to make decisions before you think they are ready

Not the biggest decisions, but just ahead of where you think their knowledge and experience are. Put these associates in a position to chase instead of following their performance. The associates who will grow into leaders want the opportunity to strut their stuff and be challenged.

Their ability to make the right decision is an intangible benefit providing confidence and increased job satisfaction. They may be wrong in their decisions, but they will learn faster by making their mistakes in a protected environment. Be ready to coach and explain why they might have made a wrong decision in time to make it right.

Find a reason to bring associates to clients

The best associates thrive on client air. Nothing compares to observing clients, interacting with clients, and seeing how different things can be with a client present. Your associates can observe partner behaviors and discussions, and gain insight into the art of client management and how to talk to clients. Associates will also be better able to support partners as they hone their knowledge of what partners need.

Ask your best clients if you can bring associates to meetings to learn and observe

Most clients welcome this opportunity. They enjoy mentoring and influencing an associate’s career. This gesture shows clients how client-focused you are as you teach associates what clients think. If you are skilled and/or lucky, your client will invest in your associate’s success.

Give your top associate a specific role in client meetings

Then, immediately give them detailed coaching on how to play this role. This includes practice sessions before you go to the client meeting. Don’t go easy—practice the difficult questions as well as the softballs.

Ask your associates to research one major client in depth to find new information and insights

Understanding a client’s business is one of the biggest law firm differentiators in the market. The best associates crave information about the client for whom they perform work. This adds up to a high-power opportunity for associates and law firms. Ask an associate to perform business research on a key client where they bill time. Ask them to look beyond immediate headlines and find product plans, growth plans, M&A history, and business challenges.

Ask these associates to use all firm resources but insist they synthesize the data into usable analysis, and bullet points. Ask for partner-ready summaries which relationship managers can use to discuss things with clients. Associates love the responsibility to make an impact and partners get help in developing high-value client conversations.

Train, train, train, and train

Few things say I’m investing in your future like training. Training goes well beyond teaching associates new and useful skills…it drives culture. Associates adopt the values the training supports. Start training in client service and watch associates embrace the importance of client service. Train them every year and they will believe it is increasingly important in everything you do.

We recommend developing and delivering associate training in 4 key areas:

• Client service—a core component of any client-facing business. You can’t train anyone early enough nor hone their skills enough. This associate training will also improve partner support and productivity—as associates use newly acquired client skills with partners.

• Business development—a proven tool to draw out the associates with interest and potential talent in business development. Use this training to introduce business development and bring it into the firm’s culture early. This will make business development a more natural and effective process when the associates reach partner.

• Social media—your associates are already using it. Leverage their natural inclination to incorporate social media into their professional success. The art of social media for business can be taught and is effective for making new contacts and clients.

• Networking—always talked about but rarely taught. Teaching associates when, where, and how to network is giving them fuel for their careers and business development.

Associates are more valuable than ever—and continue to increase in value. Law firms are working harder to keep them—and keep them longer. These steps turn associates into better attorneys, makes them feel more invested in the firm, and helps define their clear contribution to the firm besides their billable hours. This is your opportunity to make your associates better and keep them around a lot longer.

MBR

The post Making Better Associates Faster appeared first on The BTI Consulting Group.

Clients make a mental note of the firms who will put their associates on the front lines and make them visible. They believe client-facing experiences, however limited, are good for these young attorneys and will help their careers.

We asked more than 300 corporate counsel which law firms had the best associates. The vast majority indicated they didn’t know—all of their firms had really good associates. But, clients say 46 firms have the best associates. These 46 firms stand out because clients have seen and met the associates.

Clients like to talk to associates and offer bits of advice on being an attorney, improving their work, and to share insight on what it’s like to be a client or about the nature of meetings. They like to mentor and help. And, associates love the exposure and advice.

Knowing clients like to work with associates would compel partners to find low-risk opportunities to include your associates when possible and appropriate. You can ask clients if they think bringing associates to a meeting would be helpful in any way.

But, we recommend training any and all associates in the basics of client service and client-facing behavior first. Clients want to teach and mentor—but they expect associates to know the basics of how to act in front of a client.

Please join us in congratulating the following firms for gaining the respect and recognition of clients for having the Best Associates and Standout Associates:

Law Firms with the Best Associates:

ARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER
GIBSON DUNN
HOLLAND & KNIGHT
JONES DAY
MORGAN LEWIS
PAUL, WEISS
ROPES & GRAY
SIDLEY

Law Firms with Standout Associates:

ALLEN & OVERY
BAKER DONELSON
BAKERHOSTETLER
BARTLIT BECK HERMAN PALENCHAR & SCOTT
BERESKIN & PARR
CARLTON FIELDS
CARRINGTON COLEMAN
CHAMBLISS
COVINGTON
CRAVATH
DAVIS POLK
DEBEVOISE & PLIMPTON
EVERSHEDS SUTHERLAND
FINNEGAN
HOLLAND & HART
JACKSON WALKER
JENNER & BLOCK
JONES WALKER
K&L GATES
KELLOGG, HANSEN, TODD, FIGEL & FREDERICK
KING & SPALDING
KIRKLAND & ELLIS
KNOBBE MARTENS
LOCKE LORD
LOWENSTEIN SANDLER
MCGUIREWOODS
NORTON ROSE FULBRIGHT
ORRICK
OSLER, HOSKIN & HARCOURT
SCHIFF HARDIN
SEYFARTH SHAW
SHEPPARD MULLIN
SIMPSON THACHER
SKADDEN
SQUIRE PATTON BOGGS
STINSON LEONARD STREET
WIGGIN AND DANA
WILSON SONSINI GOODRICH & ROSATI

You can download a complimentary copy of the full report here: BTI’s Law Firms with the Best Associates 2017.

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