The Challenges Of Leadership Are Different To The Challenges Of Management

Published in Managing Partner magazine March 2016 Law firm leaders face many challenges and carry huge responsibilities. Decision making that will define the future of their firms, for better or for worse, rests on their shoulders. They must develop, evaluate, shape, and articulate a vision and strategy in ways which engage and motivate others. They need […]
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The Cultural Dimensions Of Leveraging Institutional Knowledge

Published in Managing Partner magazine December 2015 / January 2016 Many law firms position themselves as having a client-centred strategy but fail to embrace knowledge sharing about clients and relationships. Generally, it is not a paucity of systems which prevents firms from capitalising on their client knowledge. Whilst systems will drive speed and efficiency, it […]
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A knowledge-led approach to business development is key to law firm resilience

Published in Managing Partner magazine July / August 2015 There is a nexus between business development and knowledge management that few firms exploit to the maximum; indeed, in many cases, they do not actively exploit at all. When boiled down to its base elements, all that a law firm does is leverage knowledge and relationships. […]
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Team Morale Is Directly Linked To The Ability To Deliver Differentiated Client Services

Published in Managing Partner magazine November 2015 In previous articles, I have written about how the lack of any meaningful differentiation between law firms on criteria that are of value to clients leads inexorably to price-driven competition. When we can see no difference between the services on offer, we buy the cheapest available. The same […]
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Horizon Scanning To Identify And Capitalise On New Growth Opportunities

Published in Managing Partner magazine October 2015 Ted Levitt, the economist and business thinker who penned the game-changing Marketing Myopia in 1960, commented that “the future belongs to people who see possibilities before they become obvious”. His words capture the essence of the challenge faced by many legal professionals. In a world where the pace […]
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A strategic perspective on winning more business through pitches

Published in Managing Partner magazine September 2015 Law firms are being subjected to evermore demanding pitch and tendering processes. Larger firms have teams dedicated to the winning of such business, whilst smaller firms tend to have a client partner who leads the firm’s response to such opportunities. Across the spectrum, there are some overall guidelines which, […]
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Using Scenario Planning to Map Your Firm’s and Your Clients’ Risks and Opportunities

Published in Managing Partner magazine June 2015 We live in an increasingly uncertain world. In order to survive and prosper, firms must be nimble and adaptive. They need to develop the capability to anticipate the future in a dynamic way in order to shepherd their resources to maximum effect and select the best-fit markets on […]
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Becoming change-able is the key to law firm success

Published in Managing Partner magazine May 2015 I am often asked ‘what is the most important capability that any management team should focus on developing in its people?’ My answer is always the same: it is the means to bring about change – to behaviours, to practices, to systems and structures. Having the ability to […]
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Using a competitive perspective to chart your law firm’s strategy

Published in Managing Partner magazine The core purpose of any strategy is to create sustainable competitive advantage. A critical strategic discussion centres on the choice of markets in which to compete and the kinds of activities which are involved in such markets.  Several models exist to chart market attractiveness and these tend to map the […]
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Using Proxies to Differentiate and Build Confidence in Your Law Firm

Published in Managing Partner magazine March 2015   Choosing between law firms is difficult. For many clients, even those with in-depth knowledge of the profession, the decision to appoint a firm is laden with risks. These centre on three factors in the client’s mind: that the service being procured is complex; its costs are potentially […]
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Use Strategic Focus to Dominate a Market

Published in Managing Partner magazine February 2015   High performing firms share one characteristic. They all have focus – they know what they are in business to do and not do. Their unwavering focus is expressed through a defined group of target clients or industries, legal practice areas, jurisdictions or market places. Focus matters and […]
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Investing in the Partners of the Future

Published in Managing Partner magazine December 2014 / January 2015   There was a time when, in order to be invited to join a UK partnership, the prerequisites were good lawyering skills, a long tenure at the firm and to be seen as a ‘good egg’ by the other partners. An aspiration for partnership was […]
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Answering the Big Strategic Questions with Honesty and Objectivity

Published in Managing Partner magazine November 2014   There are a small number of key strategic questions which any firm must be prepared to discuss, honestly and objectively, if it is to best equip itself to address future opportunities and mitigate threats. This will mean engaging in a partnership-level dialogue, which will be uncomfortable for […]
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Succession Planning Is Vital to Building A Sustainable Future For Your Law Firm

Published in Managing Partner magazine October 2014   As the legal industry finds itself once more on an expansion track, one consequence of a long period of recession and low growth is that the partnership age profile now appears somewhat imbalanced. Few firms have been able to offer partnership promotion to those who, in the […]
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Future Proofing Your Law Firm

Published in Managing Partner magazine September 2014   This is the first instalment of a new monthly Managing Partner column in which I shall examine how law firms can position themselves to create a future that is both profitable and sustainable – the concept of ‘futureproofing’. Achieving this future will mean being prepared to take […]
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Aligning Performance Management with Strategic Objectives

Published in Managing Partner magazine July / August 2014   What gets measured gets done’ is a universal truism that law firms regularly ignore when designing and implementing their performance management and reward systems. It is crucial that everything is aligned with the organisation’s strategic objectives. Many firms have moved (or are moving) towards using […]
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Using Scenarios to Explore Strategic Options

Published in Managing Partner magazine June 2014   In order to respond to fast changing and dynamic markets, any strategy needs to be able to accommodate unpredictable changes to future market and economic conditions. It is curious, therefore, that while most would accept that we live in an increasingly non-linear world, many strategies are still […]
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Aim to Dominate a Market, not The Market

Published in Managing Partner magazine May 2014   Much of modern marketing strategy is based around the principles of an approach based on segmentation, targeting and positioning (STP). Segmentation is the process by which an apparently heterogeneous market is divided into a series of homogeneous sub-groups or segments, each of which shares a set of […]
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The Law Firm Merger: A Leader’s Guide to Strategy & Realisation

Published by ARK Group April 2014   THE LEGAL services market has undergone unprecedented change over the last decade. The Great Recession has been a catalyst to accelerate the pace of this change. At its core are structural changes in the profession and the deregulation of the legal services industry, leading to a fundamental reshaping […]
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Leading a Shared Vision For a Law Firm Merger

Published in Managing Partner magazine April 2014   In a strategy which is merger based, it is important that there is a clear vision of the future, which is easily understandable and provides a strong rationale as to why merger is the best option – illustrating both the opportunities that will be created as well […]
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Merger Chrysalis

Published in Managing Partner magazine March 2014 If you are tasked with delivering a merger, you have a huge amount of leading, persuading, cajoling and encouraging to do in order to realise your objective. Your audiences are both internal and external. Within your firm, you are responsible for understanding the mood of the wider partnership […]
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Outward Bound

Published in Managing Partner magazine February 2014 Many law firms are operating across increasingly large geographic footprints in their domestic markets. As they seek new growth opportunities, a question that will inevitably arise is whether national borders should be crossed. Before doing so, firms must first carefully analyse the reasons for such a move. They […]
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Driving for Growth

My Editorial Advisory Board blog for Managing Partner magazine http://www.managingpartner.com/blog/driving-your-law-firm-towards-more-aggressive-growth Activity levels are on the increase in the UK legal market. Has the corner been turned? Can we now be more confident that the much-vaunted green shoots of economic growth have finally taken hold? For the past twelve months, a growing swell of firms have […]
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Engaging the wider partnership in the merger process

Published in Managing Partner magazine December 2013   The manner in which the leadership team engages, communicates and builds consensus with its wider partner group is one of the most important opportunities and challenges in any merger. Without a strong collective will, focused on achieving a positive result and overcoming the inevitable challenges that will […]
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A merger can be a ‘Trojan Horse’ opportunity to transform your firm

Published in Managing Partner magazine November 2013 Don’t worry about the implementation, that’s tomorrow’s problem. Just focus on getting the deal done” figures high on the list of comments which betray the naivety of those negotiating mergers. Of course, it is also fair to say that such sentiments are understandable given the context of the […]
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