Page 7 - Strategic Planning for Law Firms

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Firm’s Succession Plan.........................................................................................................................................22 Firm Tech..................................................................................................................................................................22 Firm Costs and Expenses....................................................................................................................................23 Firm’s Challenges...................................................................................................................................................23 Is Your Firm Vibrant? ...........................................................................................................................................23 Is Your Firm Sliding?.............................................................................................................................................23 Is Your Firm Dying?...............................................................................................................................................23 Is Your Firm Terminal? ........................................................................................................................................23
Taking the Firm’s Temperature ................................................................................................ 24
Seeking Feedback from Your Team .................................................................................................................25 Communicating with Your Team ......................................................................................................................25 Power of Surveys ...................................................................................................................................................25 How to Obtain Honest and Candid Responses.............................................................................................26 Survey Your Equity Partners, Junior Partners and Associates ..............................................................26 Survey Your Staff ...................................................................................................................................................26 Survey Your Clients ...............................................................................................................................................26 Evaluating Your Team’s Feedback..................................................................................................................... 27 How to Use Your Team’s Feedback to Direct Your Firm’s Strategic Planning .................................... 27
Firm Models .............................................................................................................................. 28
Insurance Defense Firms....................................................................................................................................29 Commercial Litigation Firms .............................................................................................................................29 Corporate Firms.................................................................................................................................................... 30 Mixed/Hybrid Firms ............................................................................................................................................ 30 Insurance Defense/Commercial Firms ........................................................................................................ 30 Tensions Between Insurance Defense and Commercial Practices ......................................................31 Different Hourly Rates...........................................................................................................................................31 Different Billable Hours.........................................................................................................................................31 Different Marketing Efforts ................................................................................................................................32 Avoiding Class and Caste System ....................................................................................................................32
Your Strategic Planning Team.................................................................................................. 34
Who Should Be in Charge of Strategic Planning?.......................................................................................35 Should You Hire an Outside Consultant? .......................................................................................................35 We Lawyers Are Busy ..........................................................................................................................................35 We Lawyers Need to Bill Hours ........................................................................................................................36 The Pros and Cons of Outside Consultants...................................................................................................36 Types of Consultants.............................................................................................................................................36 What Consultants Can Do that You Cannot .................................................................................................. 37 Why It Is Preferable to Use an Outside Consultant ................................................................................... 37 Consultants Ask a Lot of Questions ................................................................................................................. 37 Consultants Provide Fresh and Objective Eyes to
Partnership Agreements and Compensation Plans ..................................................................................38 Consultants Provide Fresh and Objective Analysis of a Firm’s Financials ..........................................38 Consultants Can Have Honest Conversations .............................................................................................39 Consultants Can Have Difficult Conversations ............................................................................................39 Consultants Can Prompt Troublesome Partners to Speak and Act ....................................................39 Consultants Can Talk to Key Individuals and Identify Issues, Concerns and Problems.................39 Consultants Need to Understand the Firm’s Culture ................................................................................ 40 Consultants Need to Learn Underlying Feelings and Tensions ............................................................. 40 What to Look for in an Outside Consultant................................................................................................... 40 Finding a Consultant Who Understands Your Type of Firm......................................................................41 Finding a Consultant Who Understands Your Business Model...............................................................41 The Role of an Outside Consultant ....................................................................................................................41 If You Don’t Hire a Consultant, How Should the Firm Direct Strategic Planning?............................42 Who Should Lead a Retreat Strategic Planning? ........................................................................................ 42 What Skill Set Should Your Strategic Planner Have? ................................................................................. 42 How Should Your Strategic Planner Act and What Should She Do?.....................................................43
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