Walker Clark
Worldview Archives
Listening to Learn
What is the most important thing that a law firm or group of lawyers can do to respond better to fast change in their market?
Making Sense of the Chaos
The erratic attempts at policy coming from the Trump government in the United States have made commercial and financial prospects more unpredictable than perhaps in any period since the 1930s. Many investors and business people, as well as traditionally friendly governments, now wonder, often with good reason, whether the United States can be trusted to honor its international commitments at any level of enterprise or international engagement.
These forces and risks ultimately affect almost every law firm with any significant international or regional practice. This is a real challenge for the legal profession, because clients traditionally have looked to lawyers and law firms for analysis and problem solving in uncertain times. Yet the business futures of many of those firms are perhaps even less certain than those of their clients.
Buying Time as a Wise Investment
Lawyers tend to greatly value efficiency. They tell us that control of their time, above all else, is an important factor in their personal and professional success.
Yet many law firm decision makers get stuck in a downward spiral of procrastination, unwilling to make a financial investment in protecting their time and even their sense of well-being.
Leadership in Times of Change
Law firm leaders tell us “We now have to accept change as the status quo."
And this means making judgment calls when there is insufficient time to find perfect solutions, or even to get all of the partners to agree.
The Value of Pessimism
Pessimism can be a valuable tool for getting things done.
The next time you say to a colleague, “Stop being so negative!” it might be helpful to make sure the benefit of their pessimistic thinking has been fully appreciated and used.
If it has, the better question is then, "How can we bring some balance to this discussion by using both pessimistic and optimistic thinking skills and behaviors?"
From Strategic Planning to Strategic Success: the “3x3” Model
The implementation of a law firm's most important decisions can be as simple as: Ready-Aim-Fire.
So why, in so many law firms, is it: Ready-Fire-Aim?
Confronting Cultural Realities
"Why don't we get the results we expect?"
This is a common frustration of many law firm partners and managers. One way partners can dramatically increase the likelihood of achieving satisfactory results is to incorporate cultural due diligence into their decisions and the execution of their strategic priorities and goals.
What is the one thing that your firm must get right next year?
As Walker Clark clients approach the end of 2016, which for most of them also is the end of their fiscal year, we have noticed a wide range of questions and discussions about the issues that they will face in 2017. Most of their concerns -—and most of the requests for our services — at this time of the year cluster around seven common themes.
In many cases, our clients express these issues in terms such as "We have to decide what to do about this before we move into 2017." This is especially important for small and midsize firms, which typically have less tolerance for management and business development vulnerabilities than do larger firms.
Document! Document! Document!
Getting things done requires that we confront reality at its most basic levels in the firm. Documenting internal strategic priorities, business plans, and commitment to and expectations of our people is a fundamental step for getting things done.
One of the most common characteristics of firms that fail to implement decisions well is that they try to short-cut documentation, or omit it completely.
When is enough, enough?
Making a decision to leave your law firm partnership is likely to be the hardest career decision you will ever make.
How do you know when the timing is right, for you and for the firm?
Beware consensus.
Do you and your partners pride yourselves on the fact that "as partners we never proceed unless we have consensus?"
Or that "we have voting rules but never need to use them, because we prefer to come to a consensus?"
So, what does this commitment to consensus actually say about your partners' decision making process, your professional and business culture, and the ability of your firm to adapt to, and respond rapidly and efficiently to, a changing business environment?
Surprisingly, very little and not what you might expect.
Too Many Good Ideas
A managing partner of a client law firm of Walker Clark recently told me, "The problem with our firm is that we have too many opportunities and too many good ideas. At the end of the day we are like dogs chasing our own tails."
This is a frequent phenomenon in successful law firms.
Big Ideas
This is the time of the year when some law firm partners start thinking in bold terms about possible strategic opportunities. One of the most frequent of these "big ideas" is the creation of a new practice group or industry sector specialty.
Some of these ideas succeed, but most fail.
What is the business case for change?
When law firm partners discuss significant possible changes in their firm, someone often asks, "What's the business case for this?"
At least, someone should ask that.
It's a good question.
This post is not about the Chambers and Partners Awards for Excellence.
Like some of you, when I reviewed this year's short list for the Chambers and Partners Awards for Excellence for Latin America, at first I was a little surprised by some of the very good firms that were not finalists for these prestigious and coveted awards.
This post is not an attempt to debate or explain the short list selection criteria that the awards team at Chambers and Partners uses. Instead, I want to share two observations about the firms that did, and did not, make the list.
