Compensation Factors and the Three-Point Shot
The basketball rule that awards three points for a longer shot was a seen as a “circus shot” when first introduced in the NBA (1978). The shot did not become a significant game-changer for many years. Larry Bird would make about three attempts per game. Stephen Curry today makes ten or more attempts per game. […]
Collaboration and Compensation (Part 2)
This article was originally published in the October 2014 issue of Edge International Communiqué. Collaboration-evaluation tools can help law firms improve teamwork outcomes Last month, in Part 1 of this article, I discussed how to measure external business development collaboration. I now discuss internal teamwork, and how to assess all collaboration factors in compensation. Internal […]
Collaboration and Compensation (Part 1)
This article was originally published in the September 2014 issue of Edge International Communiqué. Collaboration-evaluation tools can help law firms improve teamwork outcomes A senior executive in a large U.S. law firm recently sent me a challenging question to which the partners wanted answers: “Is there any proof that collaboration and teamwork improve a law firm’s […]
Risk Insurance for Laterals
Suppose your firm’s longtime insurance advisor came to you and said: “You have a substantial investment that we know will have a one-in-four failure rate over three years and about one-in-two failure rate over five years.* Would you like to insure against the risk of that happening?” We have all kinds of insurance for our […]
Partners in Conflict
No matter how strong a firm’s culture seems to be, there will be periods when some partners are in conflict. The conflict may not be material – perhaps a shouting match in a meeting that later calms down, or it may be a brief outbreak of longstanding animosities that are normally avoided by keeping the […]
Strategy Day
Like any well-managed law firm, you have a strategy. It was written after a lengthy process, perhaps assisted by an outside consultant. Partners wordsmithed it for hours, then approved it for your executive to implement. But like the merchandise on the bottom shelf, that strategy has been gathering some dust. Perhaps it has been overlooked […]
Associate Advancement and Client Dissatisfaction
Is your firm aware of client dissatisfaction with the way your associates are developed and advanced? The signals of dissatisfaction are all around us, yet most firms just manage the symptoms, without restructuring their associate talent development model. Your firm can get ahead of this problem with a solution that leading firms have adopted – […]
Star Watching
As law firms wrap up the evaluation season, much of the conversation revolves around the under-performers and what should be done to get them “up or out.” At the same time, every firm acknowledges that they have both rising stars and established stars. What attention did they get and how will they be watched and […]
Partner Performance and Compensation
Three years ago in Communiqué, I wrote a two-part article on “Collaboration and Compensation.” Part I appeared in the September 2014 issue, and Part II in the October 2014 issue. Since that time, I have received several inquiries in compensation engagements about partner performance. The inquiries go beyond financial performance and general “team building” activities. Leaders want […]
Can Law-Firm Associates Learn to Govern?
Many firms have gone beyond the usual training diet of substantive law and ethics to offer management and business development skills for associates. One of the next challenges is to learn law-firm governance. But is this a topic for associate training, and does it matter? From our consulting engagements we know that firms of all […]