Editor’s foreword

In conducting research for Ark Group’s forthcoming ‘Strategic marketing for the legal profession’ conference, Managing Partner was surprised to hear just how many firms continue to struggle to manage their client relationships.

Firms have wisely invested time and money in IT systems, HR processes, marketing strategies and financial overhauls, all of which have helped to meet the needs of expanding firms in a global economy. Such steps also mark the move of many firms to a more corporate outlook, with centralised management and strong leadership that inspires teamwork, cross-selling and good brand awareness. The traditional partnership model, where management resides in the consensus of partners, all of whom have their own agendas and client relationships, has understandably dwindled under the sheer size of the modern legal business. Relationships are still seen as key to success, but they now belong to the firm, rather than to a single partner.

However, such an evolution presents a dichotomy between individual partner/client relationships and the more formalised team approach of the corporate structure. In a recent issue of Managing Partner, Richard Wiseman, UK general counsel at Shell, maintained that good service from external law firms boils down to chemistry with particular lawyers. Consequently, he said that he had often followed individuals from one law firm to another. At the other end of the scale, however, there are many client companies saying that they expect a holistic approach from their external firms, where law-firm teams work together to provide a seamless service. For law firms, this raises a real challenge: to keep the individuals happy while still focusing on a bigger, corporate overview. In practical terms, it means that law firms are encouraging their partners to think like business people, within a larger picture of what the firm as a whole can offer any given client. At the same time, they are told that they must build their personal relationships with clients, speaking with and meeting them frequently to ensure the one-to-one value of the legal service is not lost in commercial expediency. If our research is correct, then it appears that few firms as yet feel they have got this balance right.

This issue really focuses on the first part of the equation – getting the internal processes right to ensure that firms are delivering the very best client service across people, practice areas and offices. This includes aspects of finance, HR, risk and IT, while assessing what can be learnt from bulk-providers to improve the service model. There is a clear emphasis across the articles featured in this issue on improving the bottom line and increasing profitability, which should please all.

In the September issue, we will follow up with a closer focus on marketing and CRM, evaluating the challenges of internal change on client relationships, and what law firms now need do to ease this tug of war between the personal and the corporate. This will tie in with the marketing conference, which will be held at the end of the month (27-28 September), where speakers will focus on effective business-development trends and what law firms can do to better balance their service offerings. If you would like to know more about the conference, please contact the event director, James Renton, by e-mail at jrenton@ark-group.com.

Caroline Poynton
Editor

Features

Improving your working-capital management Free
From poor cash control that allows money to walk out of the door, to inconsistent billing policies that can easily be ignored, there are innumerable challenges that firms will face if they are to really make a difference to their incomings and outgoings. Anthony Bash, head of finance at Weil, Gotshall & Manges, provides some essential tips on how firms can make the process a little easier and improve their bottom-line figures.

Using risk management to overcome uncertainty Free
As law firms have grown, they have taken on many of the characteristics of corporate entities, with sophisticated structures, business and financial controls. And, just as corporates have had to face up to risk-management strategies like never before, so have law firms needed to accept the importance of positioning a risk strategy at the heart of their business. In part one of a two-part article, Julia Graham, director of risk at DLA, assesses the essential emergence of risk management in the legal world.

Operational efficiency and HR Free
For many firms, improving their financial or operational performance comes down to cutting costs or pushing the fee earners harder. Alison Denton, director of HR at Pagan Osborne, argues that it is actually HR that could actually make the crucial difference to client service and law-firm profitability.

Putting client care at the heart of your firm Free
Maximising client retention allows firms to devote more of their marketing and business-development efforts to real growth. Carolyn Roberson, business development and marketing director at Hill Dickinson, explains how well-run client-care programmes can truly impact the bottom line.

Making the move to IT Free
Earlier this year, Stuart Whittle waved goodbye to his case load to embrace a new role as an IT professional at Weightman Vizards. For many lawyers it would be an unthinkable transition, but, as Whittle explains to Caroline Poynton, he’s now in a perfect position to bring the firm’s people and processes closer together for the firm’s long-term strategic success.

Lessons in service delivery from the bulk providers Free
In a competitive market for professional services, much can be learnt from firms working at low margins, which have had to innovate and transform their models for service delivery to survive and prosper. Nick Jarrett-Kerr, former managing partner of a UK national law firm and currently a partner at Edge International, examines the lessons that all professional-service firms can learn from the experience of the bulk providers.

Are you within the law? Managing your marketing and client data Free
Law firms are using marketing like never before to build presence in the marketplace and bring new business through the doors. Recent legislation, however, means that firms have to be more careful than ever to ensure that they use their clients’ data correctly. Michael Warren, client services director at Shamrock Marketing, explains why many firms are failing to comply to legislative change and what they should do to protect themselves and their clients.

Regulars

Thought leader Free
I recently debated with two senior partners the respective merits of their firms when it comes to decision making. The smaller one described the difficulty of getting 40 people around a table to make decisions. However, he was sure that the larger international firm would find decision making easier, as the management team would be left to get on with things.

All change on the North-Eastern Front Free
In the 1990s, senior partner Andrew Hoyle was convinced that his firm Watson Burton needed to transform itself from its staid traditions to become a forward-looking, entrepreneurial business. The financial results of the past couple of years, together with the firm’s growing reputation for success, suggests his efforts have paid off. He tells Caroline Poynton how his team went about the transformation and what challenges they faced along the way.