We’re just three weeks into the second decade since the crash of Lehman and the end of life as we once knew it in the legal industry…. Oh, wait. Was that too dramatic? Maybe so, at least in retrospect, but there is no...more
The first quarter is behind us and the legal industry as a whole seems to be doing reasonably well. Early reports on AMLaw firm performance suggests that at least most (though not all) of the larger firms are doing very...more
The three wise monkeys of Buddhist tradition were said to represent the positive personality trait of not fixating on the negative or on evil thoughts. But in the business world, and certainly in the legal industry, a less...more
Can 2018 really be here already? A year ago, in “2017 – The Year to Try Something New?”, I argued that 2017 was already a year of change outside the legal profession (“The Cubs are national champions and University of...more
We’re coming up on the 10th year-end closing since the financial crash got rolling, and as many as two-thirds of American law firms are still not back to pre-recession demand levels, according to some reports. But, some are...more
Thanksgiving is here again – just a bit earlier this year than usual. As I sit in Chicago looking out at the dark grey skies, I can’t help but think that winter is coming – soon. It’s hard to believe another year is almost...more
It’s hard to believe but it’s here – the fourth quarter. The time when most law firms become intensely focused on the immediate, short-term, administrative and highly internal management needs of their organization. For...more
It’s hard to believe the inflection point that marked the beginning of so much change in the legal world occurred ten years ago today on August 9, 2007. That was the day BNP Paribas closed withdrawals from three funds citing...more
The debates about innovation at law firms can sometimes seem a cacophonous, and discordant, confusion of themes. On the one hand, virtually every day brings some new announcement about the latest “innovation” in the business...more
“A leader’s greatest challenge is not leading – it is making others great.”
Juan Carlos Varela, President of Panama, May 6th, 2017
The words above were from President Varela’s commencement address at Georgia Tech...more
My wife and I had a recent real estate experience that illustrates an underlying challenge for law firms when it comes to sustained innovation. A few years ago, to help our daughter while in med school, we purchased a...more
Client satisfaction is dead – or you may be, if that is your primary focus as an organization. This seemingly radical statement is but one conclusion you might draw from reading Value As a Service, a fabulous new book by Rob...more
2017 has arrived, and already the year is looking like one of change outside the narrow bounds of the legal profession: The Cubs are national champions and University of Alabama is not, Brexit negotiations will be getting...more
A few weeks ago, while facilitating an All-Lawyer retreat, I had an interesting ah-hah moment. This was an unusual retreat. In the course of our consulting work we facilitate and attend a lot of client retreats, but most of...more
Holy Cow! After 108 years, the Curse of the Billygoat is dead, and the world has changed.
For Chicagoans, it’s been a long time. No one alive today actually remembers personally the last time the Cubs were World...more
Can it really be Fall again? Some of us have hardly noticed, being more astonished by the Cubs in the playoffs, or perhaps dismayed by the upcoming US election. But law firm leaders know it. As we enter October, firms are...more
Over the past two weeks Americans have witnessed the culmination of our presidential nominating process, and the launch of the general election campaign. This should be a time of national pride and excitement but the opposite...more
It seems law firms everywhere are going back to basics. Who are we and where are we going? What is our strategy? What are we trying to do? Simple questions, all, but not so simple to answer – at least if you want to answer...more
In multiple posts over the last several weeks, including “Succession Planning Challenges – No Surprises Here” and “The Impact of Succession Challenges in Smaller Markets”, my partner, Mike Short, has explored various aspects...more
The creative and entrepreneurial juices in the legal industry are boiling in the early days of 2016, particularly in the litigation space. One month into the New Year, there have been at least four high-profile boutique...more
As we enter 2016, continued uncertainty hovers over the legal industry, fueled in part by uncertainty in the greater national and world economies and political environments. The US is in an election year, the outcome of...more