Lawyers in today’s marketplace have to learn new skills. It is no longer sufficient for them to be solely skillful practitioners or individual contributors to their firms. They must also be leaders – leaders of their firms, their practice groups, their cases, projects and transactions, and their clients.
For firm leaders, the need to drive organizational performance within their firms is clear. While managing the cost side of the firm can be painful, it is relatively straightforward. Staff and overhead can be reduced, expensive programs can be eliminated, and salaries and partner draws can be cut.
The greater challenge is in increasing profitability and market share on the revenue side of the balance sheet. This is where organizational leadership is critical. It goes like this: When the quality of leadership is enhanced, employee capability and commitment are positively affected; when employee capability and commitment grow, client acquisition and retention improve because people who are well served will in turn serve their clients and their firms well; and as client acquisition and retention improve, there is a positive impact on profitability, market share, and partner value.
For lawyers who are not in formal leadership roles, their leadership competency is also critical to their success. On a day to day basis they must manage their cases and transactions, communicate effectively, inspire confidence in their clients, build trust among their co-workers, collaborate with clients and other lawyers, aggressively market their practices, and innovate in order to meet client needs.
“Leadership” can therefore no longer be dismissed as an attribute that is applicable to the corporate and political arenas but not to the legal profession. The need for leadership skills also cannot be discounted for lawyers who are not in formal leadership positions. It is, for all, essential to a robust and profitable legal practice. For lawyers who have never before been tasked to develop these skills, it is time to raise the bar on the competencies that they are required to develop in order for firms to maximize the profitability of the high quality talent that they have at their disposal.