Successful law firms find ways to encourage their top talent to grow their business. Firms can put structures and processes in place to make this easier, which is a win-win for everyone. Here are some ways that law firms can help their top attorneys to grow and succeed.
Hire the Best
First, make sure you hire attorneys who have the ability to create business and a track record to support that. Hire the best attorneys who are natural networkers, we covered this topic at length in another blog post. This is an important first step.
- Look for people who have prior sales or customer service experience.
- Consider using a personality assessment when hiring new attorneys.
- Inquire about their network and networking abilities.
- Look for evidence of competitiveness and their ability to bounce back from adversity.
A Culture of Success
Second, law firms should create a culture around success. Setting the tone is a great step toward establishing that expectation and mindset within the firm.
- Communicate the importance of growing business to excel as a lawyer.
- Express the importance of growing business as a measure of success within the firm (and let them know how it’s tied to compensation).
- Let them know that growing business is a primary way they will advance to Partner (or equivalent title).
- Set expectations. Many attorneys complain about production but don’t communicate their expectations clearly and directly.
Development
Last but not least, put processes in place that will help develop your attorneys’ skills and abilities. Training your attorneys to grow their business and produce will get results.
- Train attorneys on best practices.
- Assign them a mentor.
- Share other firms’ success stories.
- Encourage them to read sales and marketing books.
- Encourage them to produce quality work.
- Teach them to tell the firm’s story.
- Encourage friendly competition.
- Highlight the importance of attracting and creating business with great clients. Great clients trust you and your fees, value your services, and can provide an abundance of business.
- Have them go on business development meetings when they are an associate or Jr. Partner.
Helping your attorneys grow and produce is an important aspect of running a successful firm. Be sure you are hiring the best attorneys to begin with! Create a culture around success, and make training and development a priority. These steps will ensure the continued success of your attorneys and your firm.
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At Quaero Group we have made it our mission to find exceptional legal talent for our clients. Contact us today so we can find the legal experts your organization needs in this highly competitive market.