Business lessons I’ve learned

What was your first job?

Cutting grass in the summer for Aberdeenshire Council, before I went to university. I visited pretty much every water (and sewage) works they had!

When would you like to retire?

As Managing Partner, I am elected for three-year terms, so my job security is about that of an MP! Whatever I do next, though, I wouldn’t call it “retirement”.

What did you have for breakfast?

Porridge, but I cheat and add sugar as well as salt.

Who, or what, inspires you?

Nick Scott, Managing Partner, Brodies LLP

What does your company do that others don’t?

We are the leading law firm in Scotland measured by lawyer numbers, legal directory rankings, turnover and profit. We represent businesses, organisations and human beings across all key sectors of the Scottish economy, as well as providing an authoritative voice on our country and how its governments operate. Our office in Aberdeen opened in 2012; we now have more than 100 colleagues. Last year we opened an office in Inverness, where we have a dozen colleagues who call that office their home.

What are the most pressing challenges that your industry sector faces today, and why?

Law firms are people businesses. Attracting, and retaining, talented folk to work as lawyers and in the other core parts of our business – finance, marketing, people engagement, IT – is critical. Our profession could be a lot better at selling itself to talented young people and there is a lot more we need to do about access, and equality – talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not.

What is the hardest lesson you have learned in your career to date?

It sounds trite, but the people I work with. We have 800 colleagues; every Friday I make a point of finding someone to thank for something they have done that week. I call it “the power of the unexpected thank you.” Every year thousands of things happen in our firm, big or small, often unnoticed or unremarked upon.

If you could make one thing happen tomorrow that would benefit North-east Scotland, what would that be?

You will never get everything right. The key is to do something about it, and not to let the fear of something not working out put you off trying.

What is the most valuable piece of business advice you have ever received?

Never try and do more than three things at once. Do three things, finish them, find three more, do them.

What’s been your proudest career achievement to date, and why?

That we have been able to prove, in the way we run our firm and the decisions that we make, that you can make progress, whilst still caring. In recent years we were able to turn those values into the decisions we made during the pandemic. I hope the decisions that we made left our colleagues proud of their firm, and the people who work within it.

That everyone who regulates, invests in, or commentates upon the energy market had as clear eyed an understanding of the energy market as those who live and breathe it in the North-east. Understanding that is one part of how we continue to attract investment, and talent, to the region and ensure that the whole economy benefits from decades of investment in the energy transition –something all economies surrounding the UKCS stand to benefit from for many years to come.

Written by Amanda McCulloch