Williams Wroe - Will your legal practice survive in the 2020s?

Essentials for maintaining a successful law practice

The last eighteen months have been transformative. Law firms were forced to adapt to the threat of COVID19 and suddenly we were all either working from home, furloughed, or facing redundancy. There have undoubtedly been individual and collective challenges across many fronts, but the pandemic has also provided an opportunity to fast track positive changes.

We predict that the top priorities of firms in 2021/22 will be reducing costs, the improved use of technology to streamline processes, more innovative ways to provide services to clients, and an increased focus on work/life balance for employees.

Clients’ demands, needs, and priorities all pivoted in new directions as the pandemic kicked in and continues to have a profound impact on legal spending. Increasingly, clients will want law firms to deliver cost effective services, often at fixed prices, but at the same time retain highly experienced professionals able to address their most challenging needs.

To succeed, firms must continually improve their own service delivery methods to surpass client expectations and increase client value, whilst improving profitability and lowering costs.

Everyone in the firm, from the partners down must continually seek better ways to deliver services.

This means implementing more efficient resourcing, and workflow processes. Firms that are successful at this will differentiate themselves in a crowded marketplace, utilise their resources more profitability, and lock in client loyalty.

Service delivery innovation enhances a firm’s ability to lock in client loyalty through easier buying processes, clearer communication, and an increased ability to meet client needs. The result is that clients will prefer to stay with existing legal service providers and firms can mitigate the threats posed by competitors.

Retention of clients is of course the lifeblood of any business; however, the retention of a talented workforce is critical to client service delivery. Remote working opens up opportunities to engage new talent and adopt more agile working practices.

The pandemic has forced most traditional law firms to re-examine their often dysfunctional and archaic business models. Many law firms are built on the creation of a belief system that non owner lawyers must dedicate most of their waking hours to the firm and expect to have little personal time. This method preys on the insecurities of young lawyers and has been successful at maintaining loyalty and high retention rates, but it has come at a steep cost in the form of high levels of stress, addiction, burnout and even suicides.

Law firm leaders have a unique opportunity to listen to colleagues whose needs and priorities have certainly changed during the coronavirus pandemic.

Return to work strategies need to focus on what employees need. Proactive firms have already begun to seek feedback from their workforce on how they want to work moving forward.

Different people work in different ways, and flexibility is key to achieving high levels of employee satisfaction. The focus on employee wellbeing has never been greater and is inseparably linked to employee attraction and retention.

An in-person office experience is still appealing to some employees who will have missed the spontaneity of interacting with colleagues, and camaraderie of group teamwork. Those returning to the office are likely to have higher expectations for their workspace, with access to both private space and more flexible, inviting space for collaboration with colleagues when required.

Meanwhile, others may now have a preference for working from home and will need encouragement to return to the office. Firms who decide to offer flexibility for remote working must continue to invest in hardware, software, and internet support, as well as maintain regular communication, and undertake health and safety checks on the home working environment.

Employee experience is now a hot topic, alongside equality, inclusion, and diversity, as firms become increasingly aware that employee wellbeing is a competitive advantage. Firms that commit to fostering an enduring legacy must invest time and effort into providing individual wellbeing support and guidance to help lawyers through leadership training, coaching, and mentoring, business development skills training, and opportunities to develop business acumen. It is inevitable that firms will need to invest in upskilling the digital competencies of their workforce, as video meetings shift from a novelty to the norm. Training in how to conduct multi party meetings effectively, and the use of branded greenscreen backgrounds will project a more professional image. Firms may also need to invest in ensuring their employees have reliable broadband, which remains an issue for some living in more remote areas.

Forward thinking employers would be wise to accommodate those employees who want to permanently work from home or adopt more hybrid solutions to achieve a better work life balance. Firms who continuously listen to their employees will create better employee experiences and this will help firms to become more attractive employers and better able to build a resilient workforce.

It is unlikely that firms will move to a predominantly home working model, however working from home one or two days a week may become common practice and an opportunity to engage with lawyers who for various personal reasons want to avoid commuting. Hybrid models also offer opportunities for firms to recruit lawyers outside of their office geographical locations.

There will be pressure to reduce office accommodation and associated costs, even as firms gradually transition out of lockdown with a semi return to office working. Hot desking will become more prevalent provided strict sanitation measures are in place to protect employee safety.

Firms will need to consider whether some practice areas are economically viable, and whether a more flexible resourcing model to cope with fluctuations in demand for services may be necessary.

Embracing positive change in the profession will be dependent on the ability and willingness of lawyers across the sector to advocate for the changes they want to see, and law firm leaders must be held accountable to ensure a much-needed evolution in the future delivery of legal services.

Kimberley Williams (Director)

Williams Wroe Law Management Consultants kimberleywilliamswroe

www.linkedin.com/in/kimberleywilliamswroe www.williams-wroe.com

Williams Wroe