Business
Strategy & Structures
Law firm strategy must
set priorities for the acquisition of market share and for the development
of leadership and professional talent. Strategy must also improve business
processes and the bottom line. A sound strategy ensures that the priorities
are aligned and that the firm’s roles and structures support them. Our
offering includes
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the 7
components of law firm strategy
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client
and market-driven strategy
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aligning
strategies and structures at the firm, office, group and individual
levels
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industry
/ market groups and practice group structures
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talent
acquisition and retention strategy
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professional
and administrative management structures
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For further information
on developing and introducing your firm's business strategy and structures,
contact Richard Stock at rstock@catalystlegal.com (416)
367-4447, extension 1.
Articles on Issues
Affecting Business Strategy
"Strategic Lapse "
Lexpert, January
2005
Five factors inhibiting
the execution of business strategy for law departments are identified: an
executive leadership that is not mobilized, strategy that is not translated
into operational terms, poor alignment of legal resources with business
units, strategy viewed as the responsibility of others, and insufficient
communication and direction. The chief legal officer should consider the 5
factors as urgent and important.
"Business Strategy Is
Not Fuzzy"
Lexpert,
September 2004
Strategy and planning
are unsuccessful if they are occasional and left to only a few individuals
to handle. The article suggests that four questions be fully answered as
the basis of strategy. A focus on getting results then requires that
performance be measured, the pace be accelerated, and that compensation
systems be aligned.
"Time Accelerates"
National,
June/July 2004
As firms age, some are
considering innovations to lure the talent and the capital that will ensure
their sustainability as a business. The article provides detail on five of
these: lateral recruitment, changing the criteria for partnership, the use
of formal practice plans, securing commitments for partner retention, and
significant (25%) improvements to profitability.
"Strategy Means Choosing"
National, March /
April 2003
Fifteen (15) questions
are presented to help forge a "strategy" for professional
practice. The choices are arranged in four sets: the clients and their
legal needs, reaching the clients, the economics of practice, and creating
/ innovation.
";From Gridlock to
Greatness"
National, May
2002
Suggestions are offered
to help law firms overcome four barriers to change: that nothing changes or
will make a difference (resignation), that all lawyers are too busy, that
there is insufficient leadership in the firm, and a lack of individual and
collective support. Overcoming gridlock gives the firm a competitive advantage.
"Choice Determines
Direction"
Lexpert,
February, 2002
Seven initiatives are
available to law firms to change their business model: a critical mass of
work from preferred counsel, small and client-specific legal teams,
significant delegation by partners, use of qualified paralegals, case plans
and budgets, lower production costs, and less reliance on the hourly
billing method.
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