“Off with Their Heads” – Why Great Lawyers Face Layoffs
“Off with their heads!” The phrase has been attributed to everyone from Shakespeare, to Lewis Carroll (in Alice in Wonderland) and even King Henry VIII. But if you ever hear this phrase whispered in the halls of your law firm, it’s much less important to know who said it than it is to know you’ve got cause to be concerned—especially in this time of unparalleled law firm layoffs.
One of the key reasons non-equity partners have been laid off from their law firms is because of the absence of successful legal sales. A primary cause behind this is the absence of solid business development training offered to the attorneys by the firm.
As a business development consultant working with law firms on expanding or creating an active training program for business development, I am often asked to review the annual performance assessment format used by clients. All too often, there is, at best, a cursory review of attorney marketing efforts. And while many attorneys are asked to provide their plan for the year, rarely is anyone tracking and supporting their marketing and sales efforts, let alone offering suggestions for improvement as time goes by.
Simply by focusing on lawyer marketing and helping non-equity partners and other lawyers who are new to the team learn more about closing sales, you will be actively contributing to the firm’s success. If the economic downturn has not yet convinced your firm to take a proactive approach to business development, start proposing it now. Your future and the future of the firm may depend on it.
