5 Ways Firms and Agencies Can Win in 2024: Through the Lens of Law Firm Leadership

Adaptability has reliably predicted which firms will thrive. This is how you can lead your team ahead of the curve.

Written by Raheem Veal

Let’s face it. Law firm leaders face unprecedented challenges in the current climate. Case loads are more strenuous than ever. According to Clio’s 2023 Trends Report, legal professionals bring in over 2.5x more revenue for their clients than previous benchmarks. This increase in volume comes at a time where law firms are downsizing in manpower and finding efficiencies by leveraging emerging technology. In past decades, clients increasing their demands and requirements meant they’d–in return–write bigger checks. This is no longer the case. Similar to advertising, with media spends decreasing across the industry, legal client expectations are far outpacing their willingness to pay. An ultra competitive market has made law firms’ strategic business units weary of raising prices.

But still, the 2.5x industry revenue increase indicates that there’s an abundance of opportunity available for firms that can stay ahead of the curve. Adaptability has reliably predicted which law firms will thrive. The global networking of the legal industry, widespread adoption of cloud technology, and expansion of client power have shaken up the industry again and again. The global coronavirus pandemic reimagined what client service, productivity, and law firm enterprise look like with the rise of remote work. Standout firms have continually improved upon their approach to meet the newest challenges. This time, there’s a new kid on the block named Chat GBT who has rewritten the rules for how artificial intelligence tools will impact legal operations. How do law firms excel in an increasingly competitive environment where the only constant is change? Read more for actionable steps.

1. Build an Opportunity-Based Mindset Toward New Technology & Tools

Resisting new technology in the legal industry is like fighting against oceanic waves: the more you struggle, the steeper the uphill battle against the current. That battle consists of duplicating efforts and wasting precious dollars or hours due to inefficient legal operations. Gregg McConnell, the Global Director of Operations and Innovation at Corteva, shared insights on the Innovative Legal Leadership podcast about how implementing AI-powered chatbots increased his team’s efficiency and productivity.

Though McConnell was initially skeptical, his team programmed five bot personas to answer client and prospect questions about different aspects of the firm. The results were undeniable. The team reduced its daily volume by 50+ email threads, streamlined troubleshooting by prioritizing users who’d already engaged the bots, and created more time to work on profitable business streams. McConnell’s ability to transcend his aversion to chat bots fundamentally changed his team culture around emerging tools.

2. Enhance the Team Culture by Leading by Example

Consensus building is a pillar of transformational leadership. An effective strategy to build consensus is making decisions that are best for the business and modeling them. Legal Talent Expert Sharon Meit Abrahams delved into the subject in her informative article Practice Innovations: Leadership insight from law leaders. Calvin “Woody” Fowler–CEO and chair of Williams Mullen–had an experience that underscores how leaders who practice what they preach are energizing and reassuring. When leading his team back into the office in May 2020, Fowler was the first employee to return. Consistently showing up and leading the charge strengthened his team’s trust in uncertain times. Kristina Feher, managing member of Feher Law, credits her willingness to “get in the trenches and do lesser jobs” for fostering greater team unity and productivity.

3. Create Ample Support for ALL Groups Affiliated with the Firm

Attracting, developing, and retaining top talent is a key component driving law firm success. Ineffective diversity, equity and inclusion strategies can be costly. Cynthia Lareine, Director of Community Development at PERSUIT, left Biglaw due to facing racial discrimination in the form of microaggressions and exclusion. The standout British-Nigerian attorney departed to start her own practice–taking her prospective clients in emerging markets with her. Employees are most creative and efficient when they can bring their full selves–their age, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, and experiences–to work. Investing time into building diverse teams and safe spaces for all is a no brainer.

Many firms also don’t give entry level attorneys access to senior leadership or influence over the company’s decision making. Joshua Driskell, managing partner of Lagerof Lawyers, meets regularly with junior attorneys of the firm to gain insight on their observations and ideas. His actions assure them that their opinion and presence matters since they are the firm’s future. As a result, his team is firmly invested and willing to go the extra mile for him.

4. Build Strategic Internal and External Partnerships to Position team for success

Building synergies across business units is more crucial than ever. At an earlier time, winning the most legal business was predicated on having the best attorneys on your team. If a firm’s legal practitioners were more hardworking, talented, experienced and resourceful than its counterparts, the firm was all set. While legal practice is still the thesis of successful law firms, strategic business and operational excellence are no longer the footnotes or appendix; they are now the supporting paragraphs.

Thus, different business units must work more collaboratively to keep their firms competitive. Corteva Strategic Operations leader Greg McConnell, mentioned earlier, shifted his team’s mindset to view the general counsel as an internal client. His team’s investment in sharing information with the general counsel’s team allowed the unit to better anticipate needs and address them. Reorienting the way our teams view internal stakeholder relationships can equip teammates with a greater understanding of the organization’s operational ecosystem.

External clients can be a powerful catalyst for legal business growth. Through his experiences, McConnell observed that choosing clients with aligned values and major upside paid dividends. As clients expanded their business, diversified their income streams or adopted new tools, Corteva did as well. In short, prospecting innovative, high-growth clients stimulates law firm growth.

5. Prioritize Seamless Client Service and Anticipate Future Client Needs

In today’s market in particular, clients need to be at the center. Operating a law firm has become increasingly expensive and clients pay the bills. Many companies have taken their legal practice inhouse to address concerns about pricing transparency and service quality. Fundamental shifts to the supply and demand of legal practice have placed clients squarely in the driver seat of negotiations. As global legal market analyst Jordan Furlong wrote in his book Law is a Buyer’s Market, “Newly empowered clients have adopted aggressive buying behaviors and begun dictating the terms of their relationships to law firms.” Clients expect a more seamless, customized experience for the same price. This requires opening additional lines of communication, leveraging more productivity tools, and investing more in research to anticipate future client needs. Firms cannot read their client’s minds, but the most successful teams have opted for the next best thing: using an intentional data strategy to place themselves in their shoes.