Much is written about the difficulty of recruiting technical staff but a recent survey supports what we have anecdotally observed -- Chief Financial Officers have the greatest turnover and are the most difficult to replace. Among the most significant reasons for turnover is the inability of new CFO’s to fit into a firm’s culture, which includes the ability to meet the requirements of managing partners and appreciate the urgency of working in a law firm environment. The survey, done by Right Management, shows that the time to replace a CFO is:

            34% three to five months

            26% six to 12 months

            22% one to two months

            11% under one month

             7% More than one year

To us this demonstrates the importance of law firm experience when seeking a new CFO.