November 29, 2017
Law Firm Revenues
According to a new survey, conducted by the Citi Private Bank Law Firm Group, law firm revenues are up 3.6 percent through the third quarter of 2017. That is slightly down from the same three quarters of 2016, when revenues were up 3.7 percent. Citi surveyed 183 law firms, including 129 of the largest firms and 54 boutique firms in the U.S. The growth in revenue was entirely due to increased billing rates, rather than growth in demand. Billing rates increased 4 percent in the three quarters of 2017, versus up just 3.2 percent in the same period last year.
There appears to have been some headwinds during the nine months of 2017. Demand, which was measured by the total amount of hours billed by all timekeepers, was down 0.2 percent in 2017. Last year, demand was up 0.3 percent in the first three quarters. In addition, expenses were up 3.8 percent, which was an increase of 0.4 percentage points over last year.
Another Law Firm Cyber Breach
Last month, Appleby Global Group Services Limited, which practices in tax advantaged jurisdictions, announced a data breach of some of their client data files. The firm admitted the breach, while strongly pushing back against suggestions that their business helps clients illegally shelter money. "We are an offshore law firm who advises clients on legitimate and lawful ways to conduct their business. We do not tolerate illegal behavior," said the Appleby statement.
The Appleby breach, and the breach at Mossack Fonseca last year, show the risks of cyber threats. While these two breaches were conducted by hacktivists, there are both hacktivists and hackers trying to penetrate law firm security to get at and release or use for profit client data. The hacktivists have found a willing accomplice in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), who publishes client data in an effort to embarrass and expose financial transactions of corporations and the wealthy.
"We are disappointed that the media may choose to use information which could have emanated from material obtained illegally and that this may result in exposing innocent parties to data protection breaches. Having researched the ICIJ's allegations, we believe they are unfounded and based on a lack of understanding of the legitimate and lawful structures used in the offshore sector," Appleby wrote in their statement.
A law firm Director of Information Technology said to us recently, "If the Managing Partner, COO and Management Committee are not providing their IT staff with enough resources and constantly monitoring this threat, they're doing their clients and their firm a grave disservice. If a firm is breached and the files made public, it may be impossible to regain the firm's reputation in the business community."
Are Resumes Obsolete?
Every few years a headline will declare resumes outdated or obsolete. Behind the headlines are quotes from CEO's or employment consultants identifying the weakness of resumes to capture the full breadth of candidate abilities. A recent quote from the CEO of LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, garnered just such a headline: This CEO Believes Resumes Are Becoming Obsolete - Here's Why. However, the truth is resumes are not going anywhere. Why? Because resumes are the best source of concise information about candidate education and experience.
Nevertheless, there can be some useful information in these articles. In the LinkedIn article, Mr. Weiner notes, "There are qualities... that have a tendency to be completely overlooked when people are sifting through resumes or LinkedIn profiles. And yet, increasingly, we find that these are the kinds of people that make the biggest difference within our organization." Mr. Weiner suggests there are candidates who have strong skills but few experiences or they did not attend the "right" schools, and thus their resumes are not an accurate summary of their potential. The idea is that when looking to fill junior positions, hiring managers should look beyond the resume. Hiring managers should instead try to identify whether a person has the talent and ambition to do the job well.
LinkedIn has set up an internship program to identify nontraditional talent and train them to succeed at the company. "Yes, degrees from specific schools can lead us to finding incredible talent. But it's not the exclusionary domain of incredible talent. This [internship program] is trying to get away from this idea that everyone on the engineering team, everyone we recruit, has to have come from a specific school and has to have a specific kind of degree," Mr. Weiner said.
Updating Your Resume
Speaking of resumes... when is the last time you updated yours? It's always a good idea to keep your resume updated. Not only in case of unexpected job loss, but also as a way to convince the boss to give you a promotion or raise. Updating your resume focuses your mind on what you do and how well you do it. A well written resume can get you that all important first interview in a job search, or it can give you bullet points to convince your boss to give you a raise.
Here are five tips for updating your resume from Rachel Weingarten, a marketing and brand strategist and Heather Monahan, a business expert, mentor and speaker, writing in Ladders:
According to a new survey, conducted by the Citi Private Bank Law Firm Group, law firm revenues are up 3.6 percent through the third quarter of 2017. That is slightly down from the same three quarters of 2016, when revenues were up 3.7 percent. Citi surveyed 183 law firms, including 129 of the largest firms and 54 boutique firms in the U.S. The growth in revenue was entirely due to increased billing rates, rather than growth in demand. Billing rates increased 4 percent in the three quarters of 2017, versus up just 3.2 percent in the same period last year.
There appears to have been some headwinds during the nine months of 2017. Demand, which was measured by the total amount of hours billed by all timekeepers, was down 0.2 percent in 2017. Last year, demand was up 0.3 percent in the first three quarters. In addition, expenses were up 3.8 percent, which was an increase of 0.4 percentage points over last year.
Another Law Firm Cyber Breach
Last month, Appleby Global Group Services Limited, which practices in tax advantaged jurisdictions, announced a data breach of some of their client data files. The firm admitted the breach, while strongly pushing back against suggestions that their business helps clients illegally shelter money. "We are an offshore law firm who advises clients on legitimate and lawful ways to conduct their business. We do not tolerate illegal behavior," said the Appleby statement.
The Appleby breach, and the breach at Mossack Fonseca last year, show the risks of cyber threats. While these two breaches were conducted by hacktivists, there are both hacktivists and hackers trying to penetrate law firm security to get at and release or use for profit client data. The hacktivists have found a willing accomplice in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), who publishes client data in an effort to embarrass and expose financial transactions of corporations and the wealthy.
"We are disappointed that the media may choose to use information which could have emanated from material obtained illegally and that this may result in exposing innocent parties to data protection breaches. Having researched the ICIJ's allegations, we believe they are unfounded and based on a lack of understanding of the legitimate and lawful structures used in the offshore sector," Appleby wrote in their statement.
A law firm Director of Information Technology said to us recently, "If the Managing Partner, COO and Management Committee are not providing their IT staff with enough resources and constantly monitoring this threat, they're doing their clients and their firm a grave disservice. If a firm is breached and the files made public, it may be impossible to regain the firm's reputation in the business community."
Are Resumes Obsolete?
Every few years a headline will declare resumes outdated or obsolete. Behind the headlines are quotes from CEO's or employment consultants identifying the weakness of resumes to capture the full breadth of candidate abilities. A recent quote from the CEO of LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner, garnered just such a headline: This CEO Believes Resumes Are Becoming Obsolete - Here's Why. However, the truth is resumes are not going anywhere. Why? Because resumes are the best source of concise information about candidate education and experience.
Nevertheless, there can be some useful information in these articles. In the LinkedIn article, Mr. Weiner notes, "There are qualities... that have a tendency to be completely overlooked when people are sifting through resumes or LinkedIn profiles. And yet, increasingly, we find that these are the kinds of people that make the biggest difference within our organization." Mr. Weiner suggests there are candidates who have strong skills but few experiences or they did not attend the "right" schools, and thus their resumes are not an accurate summary of their potential. The idea is that when looking to fill junior positions, hiring managers should look beyond the resume. Hiring managers should instead try to identify whether a person has the talent and ambition to do the job well.
LinkedIn has set up an internship program to identify nontraditional talent and train them to succeed at the company. "Yes, degrees from specific schools can lead us to finding incredible talent. But it's not the exclusionary domain of incredible talent. This [internship program] is trying to get away from this idea that everyone on the engineering team, everyone we recruit, has to have come from a specific school and has to have a specific kind of degree," Mr. Weiner said.
Updating Your Resume
Speaking of resumes... when is the last time you updated yours? It's always a good idea to keep your resume updated. Not only in case of unexpected job loss, but also as a way to convince the boss to give you a promotion or raise. Updating your resume focuses your mind on what you do and how well you do it. A well written resume can get you that all important first interview in a job search, or it can give you bullet points to convince your boss to give you a raise.
Here are five tips for updating your resume from Rachel Weingarten, a marketing and brand strategist and Heather Monahan, a business expert, mentor and speaker, writing in Ladders:
- Who are you? If you're changing jobs after a long time at the same company, do some research to see if your title is still relevant. If not, add a more updated description alongside your actual title. And, if you are looking for a raise, ask for a new (up-to-date) title to go with it.
- To hobby or not to hobby? Unless your hobbies are somehow highlighting your talents and value that you are bringing to your future employer, it seems unnecessary. If you have a hobby that contributes to your success in the workplace, then it would be appealing. For example, if CrossFit is your hobby and you are a running coach, it would lend value to your career.
- Mind the gap. You want an honest representation of your work history. It is important to include where you have worked and not leave gaps on your resume. It's also important to realize that not every job best represents the professional you are now. So, be sure to highlight the way that odd position helped your relevant skills and keep it short. If it is a very old job, just leave it off - that entry level job in a twenty year career may be unnecessary if it is unrelated to your current career path.
- Ghosts of jobs past. So, you decide to leave out a past position that seems to have nothing to do with the one you're applying for, when suddenly, the interviewer mentions something you have experience doing. Now what? Is it okay to bring up a past job that you haven't mentioned in your pared down resume? What if the interviewer asks about it? Explain that you were paring down your resume and didn't think that experience best highlighted your current skill set.
- Don't save the best for last. If you're wondering if it's wise to save an interesting bit of career history for the follow up email after your interview, it isn't. You get one shot to make a first impression and you want to lead with your best foot forward. Do not hold back on any highlights when trying to secure an initial interview.
