More Firms Add Practice Administrators
Increasingly we are working with firms to recruit for newly created Practice Administrator or Practice Group Manager positions. The original concept of these position were to provide decentralized marketing services at the practice group level, but many firms are now looking to these positions to take on broader administrative responsibilities. This is particularly true as firms focus more on independent practice and industry groups as profit centers and their administrators are taking responsibility for billing coordination, supervision of paraprofessionals and coordination of associate development programs. As yet we have not seen a firm where administration at the practice group level has replaced administration at the office level but some firms seem to be coming close. Contact us if you are interested in Practice Group Administrator job descriptions.

Betting on Potential
All law firms are searching for laterals with seven figure portfolios of business. That’s a viable strategy for the most profitable and best branded law firms but it is difficult for other law firms to compete effectively for the best laterals. The result is that many of these firms hire more risky partners who are rebuilding lost practices or have a history of cultural incompatibility with prior firms, usually with little long term success.

Now even some of the best known and most respected firms are revamping their lateral recruiting to focus on senior associates. Miami’s Greenberg Traurig, Cleveland’s Squire Sanders & Dempsey, and Philadelphia’s Duane Morris are actively recruiting senior associates from top firms and offering them immediate partnership. The play is that top quality will always be the biggest lure for new business and that an error at the senior associate level is less expensive and more correctable than with big hitter partner.

Performance Reviews Become Automated
Performance reviews at both the associate and staff level are among the most dreaded of law firm rituals, for both the evaluator and the evaluated. The increased use of 360 degree evaluations has added to the discomfort. Several firms have now introduced web-based programs to ease the process and allow evaluations of each associate or staff member to be compared to all the other evaluations and ranked on a percentile basis. The advantage is complete anonymity and dilution of exceptionally harsh or halo effect evaluations. The initial feed back, especially from global firms with strong cultural differences among evaluators, is extremely positive. A Google search for “360 degree evaluations” will provide a dozen such canned programs but most law firms have opted to build their own on their intranet.

Chief Marketing Officers
As firms seek to upgrade their marketing capability, they are finding that the most experienced law firm marketing executives are in short supply and can command incredibly high compensation levels. Increasingly we have broadened our searches for these positions to include other forms of professional service organizations. We have had particular success in the health care and investment banking industries but there are some specific attributes that are necessary to succeed in a legal environment, most notably, appreciation of the urgency necessary in law firms.

Technology Benefits
A firm providing their lawyers with appropriate technology is no longer much of a recruiting differentiation. According to a recent American Lawyer survey, 74% of large firms provide wireless e-mail devices (87% use Blackberry) and 83% pay for the monthly fee. But only 7% of firms pay for high speed Internet access from lawyers’ homes. Most firms extend to senior administrators the same benefits offered to lawyers.

Legal Resource Group LLC specializes in serving the executive and administrative recruiting needs of law firms. We maintain the largest data base of law firm executive and Administrative staff in the world.  This allows us to immediately identify the very best candidates. We find the best people, complete searches faster and have extremely reasonable fees. For further information, visit our website at www.LRGLLC.com , contact us by e-mail at inquiries@LRGLLC.com or by phone at 1-800-688-4147.