February 2008 Newsletter
Welcome to the fourth Firm Beliefs newsletter, and our first for 2008. This edition focuses on what will be happening with Firm Beliefs and Firm Elite during 2008.
In this issue
Plans for the website
As with most 'shop windows', how we present ourselves to the world via the web needs constant review with clients and with our branding and marketing consultants. We are currently undergoing a review of the site, and the newsletter, and the next few weeks will see changes. We hope that you will bear with the site, and us, as places that you are used to going to first may have changed location!
Firm Elite
Firm Elite was set up after consultation with clients and contacts and has now become a key feature in the developmental lives of lawyers and non-lawyers alike. We have therefore begun a process of reviewing the brand of Firm Elite and, in conjunction with those who are existing members, we will be considering various options for giving it its own 'feel and look', as well as ensuring that it still continues to provide what it needs to for members. We are grateful to those who have already volunteered to play a role in the review. If you would like to be involved, please contact Sara by email.
Our first dinner of the year was the January Annual Dinner, at which guests were invited courtesy of Firm Beliefs for dinner and discussion, and numbers expanded over the usual 10 guest dinner format.
We are grateful to one of our guests for penning a brief overview of the event:
Firm Elite evening 24th January
Fifteen Firm Elite guests met for networking and dinner to discuss the likely challenges for 2008. The Firm Elite dinner was a fascinating cross-section between one firm over 250 years old and 1 less than 7 months old. Some attending organisations had a global reach - with one senior partner appearing direct from Hawaii and another from a tax friendly but more local destination.
Leadership and Strategy were the key issues of the discussion regarding 2008.
Leadership of our career, our team and our firm could be the decisive factor in making us and our business competitive in markets that will be both harder on the individual and organisations. Strategic focus as an individual and how teamworking can achieve results was seen as a major factor in moving organisations forward.
The need/desire to stay competitive as roles develop - from individual to team leader for example - was seen as a key area. Can a great fee-earner develop easily into a great people manager? - as success and promotion often dictates this path in professional service firms.
The "Leaders" at dinner often put their success down to having a great team; the Strategists were looking for strong leadership. Yes the 2 are symbiotic but only when they can exist simultaneously!!
Leadership and Strategic development are core areas for Firm Elite support for 2008 - how are you supporting the growth of your team, your firm or your own career?
Dan Whiter, known to many of you who read the blogs on the Firm Beliefs website, added to the discussion by keeping us focused on how to achieve the goals that we were setting for 2008.
Read the latest article on the blog for more information about the event.
Next Firm Elite dinner
Kehrela Hodkinson will be our chief guest on Thursday 21st February.
A US lawyer practising in the UK, discussion will focus on the cultural issues which make business life today both stimulating and risky. If you would like to attend, please contact Sally by email.
For more information about this event and other Firm Elite events, please have a look at the Firm Elite page on the website.
A new path?
Many of our client firms are currently grappling with the fact that not all of their staff either want to or are able to remain in their current role within their organisations during the next year. Market forces see the need for some staff to be made redundant, for others to be retrained or, in the case of increasing numbers of younger professionals, market forces play a role in the sense that the work-life balance plays a key role in the decision to move to a different type of organisation.
However, too many good commercial youngsters, in our view, are leaving the profession itself, rather than looking at how their existing skills are transferable to different organisations that will enable the young lawyer to continue practising as a solicitor. For a personal reflection by a young solicitor on this point, read the article 'Forcing me to reflect?' on the Firm Beliefs blog.
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© Firm Beliefs 2008, Balquhidder House, London Road, Wendover, Buckinghamshire, HP22 6PN