Determinism, Sociology, and the Inevitability of the Baby Boom Gap in Law Firm Management

If I may be so bold as to call Penelope Trunk (of the Brazen Careerist) a colleague, I must say that with respect, I disagree with her blithe dismissal of the current angst about losing baby boomer talent at the upper ranks of law firms.



Trunk likens the brouhaha about the looming baby boom gap to the non-event of 1999 (you remember, all our computers were supposed to crash). Well, the analogy breaks down. First of all, 1999/2000 was a non-event because all those COBOL programmers that she notes were hired, were actually working like the devil to fix the issues. It is not as if all those programmers just sat around twiddling thumbs hoping nothing would happen and then when it didn't, they melted away with a collective sigh and an "aw shucks". As I understand it, they did real work and patches were ubiquitously sent all over the globe. In short, it was a non-event at least in some part because everyone knew it was coming and actually planned for it.

Of course, maybe the computers wouldn't have crashed anyway, I don't know. But I can tell you that a simple digit fix in computer software is a hell of alot easier to fix than the not-so-easily-dismissed demographics of our law-firm leaders. Face it, despite their "massive leverage" (per Trunk) against future earnings and whatever designs they may have on needs for future income (click here to see her article) you can't deny:

1) baby boomers constitute a large majority of law firm leaders;

2) baby boomers are in their 60's now and at the age of retirement;

3) baby boomers who are in leadership have been benefit ting from huge profits (these people--firm managing partners, etc., are all equity partners) at major firms in recent years--they do have enough to retire or at least be sorely tempted to continue working only for non-monetary reasons--we are not talking aging secretaries here;

4) there are serious gaps in the age-demographics--the next tier of leadership is pretty young, pretty green as a group;

5) many, many firms still have partnership agreements that require de-equitization and the laying-down of leadership at 65 or sometimes 70--bottom line, they don't have to WANT to go, many will be forced out.

Thus, I think Penelope is going to be eating her hat soon enough.

Bottom line: firms need to take real steps to manage their leadership assets--and grow more such assets.

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American Lawyer Survey--Firms Pay Through The Nose for New Talent

Just read an interesting post at the WSJ law blog (congrats, Rupert, on the new 'property'?). I found a review there of a new (as yet unreleased?) survey by the American Lawyer on associate happiness. As usual, it is abysmal. Congrats to Dickstein in NY for coming out on top. Of course, even the vaulted ratings they received doesn't mean they don't lose associates.

Most interestingly, a little tidbit about law firm economics. It turns out that some firms will spend a whopping $250K to recruit a single summer associate. That makes lateral hiring look better and better! To take a look, click here.

I think I may raise my rates . . . .

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Bourne Ultimatum—An Ancient Paradigm Comes Out of the Closet

Bourne Ultimatum—An Old Paradigm Comes Out of the Closet

I just caught “Bourne Ultimatum” last night (opening night in San Francisco)—the third installment of the amazing film franchise staring Matt Damon. Don’t worry: no spoilers within. I have to say, the action is riveting, the tension unrelenting, the premise compelling.

Most action films engage only your adrenal gland—adrenaline is pumped into your system while the ridiculous plot turns and transparent appeal to emotion coax your brain to slowly shut down. Not so with the Bourne Ultimatum.

Of course, this spy flick has the twist of involving a sort of “anti-James Bond”—this guy does NOT want to be here, does NOT want to hurt anyone (not really), does NOT want to be who he has become. If there is such a thing as a squeamish assassin, Jason Bourne is it.


But that is not what interests me. What does interest me is Jason’s . . .well, perfection.

Yeah, ok. I don’t mean to gush. But there is something startling, even arresting about Jason Bourne’s absolutely seamless unity of ability, temperament and function. Quite simply, although Jason appears at first blush to be the government’s worst nightmare in a spy, he is, in spite of and because of his lack of enthusiasm for knocking people off, the perfect killing machine.

Not that Bourne doesn’t have passion—it just happens to be the sort of passion that allows him to simultaneously stay completely “in the game” and objective enough not to get caught up in the emotion, not to get sidetracked by ego and not be sidelined by hubris.

Of course, Bourne also brings all the technical savvy required by a 21st century spy—he speaks a dozen languages (and the right ones) like a native, can drive anything, carries a hefty punch and has some pretty cool ninjitsu moves.

Bottom line: if I was recruiting for spies rather than lawyers, he would be on the top of my list of targets.

And that is the point. There is a consistent and powerful theme throughout much of American—and perhaps all of “Western”—literature—and that is of the perfect hero; the man or woman that exemplifies all of what is necessary and all to perfection. What we are talking about is a powerful social drive to seek out and shamelessly laud what in essence is not more and not less than successive inheritors of old Beowulf’s mantle.

Okay. I can feel your patience wearing thin—who cares? I’ll tell you: our powerful societal striving towards exemplifying perfection and unity of practical, mental, emotional, and, frankly, spiritual, virtues now combines with ubiquitous and perpetual communication. Thus, there are no more “small ponds” in our world. We are moving rapidly toward a single, universal pond of human endeavor. This means that, in short order, we will all know of the greatest and best of us all. The rub: we are all now being judged by perfection, not some bell curve of mediocrity.

And so I say all this to warn you: whatever level of productivity, whatever heights of sophistication, whatever quiver of skills you have thought heretofore would get you where you need to go: they are all suffering from a “radiation”, a “hyper-inflation” in light of the blinding perfection that the very few can exemplify—but all soon will be expected to live up to. We are in, in sum, a new arms race—an arms race of intelligence, insight, endurance and creativity.

The Jason Bournes of the world have been unleashed—and suddenly you are a much smaller fish and in a much bigger pond, than you ever thought you would be.

Get in gear, ramp it up, or get run over.

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Do Not Drink the Kool-Aid!--A Wake-Up Call for Young Associates

There are lots of good reasons why forty-plus percent of fourth-year attorneys are in their second law firm. Personally, I've enumerated about a dozen categories of reasons that associates switch firms early in their careers, all of them reasonable. But the big three, and the ones many think are unreasonable or at least disadvantageous, are really the best reasons for leaving, and ones you should make sure don't apply to you if you are planning to stay put--especially as you allow the fourth and fifth years to roll by on your career clock. Bottom line: listen to your gut, even your flights of fancy, and especially the market. Don't "drink the Kool-Aid" by swallowing your own firm's marketing brochures. Be a careful and wary "partner" with your law firm.

Further, disregard the politically correct purveyors of "moderation" and "loyalty." These are good concepts in the abstract, but you have to know how to apply them appropriately. Let’s face it, firms certainly aren't out to get you, but they do see every single attorney (partners as well as associates) as a practice in and of itself, and someone (while hopefully integrated into the firm and "cross-selling") who is, if not expendable, then separable depending on the needs of the firm. You are an important cog, maybe, but still a cog. Realize that firms spend considerable resources determining which attorneys and groups remain within the "core competencies" of the firm (to say nothing of their respective impact on PEP at year-end). As such, you would be well-served to constantly make your own analysis of the fitness of your current firm. If one or more of the following three scenarios fits your circumstances, a switch may be what the doctor ordered: you want more money; you want to cleanse a less-than-picture-perfect early career; you have a strange itch to move that you can’t put your finger on. These reasons are not as crass and superficial as you may think--each is important on its face, but may also underlie latent analyses that you haven't taken the time to flesh out. I’ll be writing about each of these issues in the next couple of days—stay tuned!

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Zen: There's Such a Thing as Too Much of a Good Thing!

I talk to associates every day at great firms. These people are smart, successful, and even polite (thanks!). However, many also have a regrettably short-sighted view of success in their profession. Many associates at great firms will tell me that they are happy and have good work. The difficulty with that being the end-all and be-all of one’s analysis is that it is basically founded upon an excessively Zen-like perspective on time. MEANING, you may be practicing law for 20, 30, 40 or even 50 more years (yes, I’m afraid with advances in science, many of us will be working WELL into what today we call ‘old age’). Therefore, does it really MATTER that you think you have ‘good work’ right now, as a fifth-year lawyer? I’m afraid that your career deserves a little more introspection than that. At the least, think about whether your firm is positioning itself wisely in the marketplace. Please realize that your ability to serve your clients is going to depend on the quality of the NETWORK of attorneys you can bring to bear on any given problem. If your firm is not making the long-term decisions regarding compensation, rates, and other ‘bottom-line’ considerations, it may not be able to attract talent in the long term. THIS MATTERS. I've identified a few creteria that I value in the following piece debunking the myths of "firm culture". Enjoy: http://bcgsearch.com/crc/pdf/zen.pdf

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Subduing the Passions

Sometimes being the consummate professional is a drag. Maximizing your time, being in touch with your mental state, having your personal goals and daily task list under control, even having your professional and personal networks sufficiently massaged, is not always satisfying. After you have been consistent for a while, it can get boring.

What? Do you think this is a motivational piece? The fact is, there is a good reason why so very few attorneys actually put into consistent practice the habits necessary to continually succeed--nothing stays fun forever and the human psyche is set up to expect a certain rate of new thrills; laziness is also a factor.

I was contemplating barraging you with quotations from famous men and women about bumping up against internal barriers. Suffice it to say, however, that many have lamented that they “do not do the good they wish to do.” Even in the popular culture this issue is recognized. Why else are their 347 books at Barnes & Noble written by “motivational speakers?” We all know most of what we should be doing; trouble is, doing it. So, what next?

My current philosophical ‘darling’ is Enlightenment-era thought. A prominent feature in the literature is the admonition to "subdue the passions." When an 18th-Century philosopher talks about subduing passions, he is not talking about eschewing passion as such. The point is to bring our actions back into alignment when our inclinations get out of whack. If we liken ourselves to an automobile traveling down our path in life, then it is our internal core of passionate desires that serve as the tension and alertness to steer us between obstacles and to choose one road over another. But if our passions are not under sufficient control we can veer off-course--dangerously, even fatally.

I think that this culture's constant drive for the next, the exciting, the ecstatic, is a passion that is out of whack. Doing what is right, doing what is necessary, and being consistent about it, is all about foregoing constant distraction for the greater good--your own good! That means that if I have to decide between web-surfing or following up on marketing calls, I do the latter. If I have the choice of reading another thriller, or writing a short article, yup, the latter. Success is realized when we get past the need for new thrills; true passion is maintained by giving it appropriate rein, but also by husbanding its expression. It all boils down to better ideas—and the better idea that correct and logical (even if boring) action is preferable to inefficient but exciting stimulus. I'm afraid that moderation can be a very, very good thing.

Something to think about.

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Wake Up! PPEP Matters!

I have to write this blog entry to get some of the angst out of my system. There is something very disturbing in "the force" going on, and I want to warn those complascent few to whom this piece is directed.

To cut to the chase, there is a certain class of high-caliber firm with (relatively) low PPEP that is lulling its associates into a false sense of security. That's a dangerous place to be. Okay, I'll back up.

Let's see if you can identify this firm or firms in your market: old, prestigious, PPEP below 900K, known for its brainiacs, fewer (sometimes far fewer) than 1000 lawyers, limited international presence. Okay. Do you have this firm in mind? Let me tell you what some associates in these firms are telling me. Number one, they are blithely unaware or unconcerned about trends in the market and smugly minimalist about firm 'platform'. They don't care about PPEP and figure they are making plenty of money anyway. They see the firm has having an historically consistent partnership track, regardless of proven potential to bring in business, and figure there are plenty of mediocre partners there so why won't they fit in when the time comes? These associates did well academically and have not had to change firms before. In short, if this were 1950, they would be fine.

Guess what? It is not 1950 and things have changed. Bottom line: if you want to stay standing still, you have to be running. If these associates are not interested in joining the global "megalomaniac" trends (not my word) of continual growth and continual expansion, are not interested in being psycho-marketeers and are not interestd in being high-octane megalomaniacs themselves, it is even MORE incumbant upon them to start working TODAY on building their books of business. That's because either their current firm is going to eventually phase them out (because it will have changed business models) or these associates will have to self-select out because the firm they know is going to jump on the global bandwagon.

Better minds than mine have been saying for a good few years now that the future of law firms (10-20 years) is a "global 20" that are "all things to all men." Basically, there is emerging a super-class of firms to stand in dominant positions for global work in the future--and all the good work in the near future is going to be global work and all the good "domestic" work will be done by these firms as well.

Your nice, white-shoe firm with half-a-dozen domestic markets and a marquee foreign outpost is either going to jump onto or rejoin the mega-merger mania, or it is going to subside into a regional (what we used to and sometimes do still call 'national') player. Basically, these firms will drift into a second or third tier within the first tier of firms. Are you feeling this yet?

Anyway, the advice to network, write, speak, and get noticed, and that consistently, applies to ALL attorneys wherever they are. It's just that maybe those not in the circumstances described above already knew that (and just aren't doing it). Those guys in the ivory-shoe tower just didn't think this applied to them. So now they know.

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The Secret Behind the Secrets to Success

There are many secrets to success. They are as plentiful and as numerous as the sands under the sea. Some are easily discovered through diligence and creativity, some by meeting with others we consider more successful than ourselves, some by paying to see specialists, and some by scaling lofty mountains and seeking our gurus. But I can tell you that all these secrets are subordinate to the one, glorious secret within all such secrets.

Best of all, it will cost you nothing, requires no discipline, will not cause you to sweat, does not involve unending self-absorption, is not fattening, and, boot, will make you happier.

And that is: desire. I do not mean mere 'wanting', I mean an all-encompassing passion directed toward a particular state or goal or need. The point is not that you must have goals-goals are too superficial. What you need is to unlock the floodgates before the ocean of your passions. Don't laugh. It is the natural and unassailable state of all men and women that they have massive storehouses of passion walled up inside them. The trick is to let them out. And it is not hard to do so. In fact, it is merely the knowing, the realization, that such a storehouse really does exist, that starts the waters to boiling.

Thus, now that I have you starting to think about that well of passion, you need but allow that truth to sink in a little, and the inexorable drive of your well-honed mind (you ARE a lawyer, right?) will bring to you the point where that passion will find an outlet. Once that begins to happen, the only challenge will be to channel the force of the waters that flow out from your creative and competent mind.

On a lighter note, it is sort of like "cooties"-it is easily passed on-tag! And now that I have planted this tiniest of seeds in your mind, it will have no choice but to germinate. In those with high intellect and fortitude (you automatically qualify by virtue of getting through law school and passing the bar), those seeds will of necessity fall on fertile ground. Just you wait, even the tiniest of realizations can become an unstoppable force. It has happened to me; it has happened to many of my candidates. It can happen to you.

If you want to learn more about your own unlocked potential as a lawyer, as a person, as a professional, surf over to www.bcgsearch.com/pete_smith.html.

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It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Market!

If you are old enough, you remember the movie from which this title is stolen. If not, you may get the idea anyway. Observant recruiters are now licking their chops--all is falling into place for them--and, by extension, for lawyers at all levels. All the signs are there for another sonic boom (in the positive direction) for the need for attorneys at all types of firms everywhere. Put your seatbelt on.

A few items of note:

1) The attorneys in this country are aging--the boomer generation is retiring. This means that the talent pool for leadership at firms is shrinking and about to shrink precipitately. This is good, of course, for those at the point of taking the reins, and it is good for everyone down the totem pole--there is room to move up for all.

2) Business is STILL BOOMING. Despite the slight market hesitations right now in the housing market (and the very recent slight drop in the DOW and S&P today), all market indicators say that the global economy is only continuing to heat up. It is difficult for us collectively as a set of markets to comprehend the amazing growth going on--there are bound to be some slow-downs, sometimes!, in any market. There is no such thing as perpetual growth with never an interruption. However, even in those markets that the gurus are watching are fundamentally strong and going to remain strong. This means, of course, more deals, more of the time--more work for lawyers on all fronts.

3) Inflation is dead; even deflation has been put on hold. If you read and watch, you know this is true (although maybe I'm overly bullish on the threat of deflation). Regardless, the economy has the room to grow even more---the total wealth of the world is increasing, and there appears to be more and more capacity.

4) World stability. Don't laugh. Our little military foray in the Middle-East aside, the world is becoming increasing connected--and in ways that even the 'common man' can understand. Common interests mean fewer structural pulls for political unrest. The new paradigms haven't solidified enough for us to yet worry about any future instability that the new alignments will engender--bottom line: growth, unimpeded and unstoppable.

Thus, we are confronted with a world there there are more opportunities, and for fewer professionals to fill as a percentage of need. I therefore predict that the need for talent is going to become the single most important factor facing commercial interests in the immediate future and in the next 20 years. This means more jobs and better compensation, folks!

It's just a "mad, mad, mad, mad world"--and please remember that at the end of the movie, after a maniacal chase across the globe, the fabulous treasure is unearthed afterall.

Just a thought.

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Harry Potter, Esq.

Don't worry--I won't reveal anything about "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." On the other hand, I couldn't help but gush just a little about it. A truly amazing book. Reading Rowling is such a treat--it is such a rare pleasure to read a book by someone of her intelligence and attention to detail. The book definitely satisfies all longings for intricate detail and answers--many are given.

Like many, I sometimes wish I could be as brave, as loyal, and crazy and powerful as Harry--"the boy who lived"--but mostly I am just glad to be a normal, uninteresting Muggle. But there is something truly compelling about Harry Potter's world--especially those on the side of good.

The major recurring and most potent themes in the book are the power of friends and the power of trust. To my mind, every one of the seven amazing volumes of Rowling's imagination have trumpeted the power and necessity of trust and of valued friends to a wholesome, satisfying and enjoyable life.

I only wish I could put this into practice--and that I had put it into practice long ago. Nevertheless, just as Rowling hints on more than one occasion--it is never too late to start trusting, to start building bridges between people, to begin new habits.

Here's to hoping your professional life can become exemplified by trust, by a strong group of treasured friends and advisers, and by an outlook of resolute dedication to excellent and fairness. Yeah. It's OK to say stuff like that. Even if I am just a Muggle.

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Forget "Nice"--But Try Occasional "Accomodation"

Just saw a great little article by Kate Lorenz, editor of CareerBuilder.com. She talks about the pitfalls of the "Nice"-ness syndrome. Apparently there is a new study . . . (one every day, it seems!)--at any rate, it indicates that many behaviors considered "nice" are actually career killers.

Now before you get your back up--let me explain. First of all, you should browse over to the article yourself.

The upshot is that simply taking the fall for others' mistakes without insisting on appropriate readjustments of schedules and expectations, working without breaks until you become frazzled and inefficient and otherwise taking all the 'grunt' work from others, will simply get your fired.

Implicit in the article is that what you need to do is adopt a new paradigm: accommodation. The point is that you are certainly going to help others out if they err, you can certainly take on new projects even when busy--but you have to do it with the appropriate management mindset.

What is that? Hard to define, but my wife came up with a great new trigger-phrase: "project-manager mind". The idea is that if you are constantly thinking about your work and your place in the organization as one part of a whole, you can start making decisions in light of what is best for everyone--including yourself.

For example, if you saw a co-worker taking on ONLY thankless tasks, what would you advise him/her? Obvious when you look at it that way, huh? Similarly, if you saw a co-worker taking on multiple extra tasks when s/he is already swamped, would you pat them on the back, or tell them to grow up and start saying "sorry, no"? Again, obvious.

If you can see this as a failing in others, start seeing it as something to root out of your own suite of office habits.

Remember, being polite and considerate and light-hearted and optimistic (often attributes included in the dubious penumbra of "nice") doesn't mean you have to be self-sacrificing, boot-licking, irrational and inefficient. Something to think about.

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Zen and the Art of Staying Alive as a Lawyer

My wife just sent me a great article about incorporating Zen practice into the practice of law.

Click here to take a look.

I really resonated with the piece. Although I always advocate a hard-boiled, non-nonsense, pro-capitalist approach to the practice, life and everything else, I do believe that incorporating some sort of meditative (read: introspective) practice into one's life can add real value--and even save your life! What with the high incidence of suicide, substance-abuse and burn-out, incorporating practices that actually nurture your psyche can keep you on the straight and narrow road to success, although perhaps on a 'road less traveled by'???

For a further spin on "Zen" and the practice of law, click here.

Have a "mindful" day!

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Humility's Rennaissance

I "grew up" as a litigator. I always thought that was what you were supposed to do if you liked speaking in public and had a nasty little aggressive streak. Indeed, once I got into law-firm life, I noticed that nearly all the successful litigators had very overt hyper-aggressive tendencies. Even the more "mellow" litigation partners were eventually found out to be ruthless--once you scratched the surface.

One fallacy that I have discovered now that I am a headhunter is that transactional attorneys do not share that same trait. At the least, I've noticed that the younger generation of attorneys (let's says class of '97 and up) tend to uniformly demonstrate these overtly aggressive traits just as frequently as litigators. The trick is, however, you've got to know when to show your fangs.

In my view, law firms like the aggressive types--but with a big caveat; they want you to use that attack instinct on opposing counsel--not within the firm.

I see it more clearly and poignantly in the interview process. Many attorneys--come to think of it especially transactional types--think they can use the same strong-arm negotiation tactics they use in making deals in the process of approaching a firm for employment. Um, this doesn't work.

Uniformly, in my experience, firms are very interested in hearing about your killer instincts in an interview; they are very happy to read snappy descriptions of them on paper; but they are not so thrilled to be on the receiving end of candidates' negotiation ploys. You think this is obvious? Well. It might be, but 90% of candidates fall into this trap--maybe they just can't help themselves or the process makes them nervous and they revert to type.

Either way, let me suggest a different approach. As the interview "dance" is a time-consuming one from a firm's perspective, I suggest candidates use as much restraint as possible and access all of their patience. Let the firms dictate when and where to meet--do not grumble (either inside or out) when they change schedules on you and when they dither. Just trust the system and let things flow. Remember, if you are even now grinding your teeth at the thought--the time to use your 'big guns' is or should be reserved for what counts---your decision whether or not to accept an offer.

I’ll write again soon about aggression in firm life once you are on the “inside.” In the meantime, try to let humility and forbearance become a hallmark of your professional style--at least when dealing with your own colleagues!

For another perspective on "culture" within law firms, click here.

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"Danger, Will Robinson!"--Baby Boomers About To Retire En Masse

I mentioned in an earlier blog the huge opportunities and challenges facing law firms with the impending baby boomer exodus from the leadership ranks. I thought I would expand on that theme here.

That's right, you heard me--the long-standing complaint among senior associates and junior partners that they have no role in leading firms is going to radically change in the next few years. Take a look at the bios of the leaders in firms--that grey should be telling you something. That, coupled with several years of very healthy profits for equity partners (meaning less incentive to hang on and keep billing), and moreover combined with the heightened expectations of us all for long and fulfilling retirements, will all work together to create a single and compelling phenomenon: an impending tsunami of retirements that is going to rock the leadership of firms great and small. Click here if you don't believe me.

As the referenced article advises, most law firms are blissfully unaware of the potentially crippling effect of management ranks being felled through retirement. Those that can begin to plan ahead and really take stock of their intellectual capital (meaning of course their junior and mid-level partnership ranks) and begin to groom them for real leadership, will weather the storm. Those that won't will be scrambling to import high-ranking talent from other firms to bridge the gap.

The looming crisis could even be bad enough to force many more firms to adopt corporate-style leadership with true CEOs and all the rest (possibly even, gasp, non-attorney management!). It will be something to watch, believe me. It will also be a feeding frenzy in the recruiting world.

Mark my words, firms stuck in old-style, top-down management styles that don't account for the development and grooming of their talent are going to be in for a shock. Further, all these factors combined with the tendency even of current leadership to think only of their own careers with no regard for the future of firms, is going to mean huge opportunities for some--and yet further rounds of mergers. Also, even those firms that have been doing a good job at bringing up good talent are going to find even greater pressures in terms of retention--good leaders are GOING to be even more aggressively recruited.

The smart money is going to be on firms that combine solid retention strategies with agressive recruiting practices and close collaberation with professional headhunters.

Bright young partners be on notice: You may be far closer in line for the 'throne' than you think!

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Eureka!

Well. This is it--my inaugural post on my own, newly-born blog. I have high hopes. Mostly, I just want a place to collect my crazy thoughts on lawyering, the legal market, life, peace and getting ahead. Maybe not in that order.