by Bruce | April 26, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Strategy
Thought experiment: Your firm needs a new CFO, and you’ve winnowed the search down to three candidates: one who aced the CPA exam and has a degree in accounting from a blue-chip school but has never worked in a law firm; one who is reasonably smart and an...
by Bruce | April 24, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Strategy, Technology strategy
A recurrent (and painful, at least to judge from readers’ emails) issue in complex law firms, as in other far-flung businesses, is a chronic disconnect between what management thinks IT should provide and IT’s ability or willingness to do so. From...
by Bruce | April 23, 2005 | Articles, Compensation, Finance, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Strategy
You would think the lead of this Legal Times article, which follows, would be irresistible info for me to comment upon. But sometimes, no news is no news: "Law firms are back — sort of. "Revenues and profits were up by nearly 10 percent in 2004,...
by Bruce | April 22, 2005 | Articles, Globalization, Leadership, Marketing, Strategy, Technology strategy
This post will be in the nature of "piling on," usually an indefensible tactic but, dear reader, as I hope you will agree in this case, justified as an exercise in overcoming what is for many practicing lawyers a nearly insurmountable allergic reaction to...
by Bruce | April 20, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Globalization, Leadership, Practice Group Management, Strategy, Technology strategy
When it was first announced several months ago, I noted Reed-Smith’s creation of an ambitious initiative into executive education called "Reed Smith University," created in partnership with the Wharton School of Business. At the time, I asked...
by Bruce | April 19, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Strategy
Run a multi-hundred-million dollar a year enterprise without appointing a general counsel? Sounds like the kind of thing you’d advise your clients against in, say, a heartbeat? News flash: 26 of the AmLaw 50 firms are doing just that. Well,...