by Bruce | January 27, 2005 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Practice Group Management, Strategy
Building a genuinely trusting, collaborative, integrated culture—where one does not exist—is among the tallest of orders that a firm can face. Since control over clients is such a key source of power, client-hogging and the individualistic behavior...
by Bruce | January 25, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Globalization, Leadership, M&A, Strategy
While skeptical of mergers (see below), I’m also of the view that "chance favors the prepared," and that: having a clearly articulated and fundamentally sound strategy going in; recognizing and confronting with clear-eyed vision the issues surrounding...
by Bruce | January 23, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Globalization, Leadership, M&A, Strategy
Is there anything interesting to be said of the potential Pillsbury/Shaw-Pittman merger? Regular readers will know that I approach mergers with a jaundiced eye, given their frankly embarrassing track record of destroying rather than creating value in...
by Bruce | January 21, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Marketing, Strategy
More on Marketing 101 for lawyers: Do you know how to work a room? Are you comfortable delivering an elevator pitch about what you do for your clients? Both these articles cover the basics in reassuring, albeit non-negotiable, terms. For...
by Bruce | January 20, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Marketing, Strategy
You would think lawyers should be natural-born pitch-men. Trained to present their case orally and on the page, taught to analytically arrive at the heart of the matter, peeling away dross and marginalia, understanding the appeal of a simple story with a strong...