by Bruce | November 12, 2004 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Knowledge Management, Technology strategy
A theme of this blog is that the "default" approach to issues in law firm management should be that much can be learned from the enormous literature on corporate management. In other words, barring unusual circumstances unique to the profession (which...
by Bruce | October 26, 2004 | Articles, Compensation, Finance, Strategy
Just in over the email transom is the following prognostication about the general health of law firms courtesy of Hildebrandt International: In our annual report for 2004, we forecasted a strong year for the legal profession. As we enter the fourth quarter, we...
by Bruce | October 14, 2004 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Globalization
Can a UK firm crack the New York market without bending its lockstep partner compensation model? No, at least not if you’re Clifford Chance. CC has a global lockstep for its equity partners except some "super-pointers" in New York. This anomaly...
by Bruce | October 8, 2004 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership
"The few, the proud, the Marines?" I would make that, "The few, the proud, the lockstep-compensation firms." I’ve opined before that partnership compensation at many firms is in disequilibrium: While lockstep has its merits...
by Bruce | September 12, 2004 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Leadership, Partnership Structures
Getting partner compensation "right" is an issue I have, and will continue to, recur to. Why? Essentially because I believe that the two extreme models (the strict lockstep and the strict "eat what you kill") each works in only the...
by Bruce | August 14, 2004 | Articles, Compensation, Finance, Globalization, Leadership, Partnership Structures
Lockstep, modified-lockstep, lockstep with pay for performance, or pure "eat what you kill?" This is an issue which has not, to say the least, achieved equilibrium. "Equilibrium" in economics means something akin to what "climax...