by Bruce | February 14, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Globalization, Leadership, M&A, Marketing, Strategy
I’ve reviewed the merits of the Pillsbury-Winthrop/Shaw Pittman merger before, but now I want to ask a different question: What if anything does this portend for the merger/consolidation trend in general? If you believe Hildebrandt’s annual...
by Bruce | February 10, 2005 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Globalization, Leadership, Strategy
From the wires, and I quote: "Altman Weil is pleased to announce a strategic alliance with London-based Jomati Limited. Like Altman Weil, Jomati is an independently owned global management consultancy advising law firms and corporate law departments. It is led by...
by Bruce | February 7, 2005 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Strategy
Even the reader acquainted only at the most cursory level with my perspective on the increasingly professionalized management of law firms would know I endorse that trend wholeheartedly. The question du jour is whether I endorse it without reservation. Prompting...
by Bruce | February 4, 2005 | Articles, Finance, Leadership, M&A, Marketing, Partnership Structures, Strategy
Roughly speaking, there are two theories of history: That people shape events, or that events shape people. As a confirmed subscriber to the former theory, this American Lawyer profile of Bingham-McCutchen’s chair, Jay Zimmerman, tells the tale to me of...
by Bruce | February 3, 2005 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Marketing, Practice Group Management, Strategy
One of the most promising and optimistic pieces I’ve read in awhile comes courtesy of John Smock, co-founder of Smock Sterling Strategic Management Consultants outside Chicago. Essentially a look-back at his twenty years of experience being a strategic...
by Bruce | January 31, 2005 | Articles, Compensation, Finance, Globalization, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Strategy
"Law firms are being forced to run themselves along more ‘corporate’ lines than ever before," reports the FT, summarizing a PwC report on the top 50 UK firms during 2004. This new "strategic approach" may represent a departure...