by Bruce | August 12, 2008 | Articles, Globalization, Strategy, Technology strategy
With the news today that both Clifford Chance and Eversheds are ramping up their outsourcing initiatives in India (covered in The Lawyer and in LegalWeek), it’s timely to report on a panel on outsourcing that I attended last week at the ABA’s annual...
by Bruce | August 9, 2008 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Strategy
Put these trends together, as reported by this month’s issue of The American Lawyer, and what do you get? Midlevel associates, despite their pay jump since 2006, aren’t satisfied with with their compensation; New York City salary levels have penetrated...
by Bruce | August 4, 2008 | Articles, Compensation, Cultural Considerations, Finance, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Strategy
This is about the Cadwalader layoffs. But I won’t be piling on. I really won’t. Instead, I’d rather examine how the firm got to this unhappy pass and what managerial lessons it might hold in store for us. To understand what brought it to cutting...
by Bruce | July 29, 2008 | Articles, Compensation, Finance, Strategy, Technology strategy
Earlier this month, I wrote a column "about wringing our hands" (its actual title was How High Quality Are Your Lawyers? And How Can You Tell?) and I’ve just received a most thoughtful email from Alec Guettel, one of the co-founders of Axiom...
by Bruce | July 22, 2008 | Articles, Finance, Globalization, Innovative Managing Partners, Leadership, M&A, Practice Group Management, Profiles of Individuals, Strategy
I recently had the chance to sit down with Jay Zimmerman, Chairman of Bingham, to discuss the changes he’s seen over his career, and to talk about the future of the legal industry and Bingham. Herewith a synopsis. Jay (Harvard, Harvard Law) started his career in...
by Bruce | July 18, 2008 | Articles, Cultural Considerations, Leadership, Partnership Structures, Practice Group Management, Strategy
Does it strike you (as it does me) that the noise level surrounding "innovation" in law firms is reaching crescendo proportions? Just in the last few months, I’ve written about Legal OnRamp, Allen & Overy’s mini-conference on innovation here...