Of Counsel

October 2001 - Volume 20, No. 10

Should Associates Be Involved in Marketing?

What Should They Be Doing?

By Susan Saltonstall Duncan

Many law firms continue to downplay marketing at the associate level, particularly for those with less than five years of experience. The rationale is twofold. First, firms don’t want associates to feel that they are required to do marketing or to bring in business, particularly since most lawyers at this level are not able to generate clients of the complexity and fee revenue desired by most large firms.

Secondly, firms continue to place a premium on billable hours. Firms that are highly leveraged, and even those that aren’t so highly leveraged, rely on the high number of billable hours associates produce, particularly once they are trained and “productive.” They don’t want billable hours diluted by non-billable time.

At the same time, firms recognize that they cannot expect their associates to become marketers overnight and that they must begin early to build future rainmakers. Business development is a long-term proposition, and some firms are indeed provideing training and resources to associates to begin building their contact base, to learn the tools of networking and relationship building, and to provide guidance on selecting, developing, and promoting a niche expertise. (See sidebar on page 13.)

Most successful rainmakers in large firms have arrived at their success, not just by bringing in new clients, but by climbing successfully through the ranks of their firms and their profession. Therefore, sSuccessful business and client development training for associates therefore usually includes some focus on other elements that will lead to career success. Conversely, training in marketing is a natural, indeed unavoidable, component of most comprehensive associate training curricula, indirectly if not directly.

Just about everyone agrees that first-year associates should focus 100 percent of their time on getting entrenched in the firm, developing law practice, and developing legal skills. While some firms invite first-year associates to attend internal marketing programs, none that I surveyed or have observed require starting attorneys to be actively engaged in marketing. Most discourage it.

AfterBeyond the first year, there are seven areas in which all associates should concentrate their marketing, client development, and professional development efforts:

1.) Building Ggood Llegal, Llawyering, and Pprofessional Sskills. The first priority for young lawyers is to focus on becoming skilled technical lawyers. Now more than ever, clients expect a high level of legal competence and quality work, and they do not tolerate those who produce work with typos, that is not well-written, or that reflects an “overworked” file that has been used to train the associate on the client’s dime.

Associates should first focus on attaining substantive legal skills and knowledge, including fact-finding, writing, negotiating, and presentation skills. At this point, they must produce, deliver, and supervise superior work as they continue to build their reputation both with the partners for whom they work as well as for clients, even if they do not have direct contact with clients.

In addition to technical skills and production of work, however, young associates must broaden their legal skills to include an understanding of the broader context in which clients operate. For example, they need to understand a client’s business goals and challenges; trends in the client’s industry; the client’s corporate culture and the roles and personalities of those who lead it; and how a case or matter fits into the client’s overall needs and priorities.

2.) Client Sservice and Ddevelopment. Client service and client development have become priorities for associates, as clients now demand that even younger lawyers be able to apply practical solutions and approaches to their legal issues. Most important to clients today is the way in which lawyers deliver services and provide value. The onus is on the law firm to ensure that all lawyers put clients first and focus on exceptional service strategy and delivery as well as appropriate interpersonal qualities. Since these are often not skills taught in law school, law firms have picked up the ball.

Areas covered in client service and relations training include: listening and communication, assessing issues beyond the specific legal matter, case/ and project management;, responsiveness;, timeliness;, accessibility;, time management;, presentation skills;, and delegation and supervision.

Junior and mid-level associates should begin to have personal contact with clients and seek out opportunities to be introduced to clients at firm functions and client meetings. As associates gain a more comprehensive view of the clients’ businesses and industries, they can begin to identify topics for client alerts or bulletins. Senior associates who have more frequent contact with clients should be looking for opportunities to expand or cross-sell services to clients, and to introduce clients to others in the firm who might be able to provide them additional benefit to them.

3.) Internal Marketing. Personal advancement and professional success begin internally. At every level, associates should be developing personal and mutually rewarding relationships with a number of people in the firm;: including partners and those who supervise them, peers, support staff, and mentors. From the outset, associates should hone important service skills by working with partners and supervising attorneys (their internal clients), including responsiveness and timeliness, (e.g., promptly returning telephone messages and e-mails), meeting deadlines, and managing priorities. Associates should research and select a mentor who is an effective business developer and with whom they share work or personal interests.

As associates move up the ranks, they should begin to take a more active interest in other practice groups and teams at the firm, particularly those practice areas in which where the clients or other lawyers offer opportunities to expand the associate’s area of expertise. Senior associates should communicate selectively about key developments and opportunities via e-mail or memoranda. They should find out who is pitching to prospects and offer to help with proposals, seminars, articles and newsletters.

By their fourth or fifth year, associates can identify opportunities within the firm and try to take advantage of them. For example, they should begin to serve on committees or task forces at the firm.

4) Research and Kknowledge Bbuilding. Knowledge is essential to effective marketing at every career level. Associates should be informed at a number of levels. First, they should become and stay informed about the firm itself;: its practice areas, offices and industry expertise;, its attorneys and skill areas;, its vision, goals, policies, culture, path to success;, and its strengths and weaknesses, and what makes it distinctive., along with areas of personal interest, synergy, opportunity.

Second, associates should learn as much as possible about client relationships;: including industry issues, the services the firm provides these clients, the clients’ historiesy with the firm and its lawyers, and the significant relationships involved. Senior associates should also begin to have an understanding of the financial relationship the firm has with the client.

Third, associates should learn to be externally focused and knowledgeable about the market and economy. Early on tThey should begin early on to read business publications and newspapers, and to follow business, industry, and economic trends.

Fourth, associates should take advantage of their still current relationships with recent law school classmates at other firms. Keeping an ear to the ground about what competitors or potential co-counsel are doing will helps associates stay informed and provide valuable input to the firm about potential threats or opportunities.

5.) Selecting and Building a Niche. By the their third or fourth year, associates should begin to focus in one (or a few) niche(s). Ultimately, associates become indispensable to their firms and to clients when they are able to fill a voids in a specific area of substantive need. To do this, associates should identify opportunities within their firms, as well as new areas where few competitors exist. For example, new legislation or regulation often offers such new opportunities.

Associates can contact key business developers at the firm and find out how they developed their niche and expertise, look for areas in the firm where there are needs, or where there are gaps, and look at the areas at the firm that are growing. They should read legal publications to assess practice trends and see what niche areas are growing profession-wide, and read business publications to see what industries are likewise growing or retrenching.

Once a niche has been identified and approved as a growth area by a practice group chair or other supervisor, associates should expand their knowledge and promote their expertise. Toward this end, they can identify and work with a mentor at the firm or someone they know at another firm, familiarize themselves with relevant trade and legal publications, attend CLE programs, and get involved in relevant trade or bar associations.

6.) Building External Relationships & Networks. Throughout their careers, attorneys must build relationships with those who can help them succeed. For more junior associates, their immediate contacts might include college and law school classmates; other lawyers, including former summer associate peers; a spouse or partner; friends and relatives; referral sources such as like accountants, bankers and other professionals; and social, civic, and community contacts.

As associates become more directly involved with clients and those on the client teams, they should add others to their contact and mailing lists. While most associates may not yet have contacts that are in a position to generate new business, they should still regularly communicate with and nurture these relationships for the longer term.

Networking, building and nurturing relationships will take many forms in many forums:

• Social events and socializing, including children’s/school functions;
• Community events and activities, and volunteering on boards and committees;
• Communication via telephone, e-mail, personal notes and cards, and sending clippings of interest;
• Professional trade or business organizations’ conferences, committees, and events; and
• Bar association, preferably where members are not exclusively competitors.

Younger associates should get out at least once a month, and senior associates at least twice a month, to network with these and other contacts.

7.) Reputation-Building, Visibility & Promotion. Many successful rainmakers have been able to substantially expand their knowledge of, and visibility in, theira niche by using traditional reputation-building techniques. Associates at every level can use these strategies to build their reputation and enhance their visibility both within their firms and externally.

• Writing. Younger associates may generate internal memos and suggest topics for client alerts or firm newsletters. Mid-level and senior associates can begin publishing articles for trade or business publications on hot topics of interest in a service niche or industry. At all levels, associates should consider co-authoring these articles with other credible experts;: such as a firm partner, a client, a referral source, or a former law professor.

· Speaking. Opportunities to speak on a hot topic abound, although competitors are actively seeking these opportunities too. Associates should contact program-planning members of the trade and business associations in which they have become involved to offer to speak. Other forums will include firm-sponsored seminars, professional conference organizers, and referral source organizations, (e.g., Society for CPAs). Those nervous about speaking can brush up on their skills through their local Toastmasters organization (see www.toastmasters.com).

· Outside organization leadership. Associates should seek out active roles and leadership positions in all outside activities, as these provide an opportunitiesy to promote one’s professional expertise and nurture important contacts. Associates should also be alert for opportunities for their firms to sponsor events and fundraisers held by community, civic, and professional trade association organizations.

The need to transition lawyers from the backpack of law school to the briefcase of private practice is accelerating. Law firms continue to assess their in-house training programs and resources. From seminars and workshops to personalized coaching, associates must be offered opportunities to develop skills and strategies in all areas of professional development, client relations, networking, marketing, and new business development. One can separate “marketing” training cannot be separated from substantive skills training;. tThey impinge on each other at every point.

Side Bar: Associates and Marketing

Rainmaking Oasis conducted an informal poll of several law firms to find out what their associate marketing policies and programs. The eight firms that responded include:

Adler, Pollock & Sheehan ( 55 lawyers, 35 Ps, 18As, 2 Counsel)

Hale and Dorr (506 lawyers, 163 Ps, 329 As, 14 Counsel)

Kirkpatrick & Lockhart (660 lawyers, 250 Ps, 362 As, 48 counsel)

Pepper Hamilton (425 lawyers, 185 Ps, 229 As, 13 Counsel)

Robinson & Cole (179 lawyers, 78 Ps, 76 As, 25 Counsel, 12 OC)

Schulte Roth (300 lawyers, 63 Ps, 230 As, 15 Counsel)

Thelen Reid & Priest (425 lawyers, 190 Ps, 200 As, 30 Counsel)

Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks ( 47 lawyers, 20 Ps, 26 As, 1 Counsel)

	Junior Associate (2-5 yrs.)	Senior Associate (6+ yrs.)	Counsel	Partner
Which best reflects your firm's marketing expectations? Required to be involved in marketing Encouraged to be involved in marketing No articulated policy Required to develop annual personal marketing plan Encouraged to develop annual personal marketing plan Is marketing factored into annual performance review and compensation? Origination/new business development results only Marketing efforts and results	0 7 1 0 1 1 1	2 6 1 3 2 4	3 5 1 3 3 3	5 3 2 3 6 2

Training Programs, Workshops, Resources: Encouraged or Required?	Junior Associates (2-5 yrs.)	Senior Associates/ Counsel (6-10yrs.)	Partners
Client relations	4 Encourage 2 Require	5 Encourage 1 Requires	6 Encourge 0 Require
Marketing, general	5 Encourage 2 Require	4 Encrouage 3 Require	6 Encourage 1 Require
Sales training	1 Encourages 0 Require	2 Requires 0 Require	1 Encourages 0 Require
Personal marketing planning	2 Encourage 0 Require	5 Encourage 1 Requires	5 Encourage 0 Require
Coaching	4 Encourage 0 Require	5 Encourage 0 Require	5 Encourage 0 Require
Networking	2 Encourage 0 Require	1 Encourage 0 Require	1 Encourage 0 Require
Presentation skills	2 Encourage 0 Require	2 Encourage 0 Require	2 Encourage 0 Require