Next Generation Next Destination

2012 MARKETPLACE IS PREDATORS' PARADISE: BTI'S ADVICE

I recently attended a webinar by The BTI Consulting Group, Inc. providing an overview of corporate counsel survey results and advice for law firms desiring to compete favorably in what was called a “predators’ paradise” in the marketplace for services. In my opinion, the advice is relevant beyond the legal arena to any professional service or actually any business with which needs a strong client focus. So I offer this brief recap of salient points to my readers.  (For more details, contact me at pwhaserot@pdcounsel.com.) It is important information for members of any generation aspiring to attract and retain clients in the “new normal” economy.

• High client satisfaction rates are crucial to defending against predator competition.
• The more fronts  (practice or service areas) on which you can penetrate and serve the client, the more likely you are to keep the business.
• You must be strongly aligned with clients” marketplace objectives, thinking like them. Situation specific approaches garner higher fees.
• Start with identifying marketplace needs and work backwards to determine and develop what you will offer, with flexibility. The aim is to provide individual clients with semi-customized services and delivery, that is, customizing for each from processes and templates in place.
• Rapid change in external factors means processes and approaches may have to change every 18 months.  Firms that are static in their mindsets and offerings will only get commodity work, which pays on the lower end.
• Focus is critical. Have 5 or fewer strategic objectives in a 12-month period.
• Actively and specifically respond and anticipate clients’ changing needs and priorities.
• What clients said was most difficult to find is “commitment to help them” rather than focus on the service provider’s needs.
• The second most important goal for clients is to have providers who give the best value for the dollar. So they are looking for more value for less cost.

BTI’S ADVICE ON HOW TO THRIVE IN A PREDATORS’ PARADISE. 

MAKING THE MOST OF UPSIDE-DOWN REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS - Part 2

In the previous post I provided guidelines for the more senior in age team member who is assigned to work for a younger supervisor.  Sometimes this happens after a long career, possibly including leadership positions. The demographics of the current and future workplace are resulting in some unconventional structures. The younger manager, though ostensibly in charge, may feel as awkward as the older colleague. Even if not feeling insecure in the role, there are things the younger manager can do to foster a harmonious and productive relationship.

Here’s some advice to promote trust and cooperation.

• Keep in mind the purpose of your work. What are the common goals for team members?
• Show respect for experience.  (Some day you will be the experienced, older person.)
• Ask for advice, even if you think you know what the best approach is. Invite input and listen.
• Build allies among the older generations on your team for advice and support.
• Surmount “just a kid” perceptions through your performance and involving others. Use your collaborative skills and don’t make a show of coveting praise and credit.
• Get your older team members what they need to do their jobs well – resources, approvals, etc. (That will help them make you look good.)
• Give seasoned team members freedom, but establish boundaries and communications requirements upfront.
• Identify what motivates each individual and what type of recognition is meaningful to each.
• Give appropriate credit to others and arrange for their recognition.

A solid and harmonious relationship with older colleagues will pay off in spades for building your career, access to their (often high-powered) networks, and organizational success. Demographics indicate that this is the wave of the future.

Phyllis Weiss Haserot    www.pdcounsel.com

 

MAKING THE MOST OF UPSIDE-DOWN REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS

One workplace reporting relationship that used to be fairly rare is older workers reporting to younger managers. This is a growing phenomenon and will become more prevalent until the younger Boomers stop working in any form. As Boomers transition from leader and top expert roles to new roles that allow the next generations to move up the ladder, we will see what traditionally have been unconventional structures.

Though some people deal with it well, in many cases at best it is awkward, at least at first. At worst, it has led to a lawsuit. But serious tensions and confrontations can be avoided.

Both the younger and the older parties to the relationship can feel uncomfortable. A new young manager may feel insecure and even intimidated. An older team member can be unsure of how to react as well.  Having worked extensively with all the generations, I will offer some tips in a 2-part blog post.

In this first piece, here are some guidelines for the older subordinate.

• Establish common goals. Focus on the purpose of your work.
• Be open to new ideas and methods. Don’t obsess on differences in how you were taught, what always has served you as the best method, or whether the manager has preconceived notions about how you think and operate.
• Be generous about giving advice – when asked. Create a non-threatening environment so you will be asked. Don’t be pedantic about advice and unsolicited opinions.
• Seek out younger co-workers, and learn from them in a mentoring partnership.
• Find opportunities to disprove myths and perceptions of older workers.
• Be appreciative of how your young manager gives you support and provides tools to allow you to achieve top results.
• Be clear about preferred communication styles and media and about appropriate boundaries.
• Identify the younger manager’s motivations.
• Be appreciative of recognition you are given, and reciprocate.

These tips will help start the relationship off on an even keel and minimize expending of negative emotional energy.

Next up: what the younger manager can do to build a collaborative and non-threatening environment.

Phyllis Weiss Haserot    www.pdcounsel.com

NEXT GENERATION OF MANAGEMENT INCHING UP TO SPRING TRAINING AND CULTURE CHANGE

I often use baseball references in my work and writing. Many of those who know me know I am a big New York Mets fan (after being a huge Yankee fan through age 18). All baseball fans know that the Mets have had a string of bad years. The new manager, a veteran manager, Terry Collins has a new approach for himself as well as the team.  First off, though naturally intense, as a manager he wants to have fun, and for the players to have fun with each other, according to a recent interview in the New York Post by reporter Kevin Kernan.

Here’s his plan: bowling, communication, involving players and management together in their daily work life, giving the players a voice. The bowling (with bowling balls displaying the Mets logo) and pizza is meant to be fun and draw the team together.

Collins admits to doing a bad job managing the clubhouse in previous stints as a manager. But he thinks his communication skills have improved and his approach is changing. He told the coaches he wants them to have input into clubhouse life too and to have their lockers with the players. And he wants the players to have a voice in things. His formula for the players is preparation, self-discipline, maximum effort and a thoughtful process.

For the manager’s part, he promises communication and stability and spelling out expectations so that each player will know where he is playing and what he is expected to be doing.

He seems to have a grasp of management as Harvard Business School professor Linda Hill (not advising the Mets) defines it: it’s about interdependence and getting things done by working with and through others.

Collins is a Boomer managing Gen Xers and Gen Y/Millennials. My reading is that he is expressing humility, openness, challenge, approachability, collaboration, consistency, high expectations, confidence and ability to make decisions - which should be appealing.

For the Mets and other organizations that have been struggling with some dysfunction, this sounds like a good start. Whatever your team, what do you think of this approach? Is it a winning formula for success and fun?

Phyllis Weiss Haserot      www.pdcounsel.com

TIPS FOR WORKING WITH A YOUNGER BOSS

As promised, here are some strategies for succeeding in these increasingly common reporting and team relationships.

DO

*   Support and show respect for the younger manager

*   Learn how to "manage up" so you will be valued

*   Be open to new ideas, even if untested

*   Look for mutual mentoring opportunities

*   Be tactful and sensitive in making constructive suggestions for improvement

*   Learn the manager's communication style - and flex your own if necessary.

DON'T

*   Talk about how things used to be, "the good old days"

*   Put down ideas

*   Adapt a communication style or interests that seem inauthentic

*   Overvalue years of experience

Phyllis Weiss Haserot     www.pdcounsel.com

NEW REPORT ON SUCCESSION AND TRANSITIONING PLANNING

I want to alert those of you concerned with these vital issues that Managing Partner Magazine's new report Transition and Succession Planning for Law Firms is now available. I provided much of the background for Part I and an article and two sidebars for Part II – the case study section.

Below is a brief overview. A full executive summary and table of contents can be found here.

Firms are facing a leadership dilemma - Quite simply, the large ‘baby-boomer’ generation is nearing retirement, and many will soon leave their firms. With this demographic phenomenon looming on the horizon, firms are faced with a situation in which much of the next generation is either unwilling or not suitably trained to take over the demanding responsibilities of leading their businesses.

If your firm fails to implement succession strategies now you may well find yourself with a leadership gap in just a few years. And what will start as an internal problem can soon escalate to a business disruption and disadvantage as your firm loses vital knowledge and the means to continue to effectively serve your clients. Rather you want the means to impress your clients with the kind of long-term thinking that protects business interests.

The report considers numerous issues including:
- The impact of generations X and Y on the practice of law in the 21st century. What does senior management need to know to ensure a smooth transition to the next generation?
- The retirement of the baby-boomer generation. What ongoing risks does this pose to a law firm’s business stability?
- The current preparedness of the younger generation to take the reins of their businesses. Do they even want to follow in the retirees’ footsteps?
- To what extent has the recession turned an ongoing succession challenge into a potential crisis, as numbers of lawyers, support staff and resources have been cut?
- What are the potential professional development and human resources solutions?
- What role can technology – and particularly Web 2.0 tools – play in addressing the succession challenge?
- And whose responsibility is succession planning anyway?

This important new report includes highly practical case studies from firms in the U.S and UK who have successfully implemented succession planning, including Weightmans LLP; Mills & Reeve LLP; Eversheds; Optim Legal; Macpherson & Kelley Lawyers; and Borden Ladner Gervais.

For more information, contact  melam@ark-group.com.

Phyllis Weiss Haserot     www.pdcounsel.com

FORECAST: ASK THEM WHAT THEY WANT

n      A component of the engagement package is reward. So organizations will adopt Innovative Ideas to Reward Their Valued Workers. Employers will focus on recognition and non-financial rewards that will provide the psychic rewards that professionals and other top talent need to keep them going and loyal.  And firms will learn to go to the source of most welcomed ideas – workers suggesting what rewards other than money are most appreciated. I bet that one of them, especially for Gen Y, is employers listening to their ideas and taking their suggestions seriously – so this one is a two-fer!

 

       Different generations and individuals have their own ideas of what is meaningful recognition. Rewards may need to be customized and must be perceived as fair.

 

        Phyllis Weiss Haserot    www.pdcounsel.com

TRIUMPH OF THE MULTI-GENERATIONAL TEAM

Among the many fascinating pieces in the New York Times magazine annual "Ideas" issue (December 13, 2009) is an item on a study finding that the stereotypical belief the older employee (age 45 and up) is deficient is a myth. (Data on various tests pitting Boomers and up against people under age 30 to follow in another post.)

Here's the conclusion I liked best of all, in sync with my *Cross-Generational Conversation* work, from the study by Gary Charness, a University of California at Santa Barbara economics professor, and Marie Claire Villeval, from the University of Lyon: In the cooperation test, Charness and Villeval found that groups with a mix of ages outperformed homogeneous groups. They say that it's best to have a range of ages in the office for an optimum work force.

The study found that the 45s and older were actually more cooperative than the younger people and contributed more to their group. That's a nice boost for the Boomers and encouragement for all the generations to find common ground and collaborate. If you'd like advice on how to make that happen, give me a shout.

Phyllis Weiss Haserot   www.pdcounsel.com

SUCCESSION PLANNING ASSESSMENT

To start your evaluation, here are 7 questions to answer.

*   What is the secret to effective succession planning and transitioning at your firm?

*   What criteria are used to select successors?

*   Are those criteria transparent to all levels of the firm/organization?

*   In what ways do you involve the client in practice leader or client group succession planning?

*   To what extent do you consider generational difference factors when choosing the next firm or client group leaders? To what extent do you consider personal behavioral style factors?

*   How do you go about considering the younger generations' views on future leadership needs?

*   What have been your biggest challenges about succession planning and transitioning?

In our work we've found that firm/organizations are missing significant issues by failing to address these questions.

Phyllis Weiss Haserot       www.pdcounsel.com

To start your evaluation, here are 7 questions to answer.

*   What is the secret to effective succession planning and transitioning at your firm?

*   What criteria are used to select successors?

*   Are those criteria transparent to all levels of the firm/organization?

*   In what ways do you involve the client in practice leader or client group succession planning?

*   To what extent do you consider generational difference factors when choosing the next firm or client group leaders? To what extent do you consider personal behavioral style factors?

*   How do you go about considering the younger generations' views on future leadership needs?

*   What have been your biggest challenges about succession planning and transitioning?

In our work we've found that firm/organizations are missing significant issues by failing to address these questions.

Phyllis Weiss Haserot       www.pdcounsel.com

KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER/SUCCESSION PLANNING BEST PRACTICES

Building on the two previous posts, what else can organizations do going forward to prevent the loss of intellectual and relational capital?

*  Establish and reinforce processes for institutionalizing data and contact management (CRM).

*  Connect succession planning at higher levels with career planning strategies and processes for mid- and lower level employees. They should overlap, capturing experience and knowledge as well as competency data.

*  Remove incentives for hoarding knowledge by seasoned workers (incentives such as compensation policies, status,  the "knowledge is power" zero sum game)

*  Bring succession planning and knowledge transfer to mid- and lower levels of the organization

*  Provide data access to employees and encourage routine sharing of non-confidential information.

*  Have incumbents and likely successors (selected individuals or pools of individuals) work in tandem for developing, nurturing, and transferring client, prospect, supplier, alliance partner, etc. relationships over time.

Knowledge transfer is undoubtedly critical for business continuity and profitability for the long-term. What else do you suggest can be added to this list of recommendations?

Phyllis Weiss Haserot   www.pdcounsel.com