In order to transform something you must be innovative. Being innovative means doing something first, ahead of your compitition. Lawyers and Law Firms are not known for being first for much. Two books you must read now are "Blue Ocean Strategy", by W.Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, and "Our Iceberg is Melting", by John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber.

In the first book, "Blue Ocean Strategy", it paints a vivid picture of what is possible when you go out and get ahead of your competititon. The second, "Our Iceberg is Meltin" is a very clever story about how to get people to move with you into uncharted territory. The are both quick and valuable reads-enjoy!

Recently I have been in talks with two National Canadian firms. One is investing in their people this year the other is not. Can you guess what the next few years are going to look like for the firm that is investing? Here are some hints: better retention, higher revenues, increased client loyalty, and on it goes. So ask yourself is 2010 going to be the year you go for it or are you going to let the other guys get there first?

Change does not happen by itself. It must be planned for and led. That takes leadership. So if you wish to lead a change effort at your firm, here’s the condensed version of what you need to know about leading change. First let’s look at the various roles required in leading change. Ask yourself  "Where do I fit in? "Where am I best suited to lead?"

I like to call this first part "The set up"

The lobbyist

Before you begin to suggest a change effort at a committee or management meeting, spend some time talking to like minded people in your firm, both lawyers and management. Get consenus and support for your idea from a number of power weilding brokers. Get their agreement that they will support you when you bring this idea forward.

The vision

Clearly articulate the sense of urgency and opportunity. Why should we do this? What is it going to mean to individuals, the firm and our clients. What are the positive outcomes of this effort? Once people have a clear understanding of how your effort will positively impact them and their practice or role, they are much more likely to go along for the ride.

Owners

Identify at the outset who is going to own this change effort? The one person whose role it is to see this effort from inception through to immplementation. Is it you? This is the person who will tactically make it happen. They will remain in the trenches until the effort has been completed.

Champions

These are the people who will champion the cause and support the owners of the effort. One innovative strategy here is to create a ‘working group’ of champions whose purpose is to champion the effort and support the owner. Recruit those with highly developed creative, analytical, technical, business, leadership, and communication skills. Populate this group with both left brain (analytical) and right brain (creative minds). Harvard Business Review refers to this as taking a ‘both brain approach’. This group’s members should be very well respected, hold authority among the ranks, and represent a cross section of personality styles. When people can identify with at least one member of this working group, then the responsibility of gaining investment among the ranks is shared by all group members leading to a greater probability of success.

Stay tuned for Part Two

First off I must apologize to the loyal followers of this blog for not having made a post in some time. Busy getting ready for my presentation in Dublin for the Canadian Bar Association.

Are you leveraging all the sources of support that are abailable to you?

Leverage the wisdom and experience of your peers involved in associations. Most law firms belong to an international associations. Share best practices with your peers in other markets. Learn from them what has and hasn’t worked. Again, there is no point re-inventing the wheel. What has worked for them will likely work for you.

Leverage your C-level staff. Your professional management team was presumably hired for their expertise and experience. So let them do their job and empower them to succeed.

Leverage outside expertise. Outsource when needed. You wouldn’t want one of your clients to think that they could serve themselves with some complicated legal issue, so don’t feel you either know or have to know everything-there are a great number of consultants out there who understand what you need. Getting help or support is not a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. Think of professional athletes. They wouldn’t try to make the Olympic team by themselves. They hire experienced expert coaches to help them get there. This is operating from a place of strength.