My article this week in The Lawyers Weekly has generated some attention and controversy. Nicole Black in her new blog New Lawyers Back on Track has raised some thought-provoking concerns.
Thanks Nicole for picking up the article. Much appreciated! To clarify on a couple of issues you’ve raised, please know that I am an executive coach. As such my clients set their own goals and agendas. If a woman lawyer has a goal of becoming a partner in a law firm then I would certainly encourage her to consider business development as one of the vehicles to support her advancement.
While it is vital to keep a long term perspective on possibilities for transforming our law firm workplaces, it is equally important to many women that they continue to strengthen their position within the current system. Developing and expanding one’s own loyal client base is vital to achieving power, authority, and financial equality. As long as one depends on others to provide the work, one is by definition dependant. This applies to both genders.
Business development means investing in relationships. The purpose of strategy in this context is to ensure that a lawyer’s investments in time are right on target and offer maximum benefit.
In my experience I have seen large numbers of lawyers both young and old turned off by the stereotypical image of the rainmaker. In fact, there is a different and effective approach which is very much in alignment with these women lawyers own values and integrity. I want to encourage both women and men who don’t identity with the extroverted model of rainmaker to develop their own equally successful approach based on developing strong legal credentials and developing an ever-expanding base of trusting relationships with clients, referral sources and others. No grandstanding, polished speeches, or tickets to the NBA (or in the Canadian context NHL) required.
When it comes to innovation and new approaches to rainmaking you truly stand out as the author of not one but three blogs! That is precisely what I meant when I wrote assess your strengths and develop your own personal approach grounded in your values, your professional goals and I would add your interests.
Thanks Nicole for encouraging the discussion on this very important topic!
This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 12th, 2008 at 1:27 pm and is filed under Business Development, Women lawyers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.3 Responses to “Rainmaking for women lawyers – the best start is an early start”
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February 13th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
I appreciate your perspective, Allison, and apologize if my post came off as overly critical. I agree that it’s important for women who choose the law firm path to try to succeed in the current environment. It’s not likely to change anytime soon, so that’s really their only option. So, in that context, your suggestions and recommendations are sound and make sense.
What irks me (as you probably gathered from my post) is that the legal profession has been so SLOW to change compared to other professions. My frustration is with the profession, not those, such as yourself, whose admirable goal is to assist women in navigating it as it now exists..
February 13th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
Nicole – what you say is so true. It may interest you to know that The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, P.C. Chief Justice of Canada raised this very issue in an address to lawyers at the 2007 Canadian Legal Conference:
â€The reality is that women entering the profession in droves have suddenly found themselves confronted with a very difficult, inflexible model of practice.â€
“The strict, inflexible business model is increasingly questioned by men,†she said. “This is the question, I believe, for the future. How do we structure the way lawyers – women and men – work; the way they live, the way they serve the public?â€
My hope is that these questions from the Chief Justice of Canada will help move this discussion forward and into action.
February 21st, 2008 at 4:21 pm
Like many if not all professions it will take time for the balance to come in to line, but it will. Women are more successful in many different areas and I do believe that everyone (not just men) are starting to see the change.