Every law firm’s success depends on its culture. Creating a winning culture and positivity means fashioning an environment where your people can work toward something that exceeds themselves.
Strategies to Build a Winning and Positive Law Firm Today
Building a purposeful law firm requires developing a set of values that you communicate well with everyone. Building a winning and positive culture works for all law firm sizes, so don’t ignore this advice.
1. Creating a Clearly Defined Vision
Your firm’s vision statement needs to address the current and future values. Once you draw this up, use it to guide you in every aspect, including as you hire legal teams and market your firm. Make your vision statement specific. Include firm milestones at five-year intervals, services you want to provide, your role in the firm, its role in the community, your financial goals, your ideal work environment, and your model employees.
2. Choosing Employees
When looking to attract employees, look beyond their education, experience, and skills, making sure they fit your values and vision. References and resumes are good and well, but it is at the interview where you can learn more about a prospective employee. Observe how they interact with their future co-workers to assess their suitability.
Avoid pessimistic people and those that don’t have a passion for the legal services you provide. You don’t want someone who won’t embrace the culture everyone else follows, and you certainly want your employees to exude the positivity that keeps fostering better client relationships.
3. Communicate Your Values
Your defined values can’t benefit your firm if you don’t communicate them to your staff members. Making them aware of these ensures that they base all their decisions on them. Also, encourage them to discuss ways to implement these and allow them to add to your law firm’s goals.
4. Reward Staff Members
Finding a way to measure employee contributions toward maintaining your firm’s culture and rewarding them for their efforts will help increase support for your desired culture.
5. Cultivate A Consistent Management Style
Firm owners or managing partners must ensure they prevent the erosion of their firm’s culture. Make sure not to allow things to slide or make exceptions; otherwise, negative feelings will erupt from others who notice your decisions aren’t following your vision.
Promote a positive culture in your law firm by practicing the following management skills – collaboration, integrity, assertiveness, communication, and listening. Create a management style that earns you respect, encompassing qualities that you respect in others.
6. Encourage a Healthy Work-Life Balance
Happy staff members equal positivity in the workplace. A healthy work-life balance supports good work culture, makes employees feel appreciated, and ensures they are always glad to come to the office. A law office is a stressful and demanding place to work, but your employees need to know that their needs are respected if a personal situation requires their attention. This knowledge increased their security, loyalty, and well-being while also reducing burnout and feelings of negativity.
There are various ways to ensure a healthier work-life balance, including the four-day workweek and flexible work hours created by alternating staff schedules.
7. Foster Positive Relations
Your staff members spend a lot of their day at work, and they need to get along with each other and have each other’s backs. It is easier for everyone to do this in a law office where employees have positive relations. Encourage these by celebrating each other’s milestones and firm victories with in-office parties or celebrating out of the office. Additionally, work together on volunteering projects and remember to mention achievements in emails or memos.
8. Extend Your Company Culture to Your Clients
Resolving your clients’ legal issues is just one part of being a good lawyer. Make sure everyone in the firm knows that you want your clients to feel welcomed and valued. From your receptionists taking their first call to the lawyer who will handle their issue, make sure that everyone knows that you want clients treated with respect. Lead by example, and don’t talk about clients behind their backs, ensuring that your employees follow your model.
Last Word
Once you have created the purpose and values of your firm, it is vital to ensure these remain strong, so nurture it and assess it regularly to ensure it’s maintained. Encourage everyone to engage and create new ones. Recognition and rewards are essential to keeping morale high. Address inconsistent values and undermining behavior on the spot. These vital steps secure a friendly work environment, retain your legal team, remain competitive, have repeat clients, and allow your legal firm to thrive.
