new lawyer

04-Management:NATIONAL
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The
new
lawyer
management guide
A
Partners frustrated with their associates’ performance
might never have taken the time to train them in key
lawyering skills. Upgrading your associates’ knowledge
through effective feedback, coaching, and delegation
will benefit both the associate and the firm.
By Anna Conrad and Elizabeth A. Weishaupl
Illustration by Kevin Ghiglione, i2i Art Inc.
Juin 2009
w w w. c b a . o r g
s lawyers approach partnership status at a firm, they frequently are given greater levels of responsibility in firm
management, including serving as a department or group supervisor. But despite the
important role supervisors and managers
play, firms often fail to offer new supervisors training or guidance in management
methods and techniques.
Training in this aspect of law firm management is critical to maintaining a business’s
viability. Developing a few key skills can help
the supervising lawyer optimize associate productivity, assimilate the new associate quickly
into the firm, and create associates who may
stay with the firm for many years.
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Here are some tips and techniques for three essential management skills for lawyers who supervise others: giving feedback, coaching, and delegating.
this curiosity and uses it as a foundation on which to
build a skill base that will be effective in future tasks
and cases.
1. EFFECTIVE FEEDBACK
Communicating well and providing constructive counsel are
essential skills for legal professionals. However, we frequently
fall short in using these skills to
manage our own employees.
Most associate lawyers likely are
unfamiliar with the logistics of
practising law and may be unfamiliar with the law firm culture
into which they were hired. Coherent, effective feedback by management is critical for productive development of the associate.
Here are a few tips to follow when giving feedback to a
new associate.
Be Clear: Confirm expectations of the work product.
Ineffective: “I’ll take a look at it when you’re finished
writing the motion.”
Effective: “Here’s an example of a similar motion the
firm did in another case. Take a look at it, and let’s discuss any questions you have later this afternoon before
you start writing.”
Does the lawyer know exactly what he or she is
expected to do? What may appear to be a performance
issue may be a misunderstanding of what is expected.
Encourage associates to ask questions or request suggestions and examples. Show the new lawyer the successful work product from the firm. Let him or her
know what questions should have been asked during a
deposition. Many young lawyers may be too embarrassed to ask for an example.
Be Specific: Base feedback only on what you observed.
Ineffective: “You asked too many open-ended questions
during discovery.”
Effective: “You asked, ‘What did you see when you
opened the door?’”
Feedback must be direct and relate to a specific action.
Using an exact quote or example will provide a solid,
credible basis for the feedback.
Be Constructive: Avoid personal attacks.
Ineffective: “This brief is poorly written and organized.
Are you sure you graduated from law school?”
Effective: “You included all of the facts to support your
argument. With some reorganization, your brief will
win over the court.”
The purpose of feedback is to comment on specific
behaviour, change it where it is clearly inappropriate, and
improve and encourage it when it is headed in the right
direction — not to belittle the associate and make him or
her feel insignificant and incapable.
Be Timely: Determine the appropriate time and place to
give feedback.
Ineffective: Stopping discovery to explain how to ask a
question differently.
Effective: Providing the guidance as soon as possible
after the proceeding has concluded (and not within
earshot of the client or others).
Make it a practice to spend time with the associate
during a recess in a discovery, client meeting, hearing, or
trial. This will give him or her a chance to correct the
behaviour and provide an immediate opportunity to use
the new skill.
Be Wise: Explain why something needs to be done a certain way.
Ineffective: “Just do it the way I told you to and stop
asking so many questions.”
Effective: “I’ve worked with opposing counsel for years.
I know she will offer rebuttal on that issue, which is why
I think we should rethink this strategy.”
Most lawyers are intellectually curious and many are
drawn to the practice of law because law firms are learning organizations. A good law firm supervisor fosters
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Be Concise: Focus feedback on two or three areas.
Ineffective: Overwhelming the associate with a legal
pad full of areas that require improvement.
Effective: Pointing out a few specific areas that need
improvement, including possible methods for achieving
improvement goals.
Feedback should be a tool to build the skills of the recipient. If too many areas of weakness are critiqued at once, the
recipient may feel overwhelmed and deflated. Focusing on two
or three key areas for development will provide a good guide
for the associate.
Current leadership theory recognizes the importance of
building strengths, often overshadowing the need to fix every
area of perceived weakness. Although you may not be able to
ignore major opportunities for development, such as poor
negotiation skills or lack of legal knowledge, building on
strengths may go further in retaining and engaging associates
than dwelling on incidental weaknesses.
2. EFFICIENT COACHING OF
NEW LAWYERS
The practice of law cannot be
learned simply by reading a
manual. It is a craft that requires
an apprenticeship period. Many
new lawyers may think they
were sprung “fully formed”
from law school. However,
established and successful lawyers readily will admit that they
learned much of the practice of law from seasoned, experienced practitioners.
The days of law being an apprentice career are not over; we
just do not acknowledge how much we really learn from seasoned lawyers. In an era of “high billables,” taking the time to
coach and mentor others might seem a costly endeavour.
However, many law practice skills can be developed through
an efficient transfer of knowledge from an experienced lawyer
to an apprentice associate.
Often, lawyers are promoted for their knowledge of the law
or their ability to build client relationships. The fastest and most
effective way to transfer this knowledge is through coaching.
N AT I O N A L
June 2009
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Guide du juriste-superviseur
Des associés frustrés de la performance de leurs jeunes confrères n’ont peut-être jamais pris le temps de leur
montrer certaines connaissances essentielles. Pourtant, de former la relève par des commentaires, du coaching et
des délégations de responsabilités efficaces bénéficie à tout le monde.
L
es cabinets juridiques négligent
souvent la formation des juristes
qui atteignent un statut de superviseur. Pourtant, une telle formation permet d’optimiser la productivité des subalternes, de les intégrer rapidement à la
firme, en plus d’optimiser les chances
qu’ils y restent longtemps.
Voici quelques trucs relativement à trois
habilités de gestion essentielles pour ces
juristes-superviseurs : la rétroaction (feedback), le coaching et la délégation.
1. Rétroaction efficace
La plupart des jeunes juristes sont familiers
avec la logistique de la pratique du droit. Ils
peuvent toutefois être étrangers à la culture
de la firme qui les a embauchés. Une rétroaction efficace et cohérente par l’équipe
de direction devient ainsi cruciale pour son
développement. Quelques conseils :
Soyez spécifique : Ne basez votre rétroaction que sur ce que vous avez observé. Elle
doit être directe et faire allusion à une
action spécifique. Par exemple, référez à un
échange précis lorsque vous commentez
l’interrogatoire d’un jeune plutôt que de
vous en tenir à des commentaires vagues.
Soyez constructif : Évitez les attaques personnelles. Par exemple, il serait déconseillé de dire qu’une procédure est « mal
écrite et mal organisée ».
Ayez le bon timing : Il faut savoir déterminer le lieu et le moment appropriés
pour donner ces conseils.
Soyez sage : Prenez le temps d’expliquer
pourquoi les choses doivent être faites d’une
certaine façon, plutôt que d’une autre.
Soyez clair : Confirmez vos attentes face au
travail demandé.
Soyez concis : Concentrez votre rétroaction
sur deux ou trois points. Critiquer trop de
points faibles en même temps peut être
décourageant.
2. Un coaching efficace
La pratique du droit ne peut pas être simplement apprise dans un manuel. Des
juristes établis vous le diront : ils ont appris
beaucoup de l’expérience de leurs confrères vétérans. Voici quelques éléments
qui peuvent rendre ces séances de coaching
plus efficaces.
Déterminez quand se rencontrer : Allezvous vous rencontrer quand une question
survient, ou allez-vous établir des dates
à l’avance?
Déterminez les paramètres des sessions :
Allez-vous seulement discuter du travail du
jeune juriste, ou allez-vous étendre le dialogue à d’autres sujets, comme le développement de sa carrière? Les possibilités
sont nombreuses…
Déterminez le niveau de confidentialité : Un
jeune juriste qui croit que les séances sont
confidentielles peut se sentir trahi s’il apprend que ce qui s’est dit s’est ébruité.
L’importance de la responsabilité mutuelle :
Changer de comportement peut être difficile. De savoir que vous devrez rendre des
comptes à quelqu’un d’autre peut aider.
3. De la délégation productive
La plupart des avocats apprécient l’autonomie. Par contre, ce trait de caractère, combiné
Coaching is an ongoing process that focuses on promoting
behavioural change over time. Coaching takes time and effort,
and requires a trusting relationship between the coach and the
associate. In addition to applying the techniques listed in the
“Effective Feedback” section above, there are several elements
that will help make coaching sessions more efficient.
Determine when to meet. Will you meet when questions arise, or will you schedule meetings at regular times
and dates? The associate should be responsible for scheduling the sessions, because he or she is accountable for his or
her own development. However, a good coach knows the
Juin 2009
au besoin d’accomplir le travail correctement et rapidement, empêche souvent la
délégation. L’un des moyens de contourner cette difficulté est de garder un registre de toutes les tâches à accomplir en
une journée, puis de déléguer celles qui
sont importantes, mais qui ne sont pas
urgentes. Cela permet de donner une
rétroaction sans trop se soucier des
échéances.
Voici d’autres trucs pour une délégation
efficace :
Soyez clair et précis : Établissez clairement
ses responsabilités et vos attentes.
Prévoyez un moment pour la rétroaction :
Entendez-vous sur des rencontres à des
étapes préétablies.
Donnez des exemples : En déléguant un
projet, il peut être utile de montrer le produit fini d’un projet similaire.
Conclusion
Au moment où l’attrition des jeunes juristes demeure élevée, incorporer la
rétroaction, le coaching et la délégation
dans la culture de la firme est dans le
meilleur intérêt des associés. Ces habilités
vont augmenter leur productivité et leur
permettre de s’améliorer, selon les standards de la firme. N
Anna Farber Conrad a pratiqué comme avocate,
mais est maintenant présidente du Impact Leadership
Solutions, qui fournit des services de coaching et des
ateliers pour aider les avocats er autres professionnels
à devenir des leaders plus efficaces — (303) 722-7554,
[email protected].
Elizabeth A. Weishaupl est juge au 18e District judiciaire. Elle a auparavant été avocate générale adjointe
au Colorado et une avocate adjointe des États-Unis
dans le district du Colorado.
importance of suggesting a meeting before the associate
“hits a wall,” such as when an important client meeting or
trial deadline is approaching.
Determine the parameters of the coaching sessions. Will you simply discuss matters specifically
related to the associate’s workload and the work of the
firm, or will discussions extend to career development?
Coaching topics can be limitless and may include thriving in the firm’s culture, interpersonal skills, legal
analysis, client support, and almost any obstacle associates face.
w w w. c b a . o r g
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