There is an old saying: “You catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar.” While raising three teens, I use this phrase often to highlight to my children they are likely to get what they want using sweetness (kindness) rather than acidity (rudeness/inappropriate tones). In a world of strong opinions, a rush to […]
After 30 years of interviewing in-house counsel and other clients about their law firm relationships, two words define the best client relationships: manage expectations. Managing expectations flows through every aspect of what clients want, need and expect from outside counsel. It’s also the key to high-functioning teams of lawyers working collaboratively to achieve a goal […]
Yearend is the perfect time to check in with clients to review the year’s work together, plan for the year ahead, seek feedback and most importantly discuss their top priorities. While talking about money can be uncomfortable, the attorneys who proactively address these challenges will have a competitive advantage. Clients say: Avoiding talking about bills […]
Wicker Park Group periodically revisits some of its most popular blog posts. This post was first published in August 2021. There is never a bad time to talk about rates, but early Fall is the best time to discuss it with clients. In recent weeks, we have had many conversations with general counsel about their perspective on […]
We’ve been reviewing our client feedback research from 2021, and I was struck by a big shift in client sentiment and perceptions about how well outside counsel understand their businesses and industries. In 2019, 51% of the clients WPG interviewed felt their outside counsel exceeded expectations in demonstrating an understanding of their businesses or industries […]
There is never a bad time to talk about rates, but early Fall is the best time to discuss it with clients. In recent weeks, we have had many conversations with general counsel about their perspective on the how, when and why law firms talk to them about rates. In our client feedback interviews, we […]
In the past few weeks, I’ve interviewed several clients disappointed in their law firms’ efforts (more likely lack thereof) regarding succession transitions. While it’s not a new issue, it’s becoming more pronounced with COVID-related transitions and challenges. One client said, “I’ve never seen a law firm execute a good transition on retirement. It’s how firms […]
Wicker Park Group (WPG) and ALM Intelligence have released results of a survey evaluating the impact of COVID-19 on in-house counsel and legal departments. Responses from more than 130 in-house counsel from a wide array of industries, departments, and company sizes provided insights on the outlook of their businesses, departments, budgets, and outsourcing needs. The […]
Over the past few months, we’ve been studying our 2019 client feedback research, conducting ongoing client feedback interviews via phone and Zoom for law firm clients and working with ALM on a survey to uncover how clients are being impacted by COVID-19. As we compared the views from last year to 2020, clients continue to […]
Every organization has a unique culture—the personality, values, beliefs and guidelines that dictate behaviors and shape decision-making. The cultural “norms” of an organization may be clearly dictated or more subtle, spoken or unspoken. Regardless, outside counsel who seek to understand their clients’ unique cultures and adapt their services accordingly are often better equipped to be […]
We get to work with really smart and insightful attorneys, and while we are often hired to help teach them new skills and client insights, the reality is we learn a lot from them. I walk away with different perspectives and ideas from each interaction. One of my favorite attorneys is really trying to retool […]
Wicker Park Group periodically revisits some of our most popular blog posts. This article, originally posted in July, was one of the most read in 2019. There is a word that has been used in five of my last six client interviews, unsolicited, to describe what separates a lawyer or law firm from the others—intangibles. […]
Last week, I shared five tips to come out of a recent client panel. As I said in the previous post, most client panels cover well-worn client service topics. But there’s a reason the same topics get discussed: In-house lawyers continue to seek outside counsel who don’t just provide the necessary work but who proactively […]
I suspect I have listened to and/or facilitated over 50 client panels in the last fifteen years. While some of the themes have evolved over the years, it always surprises me how consistent the messages are no matter the industry, age/background of the in-house counsel or size of the company. Given my extensive exposure to […]
In a client feedback interview last week, I asked a senior in-house counsel what drives the most successful relationships with outside counsel. Without batting an eye, the counsel responded, “Understand what we are trying to accomplish as a business. Start there.” The conversation continued with similar comments: “It’s all there. It’s what we talk about […]
Many of you have probably attended a school orientation meeting recently. We moved our college sophomore into her dorm this weekend ahead of most students’ arrival because she will be part of the freshman orientation leadership team. This private liberal arts school does a really remarkable job of preparing hundreds of wide-eyed 18- and 19-year-olds […]
There is a word that has been used in five of my last six client interviews, unsolicited, to describe what separates a lawyer or law firm from the others—intangibles. Sure, clients want smart lawyers who know their industry and business deeply and who have expertise, but in this market these qualities are expectations, not differentiators. […]
Wicker Park Group periodically revisits some of our most popular blog posts. This post, one of the most read last year, was originally posted in January 2018. We tend to end our interviews with a parting question. It’s usually something along the lines of, “Is there anything we haven’t asked or discussed that you would […]
Current news almost always creeps into the conversations during client feedback interviews. And lately, we are hearing a lot from sophisticated clients about the growing focus on managed services and the increasing legal professional headcounts in the Big Four accounting firms. As you would expect, it’s the tax and M&A folks in companies that have […]
We tend to end our interviews with a parting question. It’s usually something along the lines of, “Is there anything we haven’t asked or discussed that you would like to talk about and/or we should have asked?” Interestingly, the last three of four interviews I have held concluded with the same response: diversity. Maybe it […]
Wicker Park Group periodically revisits some of our most popular blog posts. This post, our most read in 2017, was originally posted in November. Those readers familiar with Wicker Park Group are aware of our key theme in 2017: Adding Value. For those of you new to the concept, adding value is one of the […]
Those readers familiar with Wicker Park Group are aware of our key theme in 2017: Adding Value. For those of you new to the concept, adding value is one of the most important qualities necessary to building long-term, trusting, meaningful client relationships. Clients routinely mention adding value as one of the key differentiators of their […]
Wicker Park Group will periodically revisit some of our most popular blog posts. This post, one of the most read in the first half of 2017, was originally posted in January. Howard Schultz recently announced he is stepping down from his role as CEO and Chair of Starbucks to focus on the company’s plans to build high-end […]
We always tell our law firm clients that communication is the key to the best client relationships. And communication takes many forms: the written word, the business-practical and commercial advice, the tone you set when talking to in-house counsel, the way in-house counsel want and expect to communicate for any and every matter and, of […]
The following article, written by Susan Kostal, was posted June 1 as part of JD Supra’s Perspectives series. I’ve attended many panels where in-house counsel share their likes and dislikes, but in the last year the tone has changed. In-house attorneys are increasingly dissatisfied, they tell us, because they can’t have the kind of conversations they […]
Wicker Park Group is revisiting some of the processes around Client Feedback Interviews in a new series of blog posts called “Back to Basics.” This is the fourth article in the series. You can find the first article about how to choose clients for feedback here, the second article about the importance of preparation here and the third […]
An IT lawyer recently made a striking observation to me. He works in the flat-screen TV industry and noted that a flat-screen TV from twenty years ago could cost $20,000 or more and lacked much of today’s technology. But every year, the technology has gotten better as the cost has declined. You can now buy […]
Howard Schultz recently announced he is stepping down from his role as CEO and Chair of Starbucks to focus on the company’s plans to build high-end coffee shops that charge as much as $12 per cup of coffee. That makes me think of the top end of the lawyer’s hourly billable rate. The $2,000 hour […]
Many law firms understand how to meet their client’s biggest and most obvious client service preferences. We’ve all laughed about (and learned from) the story of the firm that FedExed its RFP response to UPS and was summarily dismissed from the process as well as the firm that forgot to remove competitor products from the […]
We will periodically revisit some of Wicker Park Group’s most popular blog posts. This one, from November 2015, was one of last year’s most read posts. There seems to be a theme with our clients these past few months: change. We have three different clients who recently hired new CMOs, and there are significant changes […]
In the past month, I have moderated multiple in-house counsel panels (both in public forums and at private law firm retreats), interviewed more than a dozen in-house counsel and led client service workshops at law firms. In every instance, I was struck by the widening gap between what clients want from their outside counsel and […]
We will periodically revisit some of Wicker Park Group’s most popular blog posts. This one, from October 2015, was one of last year’s most read posts. After twenty years as general counsel of a financial institution and a large medical center, I have heard plenty of complaints from our executives about working with outside counsel. In […]
Wayne Gretzky is famous for being one of the greatest hockey players in history. He is also known for inspiring thousands with his quotes. One of my favorite Gretzky quotes is: “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.” It is simple but incredibly powerful and exactly […]
Unsurprisingly, no law firm has had the courage in recent weeks to say, “In light of the unjustified first-year associate salary increases, we are reducing first-year base compensation by $10,000 to better align our business with our clients’ ongoing economic reality and invest in our client relationships.” There is no value to your clients in […]
In a recent client feedback interview, a deputy general counsel told a common story. He had all but forgotten the Thursday deadline for a filing in a litigation matter of medium importance. His regular outside litigation counsel had a conflict, and he was trying a new firm on the recommendation of a colleague. The firm […]
In some businesses, clients view their lawyers as impediments to making things happen. Those clients often work with outside counsel who throw up roadblocks and tell them why something won’t work instead of seeking a solution to the challenge. The roadblocks can be anything from regulatory hurdles to plain old risk aversion or analysis paralysis. […]
Not too long ago I interviewed the CFO of a Fortune 1000 company who told me, “You picked a bad day to come visit me.” My response: “Great, I am glad we have something to talk about!” He then explained the background. Outside counsel had been confident in how a judge was going to rule—so […]
Clients come in every shape and size, and every client has a different set of expectations from outside counsel. And “every client” means each individual at the same company has a different style and set of needs that needs to be known, hence our mantra: One Size Fits One. While each client will have individual […]
In early December, I was talking to a law firm senior associate about his successes for the year and goal setting for next year and made the obvious comment about the rush to get in hours for the year. He responded, “Oh, I hit my hours last month so now I can coast.” I don’t […]
There seems to be a theme with our clients these past few months: change. We have three different clients who recently hired new CMOs, and there are significant changes in the managing partner and chairman roles of law firms. Furthermore, we have conducted quite a few interviews with individuals who are new to their company […]
After twenty years as general counsel of a financial institution and a large medical center, I have heard plenty of complaints from our executives about working with outside counsel. In my opinion, some complaints were justified and some were not. Here is a list of the most common (justified) complaints I heard over those two […]
“That lawyer does not take on each problem by rote but brings a renewed activism and discipline to the need to find the solution. That lawyer ‘listens’ rather than just ‘hears.’” –Client interviewed by Wicker Park Group While hearing and listening both require using our ears, the words have very different meanings. Listening […]
It was my second week as the bank holding company’s newly minted general counsel, and I walked into my CEO’s office late in the afternoon with one question: “What type of general counsel do you want me to be for you?” Without missing a beat, my new boss answered quickly with two words: ”No surprises!” […]
In a recent conversation with a Fortune 500 in-house counsel, I asked how she defines value. She replied, “Value is the most ill-defined concept in the legal industry. What I value is a firm that understands how its work fits into my work life. But when you ask my boss or the CFO, they are […]
As a young lawyer, I (like many others) assumed legal expertise was the fundamental prerequisite to a successful legal career. Certainly, you aren’t going to be considered for selection without it. But as we all now know, there are many, many places to find competent legal work. You must offer a lot more than that […]
During the 2015 Legal Marketing Association Annual Conference, keynote speaker Daniel Pink discussed many themes related to the role sales plays in the lawyer-client relationship. For decades, lawyers have pushed back aggressively that they aren’t in the business of sales. Of course, they are wrong. Sales is not something out of Glengarry Glen Ross (Pink redefines the […]
Early in my tenure as in-house counsel, I learned that our company possessed eight key decision criteria reflecting our company’s core values. We used those criteria as we began consolidating our outside legal work to fewer law firms. Those eight key decision criteria were: The firm’s relationship to us (including years of service to our […]
Value is very important to clients, but they do not always understand the bigger picture of your value when looking at a bill. Instead of just providing a bill, you can easily offer your clients some perspective that clearly illustrates the value of your legal services. In any transactional work, when the client asks what […]
We can all benefit from revisiting the essential expectations clients have of outside counsel. Even though none of this is groundbreaking, it’s too easy for outside counsel to get lost in the weeds of day-to-day work and forget about the most important expectations they must meet. Take a moment to reflect on how well you’d […]
For those firms that have not yet notified their clients of their intentions to increase rates after the first of the year, it’s already too late. Not every company budgets on a calendar year annual basis, but for those that do, that process is nearly complete by mid-October. In-house counsel typically draft budgets in September, […]
As an active member of the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) and a member of our local ACC Board, I attend many events where participants discuss how to work well with outside counsel. As Wicker Park Group’s own GC, I feel like I am standing on both sides of the fence as a GC for […]
At a recent Legal Marketing Association panel discussion on Social Media, I was struck by how much the conversation focused on what law firms think they should do about social media without paying attention to their clients. While it is critical that law firms have a plan for social media, including piloting the project, getting attorney buy-in […]
There’s an interesting conversation happening on the LinkedIn Legal Marketing group (membership required). Here’s my post to the question on whether firms should eliminate client alerts and generally how to ascertain the value of client alerts: — The answer to the question is: One size fits one. Every client is different and has different needs. […]
My friend Dov Seidman has a great post on the Huffington Post about how to think of partnering with your clients. As we talk to in-house counsel and other corporate executives we constantly hear that those outside counsel who understand business pressures, are aware of the internal clients’ needs and have “aligned goals” have the greatest loyalty […]
Of all the comments uttered by in-house counsel, this one may be the most universal. In-house counsel are like in-house police: they either bring news that the company has violated or been violated. They have few opportunities to ever get ahead of the curve, to be a partner in managing the company’s risk, in championing […]
Optics: How your actions are perceived. Nope, that’s not the way any dictionary would define the word, but today, in this business environment, it is a term that has been redefined. Today, optics refers to the lens through which your actions are viewed. In recent days, we have a financial services firm canceling a (perceived) […]