Some things appear to be so simple that we assume (dangerously) that everyone “gets it.” Bear with me a moment. For lawyers, it is imperative to consistently and persistently cultivate, nurture and strengthen their relationships with their universal network; with clients, to receive more work; with referral sources, to receive more referrals; with prospects, to develop new work; and so on. Then why is it that a significant number of lawyers either have no system—formal or otherwise—for getting and staying in touch with these people or do a dismal job of staying connected? What Does “Getting And Staying In Touch” Mean? Again, a seemingly obvious question, but in my legal marketing practice of more than 20 years, I have yet to encounter more than a handful of lawyers who understand, as a practical matter, the fundamental principle of this phrase. Starting with the widely known statistic that it takes from 7-10 “touches” annually to stay “top-of-mind,” lawyers are well served to develop—often with the support of their legal secretary/assistant/marketing or IT department—a consolidated contact list including clients; industry and professional contacts; referral sources; prospects; friends and family; school classmates—law school, college, high school, etc.; co-workers and former coworkers; contacts from former clerkships; association contacts; community contacts; holiday card recipients; and so on. Though it may be an arduous administrative task to assemble all the business cards, old Rolodexes (yes, I’m showing my age), database printouts, etc., it is important to have all your contacts in one system. As I often relay to my clients, no list equals no connections, no communications with friends, peers, industry contacts and prospects, and, ultimately, no clients. Remember, we’re in the “relationship-building” business, and it becomes much more daunting to foster relationships if we don’t proactively get and stay in touch. While I could outline the precise steps lawyers need to take in assembling, organizing, categorizing and systemizing their contacts, I’ll spare the reader the administrative details in this article except to point out that once the task of gathering and entering all your contacts into a central system—even Microsoft Outlook does a decent job of this—is complete, lawyers would be sorely remiss if they did not “categorize” their contact names. What Does This Mean? For purposes of communicating regularly with your various constituents (clients, referral sources, prospects, etc.), no one communication message will be of interest to everyone on your contact list. That is to say, if you develop an e-newsletter or legal update on the importance of developing social media policies for the workplace and send it to your human resource clients, that topic may be of little interest to your charitable organization contacts unless they are involved in employment law issues. Basically, you want to tailor your message to an intended audience and there is no better way than to develop “categories” of contacts. When it comes to knowing how, when and how often to reach out, paramount on most attorneys’ minds is that they do not want to be perceived as “too pushy,” “aggressive” or otherwise annoying. Understandable. One principle I often convey to my clients is that most people are so involved in their own world, business, family, etc., you are not capturing 100 percent of their attention most of the time. In other words, to adequately “register” on your targets’ radar, there must be regular, consistent and persistent “touch points,” be they via e-mail, phone call, face-to-face contact (for which there is no substitute) and social media outlets, just to name a few. Check Motivations To build and grow a healthy practice, it is imperative to develop a system of getting and staying in touch but doing so with the appropriate mindset. In short, “It’s not about you.” Lawyers often ask me: “What is it that I’m saying to all these people?” Lawyers sometimes say, “I don’t want to bother these folks,” and express other such sentiments. My response is usually a variation on the theme of reaching out with a helpful spirit and with true intentions of checking in on your contacts’ business, seeing how they are making out with a recent transition or starting a new position, or a company move, etc. The universal sowing of seeds of goodwill will certainly reap only good things. Or, said another way, employing Newton’s Laws of Motion, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” The more “goodwill” you put out, the more it will come back to you ... usually multifold. Time Considerations Attorneys are very busy people, often logging their time in six-minute increments. Where do they “find” the time to get and stay in touch with everyone and have the oft-needed downtime? Just today, I explained to a junior partner client that, if addressed productively, his contacts will soon be in his personal network circle. Think about it: We all have certain people with whom we enjoy sharing time. What if those special people could be the same people in your categorized contact lists? How cool would that be? Kill two birds with, well, you know. For the successful senior attorneys among us, many of you have worked most of your professional careers to create this very scenario. But it didn’t happen overnight. It took years, in some cases, one contact at a time. This brings me to my next point. Leverage Technology In our global Internet age, it has never been easier to “get and stay in contact” with a broad base of contacts via the technological tools available (e.g., LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, blogging). Not a technophile? No sweat; there are “people” who make a career of helping clients “connect.” One such job title is “certified social media specialist.” Net-Net In the growing competitive legal services arena, cultivating strong relationships is more important than ever before. As a successful lawyer and business owner, you must find a way to get and stay in touch with your desired audiences, targeted constituents and those folks who ultimately can help you grow a healthy practice. It is most easily done by: Committing to making it happen. Gaining buy-in from your support resources (internal and/or external) so everyone is on the same page. Developing a viable and workable system for gathering, categorizing and maintaining contacts on an ongoing basis. Scheduling dates/calendar regular communication with your contacts in addition to the other regular “touches.” Repeat. 

The last few days I’ve been harping a bit on the importance of “knowing your numbers.” Yesterday, I said that the “Key” numbers for the owner of a solo or small law firm to be on top of are as follows: Budget Budget Variance Report Cash Flow Projection (6 weeks rolling) Aged A/R by Account WIP Cash Position (Operating & Trust) In response, a few lawyers asked me to explain why Balance Sheet is not on my “short list.” A couple more thought their YTD revenues should make my top six list. They all made very nice arguments that I’m not going to distract you with here. Instead, here’s the explanation to each of these questions, so you don’t let yourself get distracted… Balance Sheet Financial accountants love balance sheets. So do book keepers. Management CFO’s aren’t nearly as impressed with the balance sheet, however. There are two principal reasons for this big difference in who cares more about what. First, the balance sheet for solo & small law firms is mostly fictitious. In other words, the assets don’t really matter. Assets don’t pay bills. Cash flow does. Assets don’t hire staff or fund marketing campaigns. Cash flow does. Balance sheets, which are driven by the estimated value of assets against the estimated total of liabilities, tell you how much “equity” you have in your law firm. So what? Who cares? Would you rather own a law firm with one million dollars of “equity” and flat, anemic or even negative cash flow; or a law firm with half as much equity but twice as much positive cash flow? THAT is why Management CFO’s of law firms don’t worry too much about balance sheets. Because cash flow (which is driven by the 6 key numbers) is what really makes a difference in how you manage a small law firm. YTD Revenues Year-to-date revenues are nice to know about. This number helps put everything into perspective. It’s a great way to pat yourself on your back and congratulate yourself for a job well done. I look at my YTD revenue every month and every year I look forward to “Breaking The 7 Barrier” earlier and earlier in the year. But YTD revenues don’t drive forward-looking decisions. YTD revenues are like looking in your rear-view mirror or at a line on your GPS screen that tells you where you have been. YTD numbers are good for nostalgia and filing your tax returns. But they don’t drive ongoing, forward-looking management, marketing, sales, staffing or any other of the critical decisions that management of the law firm must make on an ongoing basis to ensure profitability and a balanced lifestyle. If this is all news to you, don’t worry. You’re not alone. None of this is anything they teach any of us in law school. If you “know” this stuff but you’re not making monthly management decisions based on what your six key numbers are telling you, then I absolutely promise you that you are NOT coming close to having the most profitable, predictable and/or the most professionally-satisfying law firm that you COULD be enjoying. There is a reason why the MOST successful law firms in the country have a CFO on their team too. You can be your own CFO. It just might be a thousand times harder for you to be your own CFO than to get some outside help. And way more expensive for you to try and be your own CFO too. But not as expensive as NO-ONE being the CFO of your business. That’s REALLY expensive!

Businesspeople learn early in their careers the importance of a firm handshake and making eye contact when meeting other businesspeople for the first time. Both the handshake and eye contact are examples of how nonverbal communication contributes to first impressions. Murray Johannsen, in an article titled “Nonverbal Communication,” appearing in Legacee online, describes the subtlety of handshakes: “The example from the American culture is the amount of pressure one exerts on the other person’s hand during a handshake. One puts a certain amount of pressure into the handshake, and it should be neither too much nor too little. Another aspect of this is, when grasping another’s hand, the web of your hand intersects the web of their hand.” If a handshake can communicate so much, that’s indicative of the need to pay attention to all areas of nonverbal communication. The question then becomes: How do you improve your nonverbal communication skills as you listen to and speak with others? Step 1: Watch Yourself ... and Others. When communicating, focus on the use of your body. The goal is to increase the expressive nature of your body, when appropriate, without being overdramatic. Be aware that gestures are often more useful with groups, such as in meetings and presentations. If a person’s words fail to match his or her nonverbal cues, it’s best to trust the nonverbal messages. Listen with your eyes. In most cases, the nonverbal message is more accurate. Step 2: Maintain Eye Contact. Eye contact is crucial when speaking with anyone, particularly coworkers, superiors, or direct reports. It promotes trust and understanding. Try to increase eye contact when speaking with others, and see if they’re making and maintaining eye contact with you. If someone avoids eye contact, you’ll likely sense the person’s discomfort or dishonesty. You can ease another’s discomfort by asking questions that enhance communication. Step 3: Work on Your Posture. Your mother emphasized the need to stand up straight and avoid slouching in your chair. As it turns out, Mom was giving you your first lesson in nonverbal communication. Posture is a nonverbal indicator of confidence level. A gesture conveys a message by using one part of the body, whereas a postural shift involves the movement of the body as a whole. A closed posture (folded arms and crossed legs) indicates a closed personality and a lack of confidence. Open posture (arms spread in a relaxed manner) is a much more confident pose. Posture should also be in sync with conversations so you avoid sending mixed messages. When you’re sitting behind your desk or at a meeting table, sit up straight. Don’t slump; it conveys disinterest and inattention. Leaning back, or rocking back and forth in your chair, tells others you’re bored. In contrast, leaning forward in your chair when listening to someone speak demonstrates active interest in both the person and conversation. Step 4: Straighten Your Desk. A sloppy desk or office sends the message that you’re disorganized and careless. Messy desks may be a symptom of a larger problem such as inefficiency, which stems from an inability to find files or other important papers. Disorganization creates stress and limits productivity. Instead of creating vertical piles on your desk, rely on to-do files that can be stored inside a drawer. Step 5: Read Your Audience. If you’re making a presentation, be aware of your audience’s nonverbal communication. As your presentation progresses, watch for signs of slouching, yawning, or dozing off; this means you’ve lost their attention. If, on the other hand, the group is energized and interested, participants’ body language may convey that they want you to ask for their thoughts and input. Learning to read a group’s mood enhances your abilities as both a speaker and manager. Step 6: Listen to Your Voice. Paralanguage, or paralinguistics, involves the various fluctuations in one’s voice, such as tone, pitch, rhythm, inflection, and volume. These cues can have a powerful effect on communication. A loud or very forceful tone, for example, may convey a stronger and more serious message, as compared to softer tones. Sarcasm can also cause problems in the workplace. A manager’s sarcastic tone creates stress because his tone (joking) is meant to contradict his words (hurtful or biting). Step 7: Question Yourself. Throughout the day, monitor your progress. Ask yourself the following questions about your performance: How was I perceived at the meeting? Could I have done something differently? Were people really interested and paying attention to what I was saying? Did I listen well to others? As you answer these questions, your self-awareness will increase. None of these six steps can be taken for granted. True, some people are more aware of slight distinctions of nonverbal communications than others, but everybody can learn to use the six steps and thereby make dramatic improvements in their ability to communicate effectively with others. 

As part of your law firm’s strategy, you want (ideally) to align your pricing methods, metrics and communications with your clients’ value proposition. That, of course, is easier said than done. Most firms struggle to achieve the delicate balance between the rates they need to charge and the rates clients are willing to pay. And all firms face the same fear: What if you miscalculate and lose your best clients? Still, there comes a time when you have to increase your rates to stay profitable. How to Raise Fees without Losing Clients So, how do you implement a rate increase without driving away the client? It comes down to communication, metrics, timing and value. Here are some thoughts on how to go about it. Get over the fear factor. Don’t let fear keep you from raising rates! Chances are, if you are making excuses to avoid a rate hike, those excuses are a cover for speculations based on fear. Communicate the “whys.” When your firm has specific reasons for raising rates, tell your clients. Perhaps you froze rates during the recession out of consideration for your clients’ financial situations, or to keep their business. Maybe you wrote off a considerable amount of time each month resulting in even lower effective rates. No matter how big or small, letting clients know about these financial courtesies builds goodwill—and it can be a great client development tool. Understand the metrics. Before deciding to increase your rates, know your firm’s economics. Do you know where your break even point is, profit-wise? How much it costs to produce a billable hour, or a brief? Or your costs by timekeeper? Understanding the economics makes it much easier to determine the increase. Keep in mind that smaller increases—3 to 5 percent per year—are generally better, and are met with less resistance when they are implemented consistently (i.e., the same time each year). When setting rates, it’s not just about what the firm “needs” to charge to break even, but also about what the firm “wants” to generate in fees. Review your costs, calculate your break even point, and determine a suitable rate. You might also consider the 80/20 scenario: Identify the 20 percent of your clients who generate the least profit and either raise their rates or terminate them. If this sounds harsh, keep in mind that you are in business to generate profit—you cannot afford to carry unprofitable clients just because you like them. Timing is everything—no surprises! The worst thing you can do is fail to tell clients about your rate increase, instead letting them find out when they open their next invoice. Let your clients know in writing that you are increasing rates and provide sufficient notice, perhaps 60 days. Also, as a best practice, make sure your engagement letters include language indicating the firm will, upon notice, adjust rates periodically. This should alleviate some pushback. Some clients will resist and attempt to negotiate the proposed rate increases. That opens the door for discussions about the actual value of legal services provided ... and brings us to No. 5. Talk about the value being delivered. Will you lose some clients who aren’t willing to pay a higher rate? Maybe. But if you do, your firm needs to ask an important question: Why doesn’t the client perceive the full value of the services provided? Get past the fear factor and help clients understand the value your firm delivers. At every chance, seize the opportunity to educate them!

Regardless of whether you’re the managing partner of a firm with dozens of attorneys and support staff, or you’re a solo practitioner, relying on the assistance of a skilled paralegal, a legal secretary, and other assistants, there’s no getting around the fact that your firm needs to be prepared to handle employment issues. Fortunately, if you follow these six suggested tips for minimizing employee problems in your law practice, you can likely save yourself a great deal of time and frustration if and when an employment problem arises. Update Your Employee Handbook At Least Once Every Two Years Law firms of all sizes would be wise to make sure that their employee handbook is updated at a minimum of once every two years. This will reduce liability by clearly outlining the firm’s vacation payout policy, the employee complaint process, disaster recovery plans and policies on how workplace violence and/or harassment will be handled. In addition, your firm’s employee handbook must include code of conduct requirements, which should cover topics including dress code, code of ethics, safety, and attendance policies. In addition, your firm’s communications policy needs to address the proper usage and storage of mail/emails, text messages, and address any social media related restrictions. And of course, law firms of any size must address nondiscrimination policies, employment and termination policies, and include an acknowledgment letter. It’s important to provide all employees with a copy of any revisions to the employee handbook as they are implemented. Likewise, a new letter of acknowledgment of receipt of revisions to the handbook should be distributed and signed by all employees. Maintain Proper Documents When you find yourself in the undesirable position of having to terminate an employee, you’ll find that the process is far less anxiety inducing if you’ve kept proper documentation of their performance. All violations of the firm’s code of conduct or other policies must be addressed and documented, so as to protect your firm from a lawsuit later on. For example, when evaluating performance or taking disciplinary action, make sure that the meeting is documented with the dates and times of the incidents. Suggestions for improvements to be made in the future should also be provided for the employee facing disciplinary action. In addition, be sure to record the names, dates, and times of all who are in attendance when addressing the violation(s) with an employee. At the conclusion of any meeting regarding firm policy violations, be sure to have the employee sign an acknowledgment that they have received warning of the violation, understand the future disciplinary actions that may be taken if the problem is not corrected, and understand how to not make the same mistake again. Safely Store All Employee Records An I-9 is the absolute bare minimum of what needs to be safely stored for each firm employee. Savvy firms will also retain a copy of the employee’s resume, any background check results, any confidentiality agreements, and a copy of the acknowledgment of receipt of the firm handbook, along with items such as the offer letter presented, and the W-4. A second file for each employee ought to be created and maintained, which will include all health and welfare-related benefits information which may be protected under HIPAA privacy laws. This safely stored file ought to include items such as insurance benefit forms, drug screening consent forms and results, physician’s notes, and/or any personal or family leave information. In addition to keeping all personal information safe and secure, it’s smart to schedule an annual audit of your own files to ensure that all pertinent information is where it ought to be, and that it is safely and privately protected. Spend More Time Screening Employees An ounce of prevention is definitely worth a pound of cure when it comes to hiring new receptionists, legal secretaries, office managers, paralegals, law clerks and of course, attorneys. Discrepancies often exist between what potential employees report on resumes and cover letters, and what can be verified by their previous employers. In addition to a job history verification, you’re going to want to conduct an education verification, criminal background check, fraud detection, and a National Sex Offender Registry check. Because of the time commitment required to thoroughly pre-screen employees, it’s not surprising that many firms opt to outsource this process, including drug screening, background checks and more to companies who provide this service. If you choose to pre-screen employees on your own, be prepared for it to take time, but it’s worth every minute you spend upfront, to avoid the time and expense of terminating, and having to start the process over again with a new candidate. Focus on Onboarding Training Studies have shown that employee turnover costs employers much more than an employee’s annual salary. The time spent training only to have an employee leave, followed by finding another candidate is incredibly costly in terms of time and money. Onboarding training aims to reduce turnover. In its simplest form, onboarding refers to the process of acclimating and welcoming new members to your firm, by providing them with resources, tools, and the knowledge they need to be successful and productive members of your firm. In order to create a firm culture that matches with your vision, it’s smart to formalize an onboarding training program, so that new employees understand overall goals and vision for the firm. Be Careful with Classification of Employees Any slip-up with the classification of employees can wind up costing your firm a lot of money. You need to familiarize yourself with the differences between a non-exempt employee, an overtime exempt employee, and any independent contractors, including contract attorneys. The Fair Labor and Standards Act (FLSA) governs classification issues, while the United States Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division provides guidance on the FLSA. Visit www.dol.gov for more information. If being responsible for hiring, training, and classifying employees all seems like way more work than you signed up for when launching your firm, rest assured you’re not alone. As the head of a firm of any size, you’ll ultimately be responsible for the success and safety of your practice. But that doesn’t mean that you have to personally address all of the HR and employment issues facing your firm on your own. It is a misconception that Professional Employer Organizations (also called PEOs) are only available to large firms. On the contrary, firms ranging in size from 5-150 employees are actually perfect candidates for engaging the services of a PEO, because the firm will receive the “big firm benefit packages” which help to recruit and retain top talent. They also reduce many of the employer liabilities that your firm may currently have. Indeed, by offloading these responsibilities to companies who handle employment matters and HR issues each and every day, you can focus on what you do best—passionately advocating on behalf of your clients, so that your firm can continue to flourish.