This is part two of a two-part series. Please visit part one, Myth or Reality: Conquering the Enemies of Return-to-Office, for insights on cultivating a culture remotely.
Originally published in The Legal Intelligencer
Smart Strategy
Since the availability of a COVID vaccine, law firms have been grappling with the right hybrid work model. While some people barely missed a beat, the majority discovered the flexibility and increased productivity of working from home to be a welcome change. Leaders, rightly concerned with the cultural impact and absence of collaboration and development opportunities, began to explore ways to make hybrid work. Most publicly, firms instituted guidelines for when and how to be in the office. According to a snap poll conducted by The Tilt Institute on this topic in December 2022:
Fewer than 10% have no return-to-office guidelines in place
Nearly 60% of firms mandate three or more days in the office (with a notable similar number having different policies for lawyers and staff)
Over 85% described their enforcement of policies as middling at best
Privately, many firms are attempting to encourage partners—often the most reticent to dive back in—through demonstrations of data on office attendance, subtle messaging about the value to associates, clients and culture, and, sometimes, not-so-subtle requirements attached to compensation and performance reviews.
The first article of this series, “Myth or Reality: Conquering the Enemies of Return-to-Office,” outlined four perceived “truths” prevalent in the return-to-office discussion:
Unless we go back to the office, we can’t …
Cultivate our culture
Provide the right development and mentorship
Develop and enhance personal connections
Attract and retain talent
While each of these has some level of validity, a deep dive into the associated science and trends behind them reveals none of them is truly insurmountable. The key is to ensure leaders, who include partners, managers, supervisors, and many others across the firm, are armed with the right information, planning, skills and course of action to effectively make the transition. The original article in the series explores the first myth, “unless we go back to the office, we can’t cultivate culture.” This one, the second in the two-part series, explores evidence to support—or refute—the latter three.
Provide the right development and mentorship
TRUE and FALSE (i.e., It depends)
Historically, law firms (and many other professional service organizations) have relied on the sink-or-swim approach to development. Young associates and new hires were thrown into the fray and required to learn along the way, following others’ leads, interpreting and navigating internal politics, and relying heavily on self-preservation by any means necessary. Some were lucky enough to find a lifeline in a mentor or colleague who took the time to lend a hand or offer explicit directions and feedback. Others floundered. Some sank.
Fortunately, as an industry, legal has evolved some. Formalized legal skills development, mentorship programs and dedicated professional development teams are the norm. Yet problems persist. Effective professional development relies on a combination of factors. Intrinsic motivation—or the willingness and drive to improve—is one. Culture, discussed in the first part of this series, is another. At least three others are equally fundamental:
The effective use of adult learning principles—adults learn differently. They demand a greater ability to connect the dots, both to the greater benefit (why, how) and to their own situation (experience, applicability, relevance). They seek flexibility in approach, value interactivity and appreciate practical examples. Instructional design is often secondary to content and CLE accreditation in many law firm settings.
Well-designed performance management systems—clearly defined, written expectations, individualized goals, action plans to meet those goals and effective feedback structures (ongoing, continuous, frequent) are essential to personal and professional development. These elements are sorely lacking in most law firms.
Prepared leaders and managers—effective leaders and managers deploy empathy, use active listening, effectively deliver feedback, delegate well, promote collaboration, and engage and motivate their teams. Just as becoming an effective lawyer demands knowledge, training and practice, so too does leadership.
Many law firms do a poor job in one or more of these three areas. While the majority of firms invest in advancing legal skills, few offer expansive training in professional skills such as leadership, management, interpersonal communications, delegation, feedback or even law firm financials. Just 32% of partners and 16% of associates in BigLaw had access to dedicated leadership programs pre-pandemic. Performanc-management systems fare similarly, lacking sophistication and transparency. The bulk are unnecessarily time-consuming and arduous, especially at the partner level (a notable pain point for many at this time of year).
The good news is remote work is not to blame. In fact, improvements in the above structural elements can elevate professional development without necessitating any more time in the office. The tricky part is getting everyone on board. A few tips leaders and managers can use to kick off the transition and support development in a hybrid world include:
Schedule regular check-ins—routine, ongoing communication helps to keep development on track, surfaces issues early, and demonstrates commitment and value to individual team members. Short, notes or calls to confirm workload is manageable, ask about team members’ activities outside of work, inquire about comfort with a newly learned skill, or communicate expectations offer returns far greater than the time invested.
Provide continuous feedback—feedback is a gift. Give it freely and often, and focus equally (if not more) on the positive rather than the negative. Far too often, lawyers are quick to offer corrections. The most thoughtful leaders lean into finding opportunities to celebrate what others do well.
Define clear roles and expectations—people can not achieve what they do not understand. Clarifying expectations and setting goals includes elucidating timelines, format (draft or client-ready), communication preferences (please text me questions as I am on a plane for the next three hours), context (the client has a call on this deal Friday) and more. This clarity not only sets team members up for success, but also denotes respect and encourages responsibility and accountability.
Overcommunicate—seven times. Important messages demand repetition and are rarely fully heard and internalized until they have been repeated seven times. Those who take the time to say it again (and again) avoid the frustration associated with mixed messages and help to catapult learning for their teams.
Create tailored learning maps—individualized paths are vital to tapping into the way adults learn and develop. Pinpoint the areas where people are strong and where they want and need to grow. Then tailor learning opportunities to individual need rather than expecting people to devote time and energy in areas where they excel or do not see relevance.
Professional development and mentorship in a hybrid work environment is not only possible, it may even be preferable. The self-directed nature of some learning opportunities appeals to adult learners, allowing them to engage on their own time and at their own pace.
Simultaneously, remote work demands managers and leaders be more deliberate in how they think, plan, act and communicate. This intentional mindset can benefit those seeking development opportunities, particularly if they are willing to collaborate with mentors to crystallize their own career path and learning needs. Together, leaders and learners can find new and more effective ways to impart knowledge and gain skills.
Develop and enhance personal connections
FALSE, BUT
Perhaps the single most debated topic across generations is whether meaningful relationships can be developed and maintained remotely. Younger generations, raised with access to the internet, email and smartphone technologies, have long engaged in virtual interactions as an integral part of their relationships. Older generations rely more heavily on in-person engagement to feel connected.
Behavioral science supports the notion that in-person interactions can offer richer, more complex interactions between people. The ability to read people’s faces, translate body language and gauge attention levels contribute to how people relate to one another. Yet while these may be more easily achieved when seated in one room, technology has come a long way. The combination of oversized monitors and webcams allows for many cues to be visible despite distance—at least when videos are on.
Other ways to cultivate connection are less reliant on sharing the same airspace and are easily compatible with hybrid work. These include:
Identifying commonalities—finding unique similarities or common interests and experiences spurs a feeling of connectedness. Consider, for example, the feeling upon discovering a shared affinity for a far-away sports team or a common passion for a less-common pastime such as folk dancing or competitive chess. These discoveries deepen ties and create affinities. A leader who offers insights into what makes them unique and creates time and space for others to do the same encourages lasting bonds.
Creating shared experiences—sharing in adventures or problem-solving similarly promotes relationship-building. Lessons in cooking and cocktail-making served this purpose remotely during the pandemic. Today, firms can reserve time at in-person meetings for opportunities to participate in activities specifically designed to be memorable and meaningful. Examples include joint community service projects with team members (bonus for including clients), hiking or ski trips, pickleball tournaments, bike-building competitions and more.
Further, these shared experiences need not be limited to personal or social events, though there is high demand for these types of interactions right now. Leadership teams tackling real-life issues in a thoughtful, systematic way similarly unite through their work together. Law firms intentionally creating targeted task forces across offices and practices leverage this tactic to establish stronger bonds and ignite relationships between those lawyers and professionals who may not regularly interact and who will, in time, be the future of the firm.
Allowing for authenticity—leaders can best allow for authenticity by modeling it themselves and by protecting others’ ability to do the same. Casual comments carry more weight when lobbed from above. Being mindful of how and when judgment enters the conversation helps to create a safe space. Similarly, normalizing vulnerability (e.g., acknowledging a personal challenge or the difficulty had in managing a particular client) gives others permission to do the same.
Expressing empathy—yes, some people are more empathetic than others. Luckily, empathy is a skill and like any other skill it can be taught, practiced and honed. Investments to deepen self-awareness (e.g., personality assessments, core values exercises) and candid discussions about what is—and is not—empathy can help lawyers and professionals shift their mindset—and their behaviors.
Often, leaders conflate problem-solving with empathy. When approached by a colleague with an issue or concern, many jump straight to offering solutions and fail to acknowledge any associated emotion. This is a mistake, and one that is costing leaders considerably in terms of frustration levels, burnout and weakened accountability in their ranks. It not only hampers relationship-building, but also creates undue burden on leaders who take on far more problems than they can handle. Learning to bifurcate showing empathy from solving problems is invaluable, especially when empathy becomes the primary emphasis. This shift in tact offers the one-two-punch of enhancing relations and saving time in the long-run by ensuring responsibility and accountability stay where they belong—with those who raised the issue.
Hybrid work models are asking people to re-imagine and reconsider what it takes to create and build connection. Applying proven principles of relationship-building into interactions regardless of the mode of communication can strengthen connections and deepen bonds. Bonus—these approaches are equally effective in fostering relationships with clients.
Attract and retain talent
FALSE
This final myth is, ironically, farthest from the truth. According to one study published in July 2022 by National Bureau of Economic Research, hybrid work reduced attrition rates by 35% and improved employee satisfaction and productivity. Perception, though, often outweighs reality. Many in the legal industry continue to meld the idea of hybrid work with other trends such as increased demand for flexible work hours and personal boundary-setting. They perpetuate the concept that hybrid work is simply code for not wanting to work, or at least not “hard enough.”
At a recent meeting, a leader openly expressed frustration at certain lawyers she perceived as “wanting to have their cake and eat it too.” These lawyers, she explained, expected to enjoy high levels of compensation yet refused to come into the office five (or more) days a week or complained about feeling pressured to always be “on call.” Her solution—fire the lot. That option, of course, is not viable. Yet the underlying perception and sentiment remains. Many partners are frustrated by what they perceive to be laziness, lack of commitment or an unwillingness to “go the extra mile.”
This story—and perhaps all four of the myths presented about culture, development, relationship-building and retention—highlights the misconception that what worked before is the only path forward. It also demonstrates a concept referred to as “naïve realism” by social psychologists—the belief that perceptions of reality are objectively realistic (with little to no acknowledgement of ingrained factors—upbringing, personal experiences, brain chemistry— which influence perception.) Naïve realism is an inherent source of conflict when people believe their truth is the only truth. It is also a deterrent to productive conversation.
To dispel these myths and overcome the hurdles to hybrid work, law firms and leaders must first seek to understand and open lines of communication. They must embrace the idea of change, be willing to experiment and accept with frank recognition that they do not, in fact, have all the answers. Today, this stance is rare among law firm leaders, few of whom have had the benefit of leadership development and training and are shy to demonstrate vulnerability. Fortunately, it is also a mindset the most effective, practiced and prepared leaders will welcome and encourage.
Disclaimer—all anecdotes reflect the themes and sentiments shared in dozens of conversations. None are directly attributable to a single individual.