"My definition of success? The more you're actively and practically engaged, the more successful you will be."

Sir Richard Branson

There are many powerful and thought provoking quotes from Richard Branson and others around the topic of ‘success’.  This one particularly resonates with me because it is so apt for law firms. 

What I love about this quote from Richard Branson is that it looks beyond the numbers, it challenges you to look within and start exploring the ‘what and how’ and not just the why.  Numbers are an outcome that hel...

You need a clear and concise ‘pitch’ to communicate what you do to clients in language that is focused on helping them. Sometimes we will only have up to 140 characters or 5 seconds to convey our pitch, whereas other times we will need to elaborate and go into more detail.

There is a misconception that a brand is a logo combined with a colour scheme.  It is not.  A brand is so much more than this.  It is the essence of a law firm – it is your look, feel and personality.  What’s more, your brand is the perception that others have of your firm.

Wikipedia defines ‘brand’ as:  

A toolbox of marketing and communication methods that help to distinguish a company from competitors and create a lasting impression in the minds of customers. The key components that form a brand’s toolbox include...

Lawyers need their marketing and business development people to help them achieve their goals. Much like lawyers, marketing people are experts in their field. Lawyers and marketeers need to work collaboratively to deliver 'better' marketing that achieves the desired outcomes.

2007 was a fascinating year with some interesting news and developments including:

• Kryptonite, the stuff of Superman legend, was discovered; only it turned out to be white, not green, and it doesn’t glow!

• The bank interest rate rose to 5.25% in January.

• Northern Rock collapsed.

• UK families were put on fraud alert after the Government admitted two computer discs (remember them?) containing the personal details of 25 million people had disappeared.

• The iPhone was launched – the first ‘smartphone’.

• It became p...

If you are new to the legal sector, you need to understand the mechanics of how a partnership operates and you need to adapt HOW you work within the business and your expectations around getting buy in and decisions around moving things forward.

This past weekend we have seen BA hit by IT problems that have resulted in a complete meltdown of their service. Flights have been cancelled, luggage has been lost or misplaced and thousands of people have had their holidays and trips ruined. There is talk of compensation that could amount to £100M.

Now I don’t know what exactly happened that caused such a severe disruption to service and I am sure that BA will urgently be looking at their contingency plans and disaster recovery protocols. 

But even without full knowledge of the fa...