This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting (Part 3 of a 3-part series) provides 20 additional examples of productivity improvements in the areas of revenue/profit management, service delivery changes, people management, knowledge management, process management, and technology solutions.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting (Part 2 of a 3-part series) provides four examples of easy yet very effective productivity improvements that a law firm may consider.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting (Part 1 of a 3-part series) explains what we mean by productivity in the law firm context, why improving productivity is essential for most firms’ survival and the importance of metrics for productivity improvements.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting describes an article authored by our partners in the American Lawyer on the subject of law trends revealed by the Am Law 100 results for 2016.

When the Am Law 100 results for 2016 are issued later this month, we believe they will confirm several key trends. A small group of approximately 20 firms is widening its lead over all other firms and concentrating its share of Am Law 100 profits. For now, there are a couple dozen firms in the mid-tier between the leaders and the lower tier. Each year, though, the mid-tier becomes emptier and a wider gap opens between leaders and the rest. Some mid-tier firms join the leaders and most fall into the lower tier. Many related trends are also described in this post.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting describes a podcast interview of Blaqwell partner David Barnard by the American Lawyer on the subject of law firm compensation systems.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting (Part 3 of a 3-part strategy series) explains how to flesh out a directional decision to grow deep into a detailed strategy.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting describes a recent American Lawyer study showing a correlation between non-equity partners and declining profitability in Am Law 100 firms, concluding that firms with increasing NEP tiers are signaling weak underlying profits per equity partner. The blog post observes that an alternative hypothesis may be that large firms, which often opt for the stability of size in exchange for lower PPEP, are more advanced in their use of a non-equity partner tier, and that the correlation of NEP tier with declining PPEP may be a red herring. The blog post endorses, however, the concluding advice of the study that law firms should first adopt a good strategy to be distinctive and handle their NEP tier as part of an actively managed overall partner development program.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting (Part 2 of a 3-part strategy series) explains the available directional choices dictated by the current market for legal services: grow broadly or grow deep.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting (Part 1 of a 3-part strategy series) explains that a strategy enables a firm to distinguish itself from competitors and pull ahead. Preparing a strategy requires a tough-minded assessment of the firm's strengths and weaknesses, a disciplined approach, difficult decisions and often the help of an outsider. Implementing the strategy can be even more challenging. But the pay-off can be great, and the alternatives may be attrition and ultimately absorption by another firm.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting describes the five key considerations in assessing a firm's readiness for change and the urgency of the need for change. It builds on the prior joint post outlining the 5 issues a law firm leader should understand about their firms, which may cause the leader to pursue opportunities for change. Before pursuing change, the leader should address the five considerations outlined in this post, which may change or limit the direction a firm's leader decides to take. But the first step is educating the partners. By educating partners, assessing their appetite for change and cataloging the more financially significant changes that are needed, a firm leader will understand the gap between what needs to be done and what realistically can be done. The firm leader can map out a plan for the firm to change in its own way before external forces compel possibly undesirable changes.

This joint post by Blaqwell and KMJD Consulting contains a checklist of the five most important issues a firm leader should be addressing, intended to assist law firm leaders in focusing on the big picture.