Executive summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix About the authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv Chapter 1: What do clients want? Working effectively with the general counsel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 By Ian White, consultant, executive coach, mediator, facilitator, and trainer Understand the business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Like the business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Independence is key (and becoming more important) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Likeability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Live up to what you say . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Don’t get it wrong – but if you do, own up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Listen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Shadow the general counsel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Read about and be interested in business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Giving back and the rise of ESG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Working with the Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Chapter 2: Understanding your client’s business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 By Adrienne Gubbay, senior commercial lawyer Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 What does it mean to understand a business? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 How can you leverage your industry knowledge to benefit your in-house customers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 What steps can you take to deeply understand your in-house customer? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 How does obtaining instructions from an internal legal team differ from receiving instructions from a non-legal customer? . . . . 15 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Chapter 3: How do GCs and law firm lawyers differ? Finding common ground . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 By Terezka Zabka, general counsel, San Diego Padres Law firm and GC distinct roles and responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Prioritizing billable hours and revenue vs focus on cost savings and efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Expertise and ability to compel vs influence and persuasion at all levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Building a relationship and staying top of mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Chapter 4: Beyond law – business-critical skills to navigate the intersection of law, business, and technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 By Natasha Norton, KorumLegal No more detached lawyers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 A new definition of success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 The business context – lawyers as business partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Risk management and mitigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Adaptability and resilience – legal work in an era of rapid change . . . 29 Business- / client-centric thinking and communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Leadership and influence in the business world . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Technological proficiency and legal tech expertise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Ethical responsibility – ethical decision-making in business . . . . . . . . . 33 Sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Leveraging legal expertise in the boardroom – bringing strategic value to corporate leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 The lawyer of the future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Chapter 5: How to stay front of mind – business development and relationship building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 By Claire Rason, Client Talk Let’s explore what we mean by business development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Super skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 A model to practice – the Lawyer's Coach Business Development Matrix© . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 In summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Chapter 6: The client view on ESG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 By Jenifer Swallow, strategic advisor and former general counsel Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 The state of play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 The legal profession and ESG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Who is the client? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 What is driving client maturity? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 What clients want on ESG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Chapter 7: What clients look for in panel selection – diversity and culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 By Joanna Day, commercial business leader The need for diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Categories of work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Playing to strengths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 The auction process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Being realistic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 A good cultural fit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Chapter 8: Effective panel and relationship management . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 By Joanna Day, commercial business leader What is a panel? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Panel management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Relationship management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Chapter 9: Fees and billing – a transparent approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 By Joanna Day, commercial business leader Lack of clarity / failure to scope appropriately . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Help, it’s urgent! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Lack of effective relationship management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Billing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 Disbursements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Added value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Cost management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Chapter 10: Matter management – collaborative working . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 By Dr Heidi K. Gardner, distinguished fellow, Harvard Law School and CEO, Gardner & Co and Csilla Ilkei, insights director, Gardner and Co. Taking a step back – how legal needs are shifting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Increasing demands to “move up the value chain” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Necessity of in-house collaboration across four “vectors” . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Implications for external counsel – how firms can respond to stepped-up demands . . . . . . . . . 98 Top ten reasons clients value smarter collaboration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Proving the point – outcomes of smarter collaboration for law firms and partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 If it’s so in-demand and lucrative, why is it still so hard? Challenges to collaboration in law firms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Exceeding clients’ demands – practical, smarter collaboration how-tos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Looking ahead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 Chapter 11: Active listening – do you know what your clients are asking for? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 By Claire Rason, Client Talk The old way of client listening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 What’s the new way? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Active listening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 What lessons carry across from active listening into active client listening? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 What is it that clients want? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 Tricks of the trade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 Informal conversations and empathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 Chapter 12: An empathy-driven approach to client listening . . . . . . . . . 125 By Paul Roberts, founder, MyCustomerLens The purpose of client listening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 Traditional client listening lacks empathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 Designing a client program outside-in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 Listen differently – adopt an always-on approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 Always-on client listening in action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 Does AI automation reduce empathy? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 Key takeaways . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 Chapter 13: The strategic necessity of personalized client relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 By Helen Hamilton-Shaw, member engagement and strategy director, LawNet A client-centric culture – the foundation of personalized relationship building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 Empathy and understanding – the human element in legal services . . 143 Building trust through transparent communication and efficient processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Leveraging technology to enhance client care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 The future of personalization in the legal landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 Chapter 14: Building lasting, positive relationships with clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 By Thomas Santram, senior vice president and general counsel, Cineplex The trusted advisor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 Why do general counsel retain external counsel? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 General counsel hire lawyers – not law firms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 How to develop, grow, and maintain a relationship with a general counsel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 You’ve received your first file – now what? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 What does success look like for general counsel? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 Add value to the working relationship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 Final thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Chapter 15: Reimagining the law firm–client relationship in an age of AI ubiquity and data-centricity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 By Robert Dilworth, managing director and associate general counsel, Bank of America Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 Value in tectonic times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 Mindset, skills, and formation in a VUCA world . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Demographics and diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Reimagining the law firm–client relationship in an advanced information economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 Hallmarks of value in an age of AI ubiquity and data-centricity . . . . . 180 The role of the corporate law firm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 About Globe Law and Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199