Research into how UK law firm leaders truly experience their transformation efforts is timely. They are under more pressure to invest in it than ever — from clients wanting it to lower their bills, to people wanting to work differently, particularly if they can do so at the firm down the road. Perhaps in some cases also investors with a keen eye on the exit sign already. As a result, even tricky partners might be less likely to apply the brakes to anything moving the business forward or obviously future-focused as an apparent matter of principle (that they don’t want to pay for it of course; well, what’s already in place has always worked just fine). The charge that lawyers are preternaturally resistant to change doesn’t resonate as it once did. The increased pace that’s challenging approaches, processes and assumptions almost everywhere else is catching. Nobody wants to be left behind.

At the same time, the stakes are incredibly high. Firms face a higher price tag for confidently choosing to change, and there is less time to decide which way to go. And a poor decision today could cost them even more tomorrow. It’s now a question of which change projects to prioritise above others, and ensuring the chosen ones deliver a return; as one respondent to this research neatly puts it, that “what’s sold, implemented and used are deliverable and the same thing”.

Read the full report on our LPM community platform, or download the PDF.

INSIDE THE REPORT

• Your ability to change: plans for the future: How firms are managing the big questions around growth, like investment, succession planning and compliance.
• Transformation bandwidths and barriers: Explore the key barriers to transformation, from skills gaps and technology to training and concerns about the impact on profitability.
• Get the picture of progress: More on what would constitute the end of a positive firm transformation journey, as experienced by almost three-quarters of our leaders
• Exclusive insight from our partner Tessaract

Your ability to change: plans for the future

The majority of leaders at UK law firms managing up to 300 people that we’ve surveyed are in the market for building on growth to date — although they’re just as clearly navigating a persistently challenging economic climate for SME business.

Transformation bandwidths and barriers

In their own words, some of the biggest obstacles to transformation implementation that leaders have encountered range from familiar “time and financial constraints” to “the knock-on effect of world politics leading to economic uncertainty, as investors seek more certainty”. In a particularly striking finding, however, there is an almost even split between a group who converge on just one key barrier and those that pick any one of a plethora.

Get the picture of progress

What do SME firms most need in place to realise their growth potential, whether that’s a gear change, entering brand new markets or some other piece of business?