Leftfoot - Legal Business Development

A conversation with Mark Smolik of DHL Mark Smolik, Vice President General Counsel & Secretary, Chief Compliance Officer, DHL Supply Chain Americas, leads his company’s legal, commercial contracts management, compliance, and economic development teams.   He’s a proponent of establishing strong operational disciplines and working closely with the business in support of their shared interests. He’s been in his current role for 8 years following successive in-house roles at three name organizations since 1990. https://www.linkedin.com/in/marksmolik/ (Mark Smolik Bio) Corporate Lawyers: take a business approach to the practice of law; your demeanor should be that of a business person. Build Internal Equity: offer a supportive approach to the business. Provide Meaningful Value: your perceived value to the business is key. Be prepared: take the time to learn about the organization, the industry, the legal department, and the people on the legal team. Tie the services you offer to the needs of the client:

While Leaving the Hubris at Home David Yawman is the SVP & Deputy General Counsel of PepsiCo, and General Counsel North American Beverages and Quaker Foods NA. He has 18 years of in-house public company operating division and global markets experience.   He works extensively with his organizations C-Suite executives and the audit committee of the company’s board of directors. https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-yawman-1003033b/ (David Yawman Bio) Keys to In-house Success: Know the business, how the company makes money. Translate your knowledge of the law and the business to influence the decisions being made. Expertise, Value, and Diversity: key components of PepsiCo’s decision-making process. Betting on both the horse and the jockey:  when investing in legal tech, to ensure it’s implemented properly. The Competition is Daunting: the events of 2008 resulted in a new normal on costs. They value partners:  who share in the pressures they are under, who show an understanding of their business and are rea

A Full-Service Approach Anjli Garg, is the Director, Associate General Counsel, Citibank, NA.  She works with her organizations largest global institutional clients providing counsel on global B2B cash and card payment businesses.  She practices in a variety of legal disciplines including privacy and data security, internet/e-commerce, IP, bank regulatory, securities and bankruptcy. https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.linkedin.com_in_anjli-2Dgarg-2D48336318_&d=DwMGaQ&c=j-EkbjBYwkAB4f8ZbVn1Fw&r=c4EaDdRgmuS6P_X1BD4qnh5wQrL4dPkuQ2mrNOvUzMk&m=ne1b4cE9FPApvkz20pC3hEQJl90BfKH9JE_goa60OBc&s=4ssORDH9T687ycZaMkqXDmKvgNi3qB3DR46elMt-2yI&e= (Anjli Garg Bio) Keys to Practicing In-house:  Flexibility; adaptability; listening and hearing the goals of the organization, and being strategic when advising the business. Outside Counsel Selection:  Is based on legal expertise, cost, and whether the lawyer has a business mindset and can employ a diplomatic approach.  Law is a Servi

The Need for Blended Legal and Business Advice. Mackenzie Phillips is an Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Counsel at JLL.   Prior to assuming this role formally, she was in the same role as a member of the Axiom Legal team.    She also advised Orbitz Worldwide on governance and security matters while at Axiom.  With additional experience at both Winston & Strawn and Mayer Brown as a Corporate Associate – and as an intern to the Deputy Counsel to the President during the Clinton administration, she’s able to draw from a variety of legal environments as we discuss legal business development and client retention in today’s market. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mackenzie-k-phillips-317a343/ (Mackenzie Phillips Bio) Relationships, Relationships, Relationships: Be deliberate about spending time with the people you’ll be working with the most. Mackenzie’s 4 Cs: Connection: bring your authentic self to work Communication: have clarity of message and understand your audience Command: show

Lawyer to Lawyer Selection and Fee Negotiation is History  Ricardo Anzaldua served as EVP and General Counsel to MetLife until June 30th of this year.   He is currently serving as special counsel to MetLife’s CEO. Prior to joining MetLife he was an SVP and Associate General Counsel at The Hartford Financial Services Group, following a partnership at Cleary Gottlieb. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricardo-anzaldua-86a15814/ (Ricardo Anzaldua Bio)        Episode Highlights  Law Firm Business Development: The days when an in-house lawyer chooses an outside lawyer and pays what the lawyer is asking are gone. Legal Tech and Legal Services Outsourcing: Clients will no longer pay for repetitive and formulaic work being done by counsel at any level – where legal tech and legal services outsourcing should be employed. Legal operations and procurement: Will be part of the structure within ALL in-house legal departments before the end of the decade.   Hiring outside counsel: We’re hiring outside counsel for a speci

Bridging the Law Firm Generation Gap Professor, Scott Westfahl, is the Director of Harvard Law School Executive Education. He leads his organization in their mission to support and develop lawyers across the arc of their careers as they advance to new levels of leadership and responsibility.   He teaches law firm leaders, partners, associates and general counsel – collaborating with his colleagues and other school faculty. Prior to his current position, he was the Director of Professional Development at Goodwin Proctor. http://hls.harvard.edu/faculty/directory/11254/Westfahl/ (Scott Westfahl Bio) Generations experience the same motivations It’s the context in which each generation operates that is different The millennial generation is the most transparent generation that ever existed The power of a collective voice with a vehicle to express it publicly/openly Mastery, meaning and purpose, and a laser focus on client service as consumers A creative idea – seconded associates and design thi

Putting An End to the Mundane  Today’s guests are not only leaders in the field of legal operations – but are on the forefront of transforming the legal ecosystem – through their leadership within CLOC – the Corporate Legal Operations Consortium. The first of two guests on Episode 76 is the Chief of Staff and Senior Director of Legal Operations at NetApp and CEO of CLOC, Connie Brenton.   Connie has a JD and MBA, starting off her career in operations and subsequently legal operations at Sun Microsystems, Oracle and now NetApp.    She’s passionate about the need for transformation in the legal industry, through the use of technology and the application of tools, programs, and processes for greater efficiency. https://www.linkedin.com/in/conniebrenton/ (Connie Brenton on LinkedIn) Joining Connie is Mary O’Carroll, the Head of Legal Operations, Technology and Strategy at Google. Transitioning from a career in investment banking and consulting Mary experienced law firm life joining Orrick in 2003 a

And the Practice of Law COO of Goodwin, Michael Caplan manages his firm’s business, financial and administrative operations – focusing on growth strategy and execution.   He’s worked with over 30 different General Counsel during his career – many while running a legal operations consulting business.  http://www.goodwinlaw.com/professionals/c/caplan-michael (Michael Caplan Bio)  Today’s law firm environment is more competitive and relies on preferred panels making differentiation throughout the entire business development process more important. Firms and lawyers benefit when they talk about the business of law AND the practice of law. Professional staff today has more opportunities to drive revenue and manage risk for the firm. Making investments in clients is not about discounts – invest in the risk. Offer capped fees tied to milestones with both discounts and success fees. Have an ongoing dialogue on project management and scope with your clients. Law is a service business. Law firms ne

Driving In-House Legal Strategic Decision Making The Head of Legal operations at The Gap, Mike Haven is on the cutting edge of legal department management, creating, implementing and developing some of the industries most innovative policies, procedures, and tools.   He came to his role from NetApp where he managed legal operations and litigation across the enterprise.   Prior to joining NetApp, he was a partner at K&L Gates. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-haven-057aa1/ (Mike Haven Bio) Today the legal eco system is a fundamental part of an effective legal department strategy. Looking for flexibility and creativity in fee arrangements that help them manage their budget. They are very open to potential partners presenting metrics to help the in-house department be creative and pivot. When making sourcing decisions it’s the outlier qualities that make a difference. Proactive, productivity improvement suggestions from law firms would be very welcome including sharing client specific relationship metr

Both Offer Advantages for Litigators   Geoff Frost is the Director of Client Development at Bondurant Mixson & Elmore. He’s responsible for directing his firms business and professional development activities including structuring and pricing alternative fee arrangements and managing the firm’s corporate recoveries program. https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffrey-frost-ab674a4/ (Geoff Frost Bio)  Instead of teaching lawyers to sell – educate business developers on representing the firm. Sales people unencumbered by the billable hour. Can confidently and competently represent the firm in the market. Today business development is one of many other professionals in the legal ecosystem. AFAs are not intended for a single instance and aren’t about one side making out much better than the other. Firms will do well on some – and not so well on others. Clients should want a fee arrangement where the best lawyers are compensated above their hourly rate. Create an environment that rewards success a

Using Design Thinking with Dan Yi Daniel Yi is Senior Counsel for Innovation, at the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.  His work helps attorneys explore new approaches to persistent operational and mission-delivery challenges using innovation and creativity.   He also leads an incubator program called Concept Lab where legal professionals use design thinking and lean methodologies to make improvements. https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielhyi/ (Dan Yi on LinkedIn)  Dan has an intense curiosity and fascination for learning how smart people see and engage with the world. Even with 11K attorneys, resource allocation at the DOJ requires on going effort. Trial prep is stressful; there are lots of tasks, lots of terms, and time is limited.   Applying design thinking a Kanban board was used to outline workflows, and monitor progress including classic daily scrums. A lawyer’s predisposition to identify risk and a cultural reaction to the risk of change multiplies the traditional product adoption curve.

Strive to be Different … Not Better Bruce Stachenfeld is the Managing Partner of his firm, Duval & Stachenfeld.He’s known for being one of the most ‘connected’ real estate lawyers throughout the worldwide real estate community.  He’s specialized and adapted his area of focus to meet the needs of the market over a 30-year legal career. http://dsllp.com/attorneys/brucestachenfeld/ (Bruce Stachenfeld Bio) Habits that have lead to Bruce’s success: –      Being relentless –      Being open minded –      Experiencing and evaluating failure –      Ruthlessly analyzing his and his team’s performance Ask clients and prospects questions.  What do they care about? Learn how their business works, what their needs are.  Be helpful. Being better than the competition (adding features) is less profitable than being different.  Competition drives similarity, adding features increases costs. Define yourself differently. Strategically. The Power Niche:  –      Define ‘it’ R

Be Smart About Business Development https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-martinez-1484aa7/ (Michael Martinez on LinkedIn) Marriott has a budget for litigation and looks at the cost-benefit of settling versus litigating. They often select cases to litigate that advance the longer-term goals of the company that drive broader principals. Marriott looks for partners when evaluating outside counsel, firms that understand their business and can be viewed as a partner. Marriott works with firms and lawyers that show a high level of integrity and are easy to work with. Mike shares a success story involving Jenner & Block and Sheppard Mullins noting successful partnering and collective decision making as they assist in-house counsel on a key case Marriott welcomes new ways of billing and complemented Crowell & Moring for creativity in this area. Advice to Lawyers pursuing clients like Marriott – be smart about it; tell me about your expertise, be likable, personable, and friendly. This episode i

How Legal Biz Dev. is Like Fitness Jane Greyf is a partner in Goodwin’s Private Equity Group and a member of the firm’s Impact and Responsible Investing Practice. She advises private equity funds, companies, and management in leveraged buyouts and growth equity investment transactions.  http://www.goodwinlaw.com/professionals/g/greyf-jane (Jane Greyf Bio) Business development is like fitness – you have to keep at it. A little has to be done every day.  It can take years – keep at it – many interactions will result in business. You can’t take rejection personally in terms of business development.  Your ability to control your response to things is a learned strength.  Jane keeps a fluid list of top 5 prospects.   She spends a few minutes every day, every other day, once a week to execute that next step. It doesn’t take a tremendous amount of time.  Always, always, always keep in touch with current clients. Success Story: A lawyer at a client with a shared business background moved companies

Walmart Stores – A Culture of Being Respectful to All Alan Bryan is the leader of the Office of Outside Counsel Management & Legal Operations for Walmart Stores. He transitioned from law firm partnership to in-house counsel managing litigation for the world’s largest retailer.  Today his office oversees his company’s relationships with all outside counsel measuring performance, cost and diversity. https://www.linkedin.com/in/alan-bryan-2080332/?locale=en_US (Alan Bryan Bio) 4 personal strengths that can lead to success in a changing environment: 1 – Patience with yourself as you transition. Give yourself time. Know that others will give you time. 2 – Honesty and humility. Successful change has a lot to do with attitude. 3 – Communication skills become increasingly important as teams and responsibilities grow. 4 – Passion for what you do. On the transition from a firm to in-house legal and ultimately legal operations: As a firm lawyer you dive deep into a specialty. As an in-house lawyer and s

And the Virtual Lawyers She Leads Suzie Scanlon Rabinowitz, is the Managing Partner of SRD Legal Group. Suzie is a virtual law firm legal pioneer having been in the space for more than 10 years. Her firm’s specialty is legal process management and high volume workflows for financial services companies. http://www.srdlegalgroup.com/attorneys_Rabinowitz.html (Suzie Scanlon Rabinowitz Bio) Hear why Suzie is excited to lead a mission-driven business Life Long Learners – Educating clients can be the key to biz dev success A silver lining to not winning business you bid on – listen in AFAs and relationship building Yes it’s happening, clients are driving legal tech adoption by firms How’s your social media etiquette? Why Suzie’s excited about a positive double bottom line…  

Knowledge and Experience Equal Success Frank Citera is the co-Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Product Liability & Mass Torts Litigation Group and Co-Chair of the Chicago Litigation Practice. He is ‘renowned for his toxic tort and product liability work’ and other complex litigation in both federal and state courts. He defends class actions for companies from all industries and business sectors. http://www.gtlaw.com/People/Francis-A-Citera (Frank Citera Bio) Advice: ‘Get on the train when it’s leaving and worry about which seat you’re sitting in later’ Work hard: rarely miss an opportunity to work on a matter, no matter how busy you are Strategy:   stay ahead on your topic – the specifics – so you can be a resource for our clients Staying Power: success spreads as you become recognized for your expertise Straight talk on AFAs: experience translates to efficiency; technology will help increase accuracy; success relies on a relationship of mutual trust and conversation with your client Last Word: l

Good Work is Table Stakes… Managing Partner and CEO of Catapult Growth Partners, Doug Johnson, recently hosted a group of top business development and marketing leaders from the legal, private equity and professional services industries for a day-long roundtable to discuss the latest trends in business development and marketing. Doug leads Catapult, a US consultancy with an emphasis on accelerating profitable growth within professional services firms. http://catapultgrowth.com/team/doug-johnson/ (Doug Johnson Bio)  Tune in to hear how clients are choosing to allocate their legal fees–think outcomes and ROI When it comes to brand and creating a niche, listen in to hear why boutique firms have an advantage–at least at first Firm dog and pony? Be sure to include information on what you’ve implemented and how it’s improved efficiency Will law firms and lawyers become more proactive with client planning? Want to maintain a market focus without reducing the professional’s billable time? There’s a player-coac

Everything Is On The Table Kirkland Hicks is the EVP and General Counsel at Lincoln Financial.   He’s a member of company’s senior management committee, overseeing all law, compliance, government relations, and corporate secretary functions. Prior to joining Lincoln Financial, he was senior counsel at Towers Watson and Watson Wyatt Worldwide. https://www.lfg.com/public/aboutus/companyoverview/leadership/kirklandhicks (Kirkland Hicks Bio) The keys to earning legal work at Lincoln Financial may surprise you Whether primary, secondary or tertiary financial agreements are always a consideration Learn how firms compete for business at Lincoln Financial – HINTS: be nimble, be ready to do upfront work, it’s very competitive  We discuss big data and predictive outcomes – as a likely part of the future legal culture – listen in Mentions: diversity; legal ops; legal purchasing; Axiom; Advance Law; Chris Groll – M&A Partner of Holland & Hart; Toby Brown – Chief Practice Director, Perkins Coie

… and Curious Autodidacts Damon Vocke is the Vocke Law Group, Founder and Managing Partner. In the fall of 2016, he and his partners launched their firm focused on the insurance, reinsurance, and financial services industries, covering corporate litigation, internal investigations, governance and regulatory compliance issues.   He’s the former president of the reinsurance firm, Gen Re. Prior to his role as president, he was the Gen Re General Counsel and worked previously for Lord Bissell & Brook. http://www.vockelawgroup.com/damon-vocke (Damon Vocke )    Hear why firm size and design is not as important as the specific lawyer Forget ‘selling’ – talk about the facts what you’ve done and your experience in the market Hear how fees, specific experience, and overall delivery are the components of a fair deal Good judgment is critical