As we enter the second half of 1993, most law firms with one hundred or more lawyers have made some basic decisions with regard to the senior non-lawyer staff position. Either an experienced management executive has been hired or a lawyer has been tasked to accept that responsibility. In a few firms, some form of management committee may be used to distribute the administrative work assignments among several partners when a senior non-lawyer executive has not been hired.
In the so-called mid-size firms, here again the large majority are already utilizing the perceived benefits of an experienced non- lawyer business executive. Unfortunately, it is here in the small to mid-size firms where lack of solid management experience will usually be most lacking. There has been a growing tendency to promote senior secretaries or paralegals in smaller firms into the Office Manager's role without full evaluation of the experience and education required for success in that new challenge. This becomes a potential no-win situation, since the firm loses a good secretary/paralegal and may gain a less than competent administrative manager.
A) A description of a typical small firm non-lawyer manager
Very few managers come to the law firm with substantial management experience outside the legal profession. Most rise "through the ranks" of the firm as a legal secretary, paralegal, law clerk or personnel manager. Training is largely OJT (on-the-job) through trial and error supplemented with periodic seminars and other outside training, if available. Unfortunately, the new manager usually has a lack of accounting/financial analysis expertise which is a vital skill for success as a law firm manager.Essentially, there are two major skills that an effective law firm manager must possess. They are 1) the ability to deal effectively with people and 2) a strong working "hands-on" knowledge of the billing/general ledger accounting cycle. If the new manager has "risen through the ranks", it is likely that they will already possess a modicum of skill in the general area of human relations or the ability to work with people. However, accounting must be learned "through the end of a pencil", so to speak, by actually working on a daily basis with all phases of the accounting cycle. The vast majority of new managers in the smaller firms simply do not have either the formal education or the working experience with the accounting process.
Therefore, the infamous Peter Principle comes into play when the newly anointed manager reaches his/her level of competency, simply because of lack of training and experience in the vital accounting function. Many of our client firms suffer with managers who are unable to function effectively due to this lack of expertise.
In addition, the role of many managers in the smaller firms is limited in scope, both in the breadth of duties and responsibilities as well as the related delegated authority. Owners of smaller firms tend to be much more entrepreneurial in their management style meaning that they are very possessive of the decision making process. There is a general unwillingness to release significant responsibility to a non-lawyer except in the all too rare instances where a mutual trust bridge has been built over time allowing the role to be more fully implemented.
B) What should the most effective role be for the smaller firm manager?
The various jobs to be accomplished in a law firm do not differ because of firm size. Administrative tasks can generally be grouped into three major categories a) personnel; b) financial; and c) facilities. Every law firm manager, regardless of firm size, can be assigned responsibility for management of these function.In many smaller firms, lawyer management may choose to limit the delegation of authority to either the personnel or facilities function with a separate bookkeeper reporting directly to one of the partners responsible for financial management of the firm. If this structure is implemented, then the manager has limited opportunity for ever growing into full responsibility for all three of the necessary functions. All too many members of ALA find themselves in this frustrating quandary with limited career opportunities simply because they are unable to master one or more of the three basic areas, especially accounting.
Therefore, every manager must develop a personal professional development plan to acquire whatever skills and/or education is required to continue their career expansion opportunities. Many examples come to mind of former inexperienced managers throughout this country who have continued to grow and expand their abilities as they have moved higher into management responsibility. Personal goal setting and related planning are required of any individual who is unwilling to accept the limited role which all too many lawyer managers are willing to foist upon the unwary neophyte non- lawyer manager.
In addition, a) they have expertise in the effective delegation of work projects; b) they have developed strong communicative skills; c) they understand all aspects of the controllership function including but not limited to the preparation of budgets, analysis of financial statements and related management reports and the efficient use of cash projections, cash flow analysis and short term cash management alternatives; and d) they understand the concept of long range planning for the effective and profitable growth of the firm.
Because of these skills, senior managers are able to command compensation packages comparable to mid-level partners in the firm. They serve on all internal committees and have a strong, respected voice in management discussions and related decisions. The range of their duties varies widely between firms, of course. However, current trends suggest that professional management of the law firm by non-lawyers is a permanent fixture and not a passing fad.
The primary role(s) of each attorney in any size firm is to generate new client work; manage the legal work internally so as to meet the expectations of the client both in quality, quantity and timely response; and create a work environment where employees are reasonably comfortable and content, while earning a reasonable profit for the equity owners. None of that valuable time should be used to ensnare the lawyer in time consuming and sometimes frustrating administrative tasks that can be assigned to the firm administrator. This individual is both better qualified and better suited temperamentally for the handling of administrative issues.
The major differences in the roles that may be assigned to the senior non-lawyer managers in various sized firms is more a matter of degree than substance. The tasks are present no matter what the firm size. A large firm can muster more resources through additional internal staffing than smaller firms. However, this does not change the fundamental role of the administrative manager.
Therefore, one obvious career path for the small firm manager is to move up to a larger firm assuming that the individual possesses the requisite expertise, education and/or skills. Without the basics, a small firm manager will simply become mired at a level of performance that is self-limiting.
The challenge for all non-lawyer managers, regardless of present positioning, is to maintain and expand individual skill levels and to continue a professional development growth plan to ensure continuing flexibility of career mobility. It is a tragedy to see someone who has accepted limitations on personal growth that are self imposed, when the legal profession is in such dire need of effective management professionals. Do not allow this to happen to your administrative manager!