3/6/09
De-Leveraging ... Again?
A number of recent posts and articles are talking about the de-leveraging of BigLaw. Many of these predict that the other side of the recession will see BigLaw with less associates per partner.
Say what?
There's all this talk of alternative billing, leveraging technology and changing the way firms do business and somehow they are going to do this by shrinking the bottom-level of the inverted pyramid they live in ... again??? Karl Marx perhaps said it best when he noted that Capitalists (a.k.a. business owners) make money off the sweat of another's brow and not their own.
Just like the de-leveraging cycle in the 80's, when hours go soft - Partners hoard. And they do this to their own detriment as the least profitable billable hours of the business are their own. They lose the best billable hours (a.k.a. leverage). Of course this behavior is highly motivated by the compensation systems. And we shouldn't really be surprised by the fact that history is repeating itself, since these compensation systems have not changed much since the 80's.
"Fool me once - shame on you. Fool me twice - shame on me."
Still I am dumb-founded. After seeing so much encouraging dialogue about alternative fees and the subsequent changing of the law firm business model, firms fall right back into their old habits. Although leverage is not the be-all and end-all of profitability, its still a core metric to use. It's a basic business practice to push labor tasks to their lowest cost source.
It is past time for lawyers and firms to turn and look over the bow of the boat. They need to understand that the radical changes in the market will need to be reflected by corresponding changes in the law firm business model.
Change ...? I see a theme developing
3/4/09
Dreams Really DO Come True!
Remember I wrote that "I won't even consider buying a Kindle until they display in color, include easy e-mail access and phone capabilities and, essentially, replace my phone."
Well, look what Apple and Amazon dreamed up!
A Kindle app on the iPhone. Geez louise, I thought it would take 'em 5 years to figure this out. Looks like I'm gonna have to put my money where my mouth is . . .
I wonder how the Kindle app works with the other iPhone features. Can you copy/import text? Can you cite sources in other apps?
Its funny, I was just talking to my cousin--who, ironically, works for Microsoft as an engineer--and he was showing off his friend's iPhone and explaining all the apps to me.
In the course of our conversation, I was oohing and aahing, but, in the end, I told him, "this really doesn't work for me. I don't like the keyboard."
He said, "yeah, you are a writer. Most people are just readers. But you develop content so this doesn't really meet your needs."
Exactly.
So my next caveat would be an iPhone with a Kindle app and a better, more tactile keyboard for us writers.
This time, I will give Apple less lead time. How about a year, guys?
Skittles, Social Media and Conferences.... Time to Put the Attendee to Work for You!!
By now, you've probably seen the new social media experiment that is Skittles.com
Although the site developed by Agency.com is still a little rough around the edges, this experiment is widely viewed as a social media success story because it allows the user to interact with the product, thus producing a way for the end-user to promote (or critique) the product. At this point, the message has been pretty positive. But, enough of Skittles!! I'm a Hot Tamale man myself....
This idea of social media, using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, along with traditional web content is not only a great idea for marketing products, but I think one of the biggest benefits could be experienced by using this type of resource for big conferences.
Imagine that you're attending a conference (say last month's LegalTech conference.) We've seen how social media has inspired people to blog and tweet about what they are listening to at the conference, why not take a tool like this and make it really work for the conference??
Here's a quick breakdown on how I think this type of resource would benefit a conference:
- Traditional Web Presence: Conferences usually have information posted about the conference posted on a traditional website. Sticking with the LegalTech, the traditional web site gives the organizer the ability to promote, inform, and distribute information about the conference. Let's face it, most conferences end the "official" flow of information at this point. But, taking the Skittles model, let's expand.
- Twitter Feed of the "#" Hash-Tag: They're going to do it anyway... so, why not take advantage? Whenever you have more than 5 people going to the same thing, one of them is going to create a hash-tag about it, so that they can get more people to join in. Heck, if Congress is going to Twitter while the President is speaking, you can bet your techie attendees will be Tweeting away as well. So, why not put that information out there along with your traditional web page and make it easy for folks to see what others are talking about?
- YouTube - "Show 'Em What You've Told 'Em": Expand your reach through the simple use of video. This give the organizer a chance to expand the information being distributed, and if done right, can allow your attendees to add content.
- Flickr - "We're at 'X' Conference Having a Ball.... Wish You Were Here!": As people take pictures at the event, enable them to share them in a central location so that others can see what's going on. Make people feel like they are there, even if they're not! (Maybe next year, they'll attend!!)
- Facebook - Allow Your Attendees To Be Your Friends and Promoters: The Facebook angle allows you to build upon the past conferences. Think of it as the ability to take your attendee list and keep them up-to-date throughout the year. Allow them to tell you what was good (and bad) about the conference, and suggest what to do for the next one. Allow others to see the comments, and contribute as well.
I'm sure additional social media tools could also be integrated into a conference to allow the connection of people to people, and people to content. So, if you have more suggestions, please comment below!
Using social media as a tool for a conference isn't without its risks. Even the Skittles site has a potential down side which Stan Schroeder points out in this blog post. But, I believe that the upside has such potential, that the rewards tremendously outweigh the risks.
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