AN OFFER YOU SHOULD REFUSE? - Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: As the Big Law talent wars rage on, law firms keep doing something out of desperation even though pretty much everyone agrees it’s a bad idea. Nope, not starting salary bumps. Special bonuses? Not what I’m thinking of but good guess! No, imagine something even less advisable than preemptively throwing money at lawyers in hopes that they won’t think about leaving. That’s right: throwing money at lawyers after they’ve already tried to leave. Counteroffers are on the rise in a cutthroat talent market, but, as we explore in this week’s Law.com Trendspotter column, it’s debatable whether they accomplish much other than making things awkward for everyone. I’m interested to hear what you think: Are counteroffers a necessary evil in a wild talent market or simply counterproductive in every situation? Let me know at [email protected].
TECH TEAMWORK - Forward-looking law firms and legal departments tackle the problem of improving efficiency by using a three-pronged approach: people, process and technology. The people part can seem tricky, especially for organizations without much of an IT bench. However, as Law.com’s Zach Warren writes in this week’s Law.com Barometer newsletter, it turns out tech knowledge isn’t necessarily the differentiating factor: The most successful organizations are finding that cross-functional teams are the way to handle tech decisions, with multiple (and even non-technical) viewpoints represented in the room. To receive the Law.com Barometer directly to your inbox each week, click here.
