June 3rd 2020 is set to be the date when most non-essential workplaces start opening up after almost three-months of lockdown imposed by the UK government in March this year.

The lockdown has affected all businesses and individuals differently. Some of the candidates we work with tell us that they have enjoyed working from home and have never been more productive. Others have felt out of place and can’t wait to get back to the office. Whatever your personal opinions on lockdown have been, the one truth we can’t ignore is that legal workplaces are going to be different spaces as employees return to work.

Aside from the social distancing measures, the 10-week break from the ‘old’ way of working has paved the way for a new concept of working altogether.

Your legal practice is going to be a different place as you return – in this article; we explore how to prepare for the ‘new norm’.

Practical Changes

The first thing Senior Partners on your HR team must do before inviting employees back is to ensure your workplace is compliant with new workplace safety guidelines. The guidance for offices can be found here, and includes how to set-up socially distanced offices, who should return to work and who should remain at home and logical cleaning guidance too.

In a recent Forbes article on working after lockdown, one theory included the idea that workplaces will get ‘better’. In that, there will be more of a focus on collaboration, learning and socialisation, as we bring the parts of home working that were successful back into our workspaces with us to create a ‘workplace of the future’.

Of course, every legal practice will look different as teams return, based on the size of your office and your team. If you have a small office where it is possible to socially distance, you might be welcoming everyone back as soon as possible. For larger offices where people are happy to continue working from home, up to half of the team may continue working in this way.

After consulting the government guidance, you must decide what is possible in terms of space and cost, what works best for your team and find a solution which works for everyone.

For firms where a significant proportion of the workplace are going to continue working from home, how can you achieve this long-term? Let us take a look at legal digital needs.

A Digital Landscape

While many practices did all they could to allow employees to continue working on cases seamlessly from home, the truth is that many firms were not equipped with the right tools to let employees do this successfully.

Writing for Legal Futures recently, barrister Ross Birbeck highlighted how practices need to update their systems to allow for successful remote working on a more permanent scale.

Interestingly, he points out that much of the change needs to come in the form of simple tech. He states, “It is notable that the technologies being picked up most are not the heavyweight, hi-tech solutions to industry-specific problems, but simple tools for everyday tasks: video conferencing for remote meetings, and PDF software for analysing documents on a laptop. We are going to see those tools become deeply integrated into the practice of law.”

Many firms have employees who are still shielding (either themselves or living with family members who are). Until a COVID-19 vaccine is widely available, there will be legal employees in law firms everywhere who will be remote working for several months at least.

Do your employees have everything they need? In the rush to open your practice again, remember that remote employees will continue to need the right level of support, as well as employees who are returning.

Essential points to monitor include –

• Ensure documents and emails remain available to remote and returning employees.
• Ensure video conferencing remains available to all employees (including software and webcams/microphones if the hardware is being moved between homes and offices).
• Ensure remote employees can access online versions of your legal documents and have Esign capabilities.
• Avoid storing sensitive information at employee’s homes – aim to bring all confidential data back into the workplace as soon as possible.

Physical alterations are not going to be the only changes your legal team will have to get used to. A significant part of how things will change is the psychology of coming back to work in a practice with a different, possibly separated team.

Finally, let’s explore how legal managers and Senior Partners can ensure their employees are emotionally supported to prepare for the ‘new norm’.

Managing and Supporting an Altered Team

A blog I was reading on Law.com recently noted: “top lawyers are sure of one thing: working practices will never return to the way they were before COVID-19”. This is true of the way the virus has changed our physical landscape, but also how it will have affected your team psychologically.

The two most significant ways you will have to deal with change are in the way your team has been separated, and the way your practice may have to adapt to the market going forwards.

Practically, to keep afloat in the legal arena, you might have to re-train, or cross-skill your employees to form new teams in areas where there are opportunities. In which areas are you expecting there to be increased and reduced demand? Do you have the ability to train staff to meet changing demand?

It will be beneficial to have a focus on upskilling and re-training your employees as soon as you can.

Mentally, returning to work when your workplace, your role and your team look very different can be unsettling for many employees. It is now that you must be aware of how the change has affected your team and offer robust support.

Things to consider when supporting your team over the coming weeks and months include –

• Be a transparent and accessible leader at all times – your team need to know they can rely on you and that you are honest about the goals of the company.
• Acknowledge the changed working landscape and consistently ask employees if they are coping well with new systems and processes. Do not expect that all employees will easily adapt to significant changes – it will be more challenging for some.
• Help your employees find new purpose and meaning in their role – this is especially important if their role or the sub-team they are used to will now be different.

Despite the recent upheaval, your practice can come out stronger with careful planning and consideration for each team member and the business as a whole.

Finally

Clayton Legal has produced a short report on how law firms can prepare for the post-pandemic industry which covers the issues touched upon in this blog in more detail, plus market research on where to focus your efforts as we move forwards.

You can download the report here.

If your recruitment needs have changed recently and you need a conversation about locating legal talent to help your practice survive through the coming months, we can help.

Get in touch with us on 01772 259 121 or contact us here to discuss your legal recruitment needs.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from partners to legal executives, solicitors to paralegals and legal IT personnel to practice managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help.  Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

There can’t be many – if any – individuals left who haven’t in some way had their lives disrupted by Coronavirus, or COVID-19 as it’s also known.

Commercial organisations such as law firms are continuing to strive to keep up with the challenges the outbreak has presented. But as it spreads, many are finding their clients impacted by the virus, as well as the ability of their solicitors to carry out work. One London firm temporarily closed its office after a potential case of Coronavirus recently, and another international law firm has confirmed its employees will be working remotely wherever possible.

The problem for many law firms is that legal work requires a degree of team effort. And although many solicitors can do some of their work remotely, the usual pace will drop if teams are not together at the firm. Also, litigation, which requires a physical presence in court, is becoming increasingly hazardous – not only for the solicitors involved but their clients, the witnesses, experts, judges and court staff.

In light of this situation, what steps can your law firm take to minimise disruption?

In this article, I offer four simple strategies to help reduce the impact of Covid-19 on your law firm to ensure you mitigate risk, protect your employees and support your customers.

1. Nerve-Centre Management

In such unusual circumstances, when it’s easy to panic, a calm and focused leadership is crucial. Therefore, your first step should be to surround yourself with other senior partners or business managers who can help diffuse any panic. A thorough, clear action plan is critical to help you plan and execute strategies to manage the challenges going forward over the next few months.

The management team should be in alignment on the methods you are implementing to cope with challenges that may arise. Integration is paramount, and a transparent communication system between partners and the wider legal team is crucial to ensure not only employee buy-in but that your team continues to place trust in your leadership ability and understands the processes in the action plan.

2. Protect the Workforce

The safety of your employees is paramount. Therefore, strategies such as staggered work times and social distancing will help to keep your legal team healthy and stress-free. This will enable you to continue operating during the outbreak with as little disruption as possible.

You may wish to introduce additional, short term policies such as flexitime, initiate help for employees to work at home, and provide onsite guidelines for those still coming into the workplace.

Measures to consider include:

Remote Working

Where it is possible and practical, you may decide to encourage employees to work remotely, especially if they are in an at-risk group. Providing the necessary equipment, they will need such as laptops, cameras for online meetings and other work-related items will not only reduce the stress of individuals but will allow them to perform as well from their external base as they would in the office.

Be mindful to keep in touch regularly. In essence, this will allow you to monitor productivity but also, and as importantly, it will permit you to check up on the mental health of your employees and ensure they are not feeling isolated.

Additionally, providing a schedule of activity will help them focus and stay motivated. It will also serve to clarify responsibilities so that everyone knows what is expected of them.

Office Working

Ensure there are systems in place to minimise risk for your employees in the office. Discourage physical contact including handshaking, and provide hand gels, reminders about good handwashing practices and ensure surfaces such as door handles, handrails, tables and desks are disinfected regularly.

Postpone internal team meetings, or hold them virtually to minimise exposure.

Remember also to be sensitive to external factors over which your employees have no control. For example, as and when schools and nurseries close, there will be some inevitable flexibility required to enable parents to cope with childminding duties. Additionally, some older children coming home for the Easter holidays may not be able to return to university. So, understanding and empathy are called for, and it’s wise to have a contingency plan in place in case you find yourself short-staffed at any point.

3. External Engagement

Also of importance is external engagement – ensure you keep your stakeholders and clients safe by:

Minimising Face to Face Contact

Routine conversations between solicitors and clients can take place via Skype, Zoom or telephone calls to minimise direct contact.

Using Video Testimony

Currently, an emergency bill is about to be pushed through parliament here in the UK. This bill includes a provision that in several stages of a dispute, video testimony will be allowed in civil (and criminal) courts to minimise the current risk of contracting the virus.

Keeping in Touch

It’s also good practice to communicate with your customers regularly to keep them up to date. Fact-based updates and electronic (or paper-based) communications covering how to contact your firm, what to do if they have a case coming up and other relevant advice, will keep levels of trust high in your firm’s capability to handle the challenge.

Be transparent with your clients. After all, this situation is affecting everyone, and they will appreciate your honesty. Clear communication guarantees an empathic response:

Harvard Business Review advises: “When customers are separated from the work that’s being done behind the scenes to serve them, they appreciate the service less, and then they value the service less.”

These actions will also help confirm you as a law firm that clients can rely on in times of disruption and position you as a calm authority.

Avoiding Unnecessary Travel and Events

It’s wise to steer clear of conferences and other law-related events, although most are likely to be cancelled anyway. Similarly, avoid business travel and encourage your team to do the same.

4. Plan for the Long-Term

Although the situation in China seems to be improving, the ripple effect of this pandemic is set to last for some time yet.

Therefore, an immediate response is vital, and many law firms are pursuing initial coping strategies to ensure the best outcome for both employees and clients, in so far as is possible in the short term.

But it’s important to remember long term responses – McKinsey report that there could be other repercussions such as financial implications and shifting industry structures. So, it’s essential to ensure your management team are dedicating some time to planning responses that focus on possible long-term requirements.

We currently do not know the outcome of this virus. However, what is clear is that those law firms who act now to protect their employees and customers, address challenges and help mitigate damage in whatever way they can, will be better placed to cope successfully and come out of the other side stronger.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from partners to legal executives, solicitors to paralegals and legal IT personnel to practice managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

With increased demands and intensive competition in the legal marketplace, law firms need to have strategies to deal with difficult situations that may arise from time to time.

Whether it’s interpersonal conflict, loss of a significant client account, staff retention issues or external forces at play, remember that those law firms who exhibit agility and understanding will be better placed to deal with challenges and achieve success.

The composure and reaction of your senior management team or partners are paramount to dealing successfully with stressful situations. Today’s legal environment calls for leadership that not only elevates overall performance but can instil a sense of support in the team.

This article seeks to provide some strategies you can quickly implement to help you deal with any problematic situations or challenges that may arise in your law firm.

1. Establish the Facts

Whatever the situation, the first strategy to remember is to establish the facts. That means taking a step back from any potential drama and considering the certainties.

Whether it’s examining the details or gathering your emotions, by stepping back from the issue, you allow yourself time to think and focus.

One method a colleague of mine uses is the ‘four-step approach’. Imagine an important client has just telephoned to request paperwork that you thought wasn’t due until the following week. The first reaction may be to panic, but [without judgement or emotion] it’s more helpful to seek, without judgement or emotion, to:

• See – Firstly, what do you see has just happened? E.g. a client has requested paperwork urgently
• Hear – What can you hear? E.g. I heard them say they need this paperwork by noon tomorrow
• Fact: How much time have I to potentially work on this? E.g. I have an hour free today, and some free time tomorrow morning.
• Result: What does this data tell me? I have time to complete it, after all.

This method is useful in providing time for you to cool off and gather your emotions instead of reacting to the situation. Initial responses are usually highly emotional and are rarely helpful. By allowing yourself time to focus rationally on the issue, you can identify ways to work with or around it.

Deep breathing and counting to ten is also a useful, and sometimes underrated, way of calming yourself down so you can think logically about the issue.

2. Ask Questions

It’s inevitable that people working together will sometimes have varying opinions, ways of working or traits that can lead to conflict in the workplace. It could be personality clashes, different communication styles or a misunderstanding.

A recent study in the Harvard Business Review says that nearly 70% of managers are uncomfortable communicating with employees, but clear and transparent communication can prove the best way to alleviate challenging situations; it can establish facts, solve issues and goes a long way to help develop trust and cooperation for the future.

Can you ask individuals to elaborate on the problem? Or confirm with them what you believe the problem is? Or even ask what you can do to help?

Forbes advises diffusing almost any challenging event with five words: “What else could this mean?” In other words, what could this situation lead to – new perspectives, new possibilities, new explanations or new outcomes? Turning a situation on its head in this way can open up opportunities for solutions.

And remember when asking questions to establish the facts – it’s equally important to listen to the reply. Which leads me on to my next point.

3. Listen

You can’t understand without first listening.

We all see things from our own perspective, and everyone has triggers than cause reactions. And that can sometimes cause someone to be seen as being ‘difficult.’

Active listening means concentrating on what the other person is saying, without formulating your own response in your head at the same time. As humans, we are wired to want to get our point across. But sometimes the other person may just want to have their point of view heard. Giving them the space to voice their concerns or opinion is all it takes to alleviate a problematic situation.

The art of listening requires you to hold back your own responses and immerse yourself in the other person’s account. It requires you to suspend the urge to control or instruct others, but the benefits are that by listening attentively, you can help diffuse matters quickly.

4. Seek to Understand

In his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Dr Stephen Covey advises, “Seek first to understand, then to be understood”.

If a situation has arisen between individuals. You can use empathy to acknowledge how they feel. In other words, stepping into the other party’s shoes and seeing the conflict situation through their eyes, rather than your own. Additionally, by seeking to understand another’s point of view, you avoid your own emotional response and can weigh up the facts logically.

It’s wise to avoid making assumptions, or fuelling a situation with hostile or dramatic words; by seeking to understand what is going on in the other person’s head and following Covey’s advice, you will be able to process the subtle clues that will enable you to understand better.

5. Be Professional

As a legal professional, you know the value of maintaining this aspect of your behaviour, even during stressful situations. Being professional means looking for the positive in the negative and being realistic about whatever the problem is.

Setting goals to overcome the situation can help practically as well as lift morale for your legal team. If you can, offer to help a colleague if they need it, and seek to support the team. This way, a problem can be lessened as your team feel that they are all ‘in this together’ and can work collaboratively to find a solution.

Although it may seem challenging at the time, working together in his way can also help build valuable, strong bonds across your law firm in the long term.

By keeping an open mind and making the best of the situation, you can find solutions and avoid negativity that, if left unchecked, can spiral out of control across a legal team, wasting time and energy, affecting productivity and which could even damage client relationships.

So, think before you act, and stay professional, calm and positive.

6. Focus on the Future

Whatever the situation, the goal should be to move towards a solution.

This could be finding common ground, working as a team to bridge any gaps, remaining flexible to fix problems and agile to adapt to new conditions.

The situation you are dealing with may be critical, such as a significant upheaval in the law firm, or it may be a trivial argument between colleagues. Whatever it is, remember that things will improve given time and that constructive behaviour will see positive results.

The law firm environment has a lot of pressure built into it. Having the ability to accept and release some of that pressure will benefit you, and the rest of your legal team, in the long run.

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking to develop your legal team, please call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from partners to legal executives, solicitors to paralegals and legal IT personnel to practice managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

The hiring market is changing.

With employment at an all-time high, many law firms are finding it hard to locate the right legal talent they need to help them reach their business goals.

As specialist legal recruiters, we have seen an increase in the number of candidates enquiring about locum work and this is echoed in the UK as a whole, with locum work being one of the fastest growing areas of recruitment.

However, many law firms are still reluctant to take on locum professionals, and quite often view it as a ‘last resort’. In doing this, law firms are missing out on a vast array of talented legal employees who are looking for less-permanent positions.

If you are not fully utilising locum professionals in your law firm yet, and are unsure as to why you should start, here are the five reasons that employers should take on more locum professionals this year.

1. A Clever Staffing Solution

We work with organisations of many different sizes, serving a range of legal specialisms. And what we find more and more often is that they cannot locate the talent they need to help them achieve their business goals.

Many law firms will persist with and repeat their recruitment process with the view to finding a permanent member of staff to fill a position. Many law firms would not consider a locum professional: because the role is permanent, they want a permanent member of staff.

But in doing this, they struggle on with a vacant position, or worse; they employ the ‘wrong’ permanent employee in haste. The cost of rehiring for permanent employees can become very costly indeed.

This is the perfect opportunity to utilise an employee on a locum contract – to solve an ongoing recruitment issue.

2. For Flexibility

In an ever-changing economy, and especially during the Brexit transition period, many employers are finding that their staffing needs are fluctuating.

Sometimes it is not feasible for employers to take on staff with permanent contracts when they know that they cannot predict how long they will be needed.

Locum professionals are perfect for the changing demands of your business. Many employees are looking for short-term and locum work. You can work with a recruiter to outline your businesses needs, and they can find you staff who fit into exactly what you’re looking for, skills and contract-wise.

3. When Your Team Needs a Lift

On the flip side, there are times when businesses are booming, and they need all the help they can get. It’s great when you see an increase in custom, but this can have negative repercussions on your team.

Continuing with the same size of team and expecting them to take on extra duties when you need them to can cause stress and anxiety among your employees and will eventually lead to a drop in productivity.

If your team needs a morale boost in the form of some extra help to see them through unexpected busy times, bringing in some fresh faces for a limited period is a smart solution.

4. Access to Untapped Talent

Is your law firms going through a period of change? Are you changing your services or processes? Are you expanding?

You might already have an excellent team in place, but sometimes you need access to new talent to help you through a transition period.
There is a wealth of talent considering locum work for a variety of reasons, such as alongside part-time studying, new parents looking for employment to fit around raising their family, and those looking to change sectors. All of these employees can add real value to your business in the time you need them most.

5. With a View to a Permanent Hire

Finally, probably the most significant benefit that employers can get out of locum hires is temp-to-perm positions.

Organisations can work with recruiters to find employees looking for temp-to-perm contracts to ‘try before they buy’. This is a great way to find out if the employee fits into your organisation – if they are the ‘right’ person for the job before you sign on the dotted line.

And it’s a two-way street, too. Many locum professionals prefer these type of contracts (when they are looking for permanent work eventually) as they can see if they like the role and the company without being tied down.

Finally

Do you currently employ locums in your organisation? Perhaps you have used them in the past, or only use them at specific points in the year, such as over the Christmas period. Consider taking on locum professionals in your organisation at different times to enjoy the benefits that I have outlined here.

There are plenty of legal candidates looking for locum contracts who are waiting to hear from your organisation right now – get in touch with us to find out more.

Specialist legal recruiters, Clayton Legal, conduct an annual salary survey of over 4000 law firms across the UK. This gives us insight into the challenges law firms face and enables us to provide a comprehensive, streamlined and relevant service to our candidates and clients in the legal sector.

Salary surveys capture the detail of the legal marketplace in terms of remuneration offered by law firms of diverse sizes and disciplines. These surveys also highlight the current challenges faced by many firms – from small family-run solicitors to major household legal names.

In a time of political turmoil, with Brexit uncertainty, a skills shortage and a candidate-driven legal marketplace, the information available from such a report offers value and insight that can positively impact your hiring strategies, as well as provide advice on successful methods of ensuring retention of the very best legal talent in your firm.

Whether your law firm is a small family business on the high street or one of the legal 500, this information is critical to your firm’s success and will keep you ahead of the curve.

In this article, I will address the main challenges illuminated by the recent Clayton Legal salary survey that I hope you will find useful when planning your strategies for 2020.

Challenges Overview

The overall challenges for law firms as we enter 2020 lie around recruitment and retention of employees. Sourcing, attracting, hiring and retaining your legal team in a competitive sector and against a skills shortage background remain the priorities for most law firms.

A key challenge for law firms is that legal candidates are seeking higher salaries, and are often attracted by larger firms who can provide higher levels of remuneration. Consequently, many smaller firms are finding the retention of their top professionals challenging. The impact is not just in the loss of a star performer, but an inevitable increase in workload and mounting stress for the remaining team members.

Additionally, for many firms, there is a desire to expand and scale while balancing staff numbers, continuing to provide excellent service and keeping a cap on overheads. Not an easy task.

With these facts in mind, let’s take a look at the challenges exposed by our recent survey, and offer solutions to manage them successfully.

Skills Shortage

One of the main issues the survey highlighted was the current skills shortage in the legal sector.

Across all disciplines, law firms nationwide are finding it problematic to recruit to specialist areas; property, in particular, is still experiencing significant skill shortages.

Although there is a sufficient number of law graduates per se, not many have any previous experience, and there is a specific gap in the market for candidates with more than three years of PQE.

In addition, a drop in the level of general background education of candidates is reported. Firms describe inferior standards of written and verbal communication skills, including grammar, spelling and vocabulary.

With many disciplines struggling to recruit in specialist areas, law firms need to review their strategy for hiring to be able to combat this situation. So, what is the best way to attract the top legal professionals to your firm?

Attracting Talent

Securing the right legal professionals for your firm is a challenge many currently face. In a candidate led marketplace, how can you stand out above the others as a preferred employer?

Even though competition for candidates with talent and specialist experience is fierce, there are ways to attract top talent to your firm.

Although salary remains a critical factor for legal job seekers, benefits packages add value to your firm. In addition to the traditional pension contributions, flexible working and staff will-writing schemes, there has been a rise in recent years of firms looking to attract candidates by thinking ‘outside the box’.

Hence, many firms are adding additional offers to their benefits package, including duvet days, free fruit or other healthy snacks, enhanced maternity pay, and sabbaticals to attract and retain legal professionals.

Which leads me on to the third challenge.

Skills Retention

High staff turnover, a mobile workforce and increased competition from other firms are factors that you can’t ignore. So, here are three suggestions for ensuring your critical talent want to stay and grow their career with you.

Wellbeing

We know it’s not just about salary. Wellbeing is cited as a growing area which can attract and retain talent by offering a supportive environment, excellent workplace culture and better work-life balance.

Also, with recent emphasis placed on mental health in the workplace, by cultivating a culture of wellbeing and inclusion, you will gain happier employees and consequently, higher retention rates.

It’s worth noting that a wellness programme not only builds camaraderie, but research has shown the significant benefits of regular exercise in helping to increase happiness levels and lower stress.

Learning Opportunities 

 Creating a supportive environment means actively seeking to support and nurture your legal talent throughout their career. Feedback, mentoring, recognition of achievements and a focus on lifelong learning opportunities will demonstrate investment in your employees.

LinkedIn’s 2018 Workforce Learning Report showed a huge 93% of employees would stay with their employer longer if an investment were made in their careers.

Offering the opportunity to develop additional skills and qualifications will demonstrate your commitment to your legal team, resulting in higher productivity and establishing your firm as an inclusive and invested employer.

Diversity

Workplace diversity was one of the critical trends last year – with no signs of stopping as we head into 2020.

Proactively hiring for difference in gender, race, age, ethnicity and outlook will contribute to making your law firm diverse and encourage your legal talent to stay.

Diversity also brings in more clients, spurring economic growth as well as leading to increased innovation. Creating an excellent company culture that embraces diversity will result in a dynamic workplace that helps sow the seeds of creative ideas. Your legal team will feel valued and more likely to want to grow their career with your firm.

Implementing these benefits will improve employee engagement and heighten your chances of holding on to top performers, even against the lure of bigger salaries from the competition.

Conclusion

Despite the recent election win, the stark reality is that there is still a considerable number of unanswered questions in relation to the UK’s economic future, the impact of which are likely to be felt by law firms up and down the country as we go forward in 2020.

In the face of continual changes, the pressure to exploit growth opportunities while remaining agile is high – but for those law firms that can adapt and hone their attraction, hiring and retention rates, 2020 could prove the most successful year yet.

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking to develop your legal team, or you would like a copy of our Salary Survey 2020, please call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from Partners to Legal Executives, Solicitors to Paralegals and Legal IT personnel to Practice Managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

From artificial intelligence for candidate sourcing to a new generation of employees – what does the future hold for the legal profession and its employees?

As we enter a new decade, now is the ideal time to focus on the predicted trends in legal recruitment and ask which ones will dominate the legal recruitment sector in 2020.

Recruiters are conscious that significant changes are ahead in the next twelve months. A retiring baby boomer generation, advancements in technology and a new generation with a considerable set of alternative world views will join the workforce, impacting on current employees, law firms and their clients.

So, in a legal marketplace where it seems change is the only constant, what can you, as a legal professional, expect to see over the next year?

In this article, I will address some of the critical areas predicted to impact on the legal recruitment arena in 2020.

1. Automation

Advancements in automation technology mean that sifting through individual CVs is becoming a thing of the past for hiring managers and recruiters. Today, automation can take the strain – and time –out of the hiring process by helping facilitate candidate screening, scheduling (and conducting) interviews and performing skills and personality analysis (more on this later). For candidates, this will mean paying extra attention to constructing job applications and CVs to ensure the right words are picked up by automated processes.

Additionally, a rise in e-discovery professionals is expected. This rapidly growing legal field will aid legal professionals, offering significant advancements in technology to facilitate legal procedures and manage electronic data in 2020. E-discovery allows both parties in a lawsuit to discover information in possession of the other, without the inevitable hold-ups created by physical searching for paperwork and holding vast quantities of data in paper form.

2. Psychometric Testing

Alongside other new ways of hiring, such as video interviewing, is a surge in preference for psychometric testing. First developed in the early 20th century, this tool has gathered credence as a valuable asset within the hiring process. It is predicted to gain further traction as one of the go-to methods of selection in 2020.

Psychometrics will save employers time, help ensure the ‘best fit’ candidates are selected for an interview, maintain a consistent standard for hiring, and enable employers to work out the best personality type to enhance their legal team.

For employees, it will mean a better chance of aligning their ethos with that of the firm they want to work for, and ensuring that they will be a good mix with colleagues at the firm, if successful in their application.

3. Employer Branding

Purpose-driven firms evolve faster than others, and in the new decade, employer brand becomes more crucial than ever in positioning law firms in the legal marketplace.

Employer brand encompasses the vision, mission and goals of the firm. Those who ensure their brand is seen favourably in the marketplace will see an upsurge in top legal professionals who wish to work for them.

For candidates, clear employer branding will enable you to know precisely what the firm stands for – their culture and goals – before you apply for a position. Once in place, good company culture and EVP will ensure you want to stay and grow your career with that firm and help them achieve long-term aspirations.

4. Hiring on Attitude

More and more employers are discovering the merit of hiring on attitude rather than skillset – good news for many candidates.

There is a rise, backed by evidence, that attitude is a considerably more significant predictor of success than IQ, and that disengaged, negative employees can have a costly impact on the economy.

So, it stands to reason that as we move into a new decade, law firms realise that employees with a positive outlook, good communication skills and well-developed emotional intelligence are the way to create a successful legal team and enhance the firm’s financial position.

So, for those looking for a new legal role, it will be crucial to offer a robust set of transferable skills and show a positive attitude.

5. Candidate Experience

When it comes to hiring, it used to be the case that the employer had the upper hand. Not so any longer. With so much competition for top talent in today’s legal marketplace, would-be employers must make sure to provide an excellent candidate experience.

2020 is likely to see a rise in the pressure on firms to offer an enticing combination of salary, benefits (more on this next) and company culture to attract new talent and enable them to feel connected to the firm’s culture and philosophy. Firms will need to manage their hiring process effectively to avoid losing candidates and consistently maintain an excellent reputation via social media.

In effect, this means that candidates can expect to enjoy a smooth and professional hiring process and onboarding experience.

6. The Desire for a Better Offer

Competitive hiring market means that to secure talent, employers will need to re-examine not only the remuneration on offer but the whole benefits package.

Candidates can expect to see flexibility in working hours, with employers offering (where possible) working from home options. For Millennials and Gen Z, who see work-life balance as a critical decider when looking for work, these flexible working options could be the deciding factor in deciding which law firm to work for.

Alongside better benefits, employees desire for a workplace that matches their ethos and values is expected to grow significantly. Consequently, law firms who embrace the concept of company culture will be positioned firmly at the front of the pack for jobseekers.

7. Diversity and Culture

A study by McKinsey & Co in 2015 found that companies with greater racial and gender diversity were 35 per cent more likely to have higher financial returns than the respective industry average.

And since then, employees desire for an excellent company culture that embraces diversity in all its forms has grown. Company culture is a pivotal part of the decision-making process for candidates with multiple job offers – and this trend looks to build, with more and more firms realising that they need a great company culture and career pathway options offer as well as a good salary.

8. Rise of the Next Generation

Baby Boomers will continue to retire in large numbers as we enter the new decade. This will have an inevitable impact on the legal arena, as an estimated seventy-five million retirees will see a surge in demand for legal services focusing on retirement planning, securing assets for the next generation, and the legalities of living arrangements for old age.

For the younger generations entering the marketplace as high tech and hyper-connected individuals, a rise in employers recognising what drives this generation will enable them to find their place in a forward-thinking law firm with excellent career prospects. And with their passion for innovation, new employees will thrive in their legal career where they are recognised and appreciated for the skills they bring to the workplace.

Conclusion

While it’s impossible to predict the economic future, it is relatively safe to say that advancements in technology, innovation and a Gen Z surge will define recruitment in 2020.

Legal services are one of the most important world markets, and with a demand for legal services comes a competitive race to attract top candidates to firms. Therefore, legal professionals can expect to have a variety of options open to them when looking for a new role and can look ahead to a fulfilling legal career that enables them to achieve their ambitions.

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking to develop your legal team to stay ahead of your competitors in the new decade, call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121 and let’s have a conversation to explore your options.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from Partners to Legal Executives, Solicitors to Paralegals and Legal IT Personnel to Practice Managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

The ‘war for talent’ is much documented at the moment across many sectors as the number of vacancies advertised continue to grow as firms ramp up hiring activity after a tumultuous 12-18 months. And, according to statistics from Broadbean, despite a 20 per cent rise in vacancies advertised in Q1 2021 compared to the last three months of 2020, applications to those roles rose by only 4% in the same period.

Law Firms are one again competing for the same, sometimes scarce, pool of talent; some of whom are reluctant to move roles against the backdrop of a pandemic and perceived market uncertainty, and some who do have that confidence and have whole host of options available to them.

With Firms jostling for supremacy in the hiring stakes, eager to attract the best talent to work for them, it does beg the question: how does your firm perform when it comes to attracting and hiring the best people – particularly in the current market?

If you’re finding it challenging to hire great talent, it could be that your law firm is repelling would-be employees – and it goes deeper than your salary offer.

It could be down to your Employer Brand.

In this article, I will be looking at how your Employer Brand could be repelling would-be talent from joining your law firm, and how you can redress the balance, create an engaging market presence and attract and retain the talent you want to work for you.

What is Your Employer Brand?

If you haven’t yet heard the term Employer Branding – it’s time to take a leap of faith and embrace this workplace phenomenon. Your Employer Brand isn’t something new – in fact, it’s been around forever, and all firms have one – whether they are aware of it or not.

Your Employer Brand is, in essence, the market’s perception of your firm. It re-affirms what you stand for; your reputation, leaders, history and customer service ethos.

It also goes far beyond these specifics – it includes other’s emotional response to things like your adverts and how they feel when using your services or when talking to others about your firm.

It has a secondary function too. And this is the one that may be repelling talent from your firm.

Your Employer Brand also describes the agreement or ‘promise’ you make to your employees in exchange for their experience, talents and skills. It is how you are viewed as an employer and the attitude and response to your law firm that lives in the hearts of your employees.

This is known as your Employee Valuation Proposition, or EVP, and it’s a compelling factor in attracting – or repelling – the legal talent you want for your firm.

If you’re wondering how to embrace your EVP to make sure you’re attracting the right legal talent to your firm, this article will illustrate the benefits of having a winning EVP, and how to create one to attract new talent.

But first, let’s look at the potential pitfalls of failure to invest in your EVP.

The Dangers of Non-Investment

There are definite downsides to not investing in your EVP. And not just in the general happiness levels of your employees. It can affect your firm in recruiting cost-per-employee, your HR budget, and the overall bottom line.

With the costs of employee turnover being anywhere up to 2.5 times your team member’s salary, depending on their role, it’s worth thinking about investing in your firm’s EVP.

Moreover, as well as lost employee and rehiring costs, there’s also the financial impact of lost productivity, training and the decreased morale of other employees to consider too.

Additionally, when thinking about your EVP, it’s worth remembering that more and more individuals are valuing an attractive workplace culture over salary, and failure to invest in this area of your firm could lead to lower retention and less appeal when compared to other law firms who offer more benefits.

So, investment in your workplace will see attraction and retention levels increase.

The Benefits of Investment in Your EVP

If you needed further reasoning for investing in your EVP, did you know that when top talent wants to work for you, your recruitment costs don’t just drop, they plummet?

The latest figures reveal that costs go down by around 43%. This is mainly because recruiters find it easier to get top talent into law firms they are keen to work for, i.e. those with great reputations. Less persuasion is needed, and therefore turnaround is much quicker.

In addition to this, the rewards of investing in your EVP include definite and measurable upturns in your ability to retain the best employees.

Your EVP embodies your mission and values and is a powerful communication tool for both current and potential employees. It can help you prioritise aspirations and goals for your law firm, and used effectively it can not only attract new talent but re-engage current employees who may have found themselves demoralised or disengaged in their work.

And with a great EVP, your existing pool of talented staff can help drive and promote your firm – not only officially on your company website, but in their social media engagement, recommendations to friends and family, network conversations, job reviews and testimonials.

Provide an excellent EVP – and your team will become cheerleaders for your firm, influencing others around them who may be looking for their next legal career move.

How to Create a Winning EVP

Your EVP is primarily an employee centred approach – it should be defined by and road-tested by your current employees.

Conducting an audit of your current EVP will help you gauge your position in the legal marketplace right now. If yours is short of the mark, consider what can be done to improve it.

Here are some of the things you may wish to look at when considering improving your EVP.

Values and culture. A workplace study found that 56% of employees valued an excellent company culture fit over salary. That’s how vital company culture is to individuals.

By embracing an inclusive and diverse company culture, you will attract new employees as well as retain existing ones, and build morale. And that means harbouring an environment where employees are respected and valued, where there is a shared vision, and where communication, transparency and teamwork are paramount.

Career development. LinkedIn’s 2018 Workforce Learning Report showed a whopping 93% of employees would stay at a company longer if it invested in their careers.

Especially in the legal world, having a transparent career path in your employee’s personal development plan and offering training to achieve it, will set you ahead of your competitors and boost your attraction and retention figures.

Employee recognition. From providing excellent feedback to saying ‘thank you’, it’s crucial for Senior Partners and Managers to acknowledge their staff to maintain a sense of wellbeing and pride in a job well done.

Work-life balance. Investing in better work-life balance for your employees starts with leading by example. So, Senior Partners should set a good example, as well as seeking to develop a more supportive culture where everyone feels they can take advantage of better work like options.

Benefits. From salary to flexitime, gym membership to annual leave allowance, there are many options for a firm to include in their benefits package.

Conclusion

The most exciting thing about your Employer Brand and EVP is that it’s not just about having your mission on the firm’s website.

Employer Branding begins and ends with real people – your employees. By building a great culture for them to work in, you will find that they will not only enjoy working for your law firm, feel engaged and part of a bigger picture – they will actively promote your firm for you.

Attracting new talent starts with making the most of those already working for you – and letting your reputation do the rest.

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking to scale your law firm, call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121 and let’s have a conversation to explore your options.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have placed thousands of legal professionals in new roles; from Partners to Legal Executives, Solicitors to Paralegals and Legal IT personnel to Practice Managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

Before we look at ways to build a diverse workplace for your legal team, it’s worth thinking about what exactly we mean by a ‘diverse workplace’. There are so many buzz words around at the moment that it’s hard to know what they all mean – and if they communicate the same thing to everyone.

The ‘company culture’ that diversity and inclusion bring have gained momentum as de rigour in the world of work for candidates looking for employment. A recent workplace study found that 56% of employees valued a good company culture fit over salary.

Workplace diversity means employing people with a wide range of diverse characteristics. These could include age, gender, race, religion, cultural background, language, sexual orientation, education, ability, etc…the list goes on.

But it’s not just a fad – there are tangible benefits from offering a diverse workplace in the form of achieving higher productivity and profits for those who embrace workplace diversity in their law firm. And workplace diversity was one of the key trends last year – with no signs of stopping as we head towards 2020.

So, how will building a diverse workplace for your legal team encourage them to flourish? Here are 9 ways diversity can help your law firm achieve success:

1. Increases Creativity

Diversity is one of the critical ingredients for creativity. Diverse solutions come from having multiple options that are provided when you have a group of individuals with different thought patterns, world views and ideas.

In your legal team, having employees who are all very similar in terms of mindset and life experience inevitably leads to a smaller viewpoint overall.

Conversely, harnessing the personal creativity-diversity techniques of a group of people who recognise that everything can be viewed in multiple ways can lead to the generation of more creative ideas. If your Fee Earners and Solicitors come from diverse backgrounds and experiences, they will inevitably have a wider pot of knowledge from which to draw fresh ideas and solutions.

2. Allows Different Perspectives

Different perspectives are beneficial when it comes to strategic planning.

The ability to see things from alternative points of view will allow your firm to better judge which direction it should take in goal planning. Having varied options, and a clear idea of results from those options will enable your firm to decide which is the best route to take to achieve the required overall result.

3. Makes Problem-Solving Easier

Again, the scope provided by a diverse team makes it quicker to problem-solve. Because different individuals think in different ways, it’s possible to quickly come up with various potential solutions to a problem, from which a final decision can be made.

This Harvard Business Review report confirms that diverse teams solve problems faster than cognitively similar groups.

4. Encourages Innovation

A melting pot of novel world views can open doors to innovation. It can be inspiring to be part of a group that sees things in a different way and can come up with creative innovation that otherwise may not have been considered. The ability to think outside the box and from a different angle can enable diversity of ideas to come to light.

Additionally, in an environment where diversity and inclusion are nurtured, it’s likely that individuals are more inclined to voice their ideas without fear of reprisal or ridicule. For example, junior members of the firm such as your Legal Secretary or new Personal Injury Assistant are more enabled to come forward with ideas if they believe they will be listened to and encouraged to contribute.

In a forward-thinking legal workplace, you are more likely to achieve innovation through group participation – you never know what ideas your team may hit upon!

5. Engages Employees

The link between diversity and engagement is an obvious one. Where employees experience inclusivity they automatically feel engaged and loyal to their firm.

A law firm that has engaged employees will benefit from a strong team with shared values. Along with diverse and inclusive traits comes a nimble and agile team who can turn things around quickly, achieving more in less time and with access to multiple possible solutions – driving your firm forwards.

6. Improves Company Reputation

Your Employer Brand is how you are perceived by the outside world. To ensure your law firm is seen in a positive light as knowledgeable, reliable and at the top of your game, it’s essential to ensure that your employer brand is truly reflecting your worth and achievements.

Having happy and motivated employees helps your law firm retain its status and reputation. In addition to the better service they will inevitably provide your clients, their online chat and information – formal and informal – alongside word of mouth and personal recommendation to friends and family, will help position you as the go-to firm.

7. Achieves Better Retention

A law firm who offer a diverse and inclusive workplace is going to make their employees feel valued and appreciated as individuals. Happiness in work leads to better retention levels, with staff showing loyalty to a fair employer and staying with them to build their career. Employee turnover can be costly, so investing in your diverse team is pivotal in achieving better retention rates.

8. Attracts New Talent

Ultimately, a law firm with a great reputation for diversity and inclusion, who has engaged employees, good profit margins, innovative ideas, a superb reputation and high retention levels is bound to attract new talent to want to work there.

And if that isn’t enough to convince you…

9. Increases Profits

McKinsey & Co found that where companies had more diverse teams, they also performed better financially.

Diverse teams are better able to win new talent to the firm. This, in turn, helps to improve client service, employee satisfaction and make decision-making faster.

All this gives a forward-thinking, diverse law firm an advantage over competitors and enables them to achieve more profit as a result: a cycle of increasing returns.

Conclusion

Bringing a mix of skills and experiences to the workplace is good for business, providing an admirable company culture for your law firm. It’s worth noting that this starts at the top, too. Diversity at senior level is more likely to introduce new product innovations than are those with homogeneous “top teams.”

In the millennial age, offering diversity and a great company culture means harbouring an environment where all employees are respected and valued, where there is a vision shared and worked towards by everyone, and where communication, transparency and teamwork are paramount.

While I’m not suggesting that achieving excellent diversity across your law firm will be easy, it’s something to consider working towards. The benefits are multiple, and your employees will thank you for it – as will your Senior Partners when they see the benefits reflected in the firm’s reputation and profit margins.

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking to build a better working environment for your legal team, call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121 and let’s have a conversation to explore your options. With our help, the transition can be smoother and quicker.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from partners to legal executives, solicitors to paralegals and legal IT personnel to practice managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

Even with a backdrop of economic uncertainty, we are still witnessing a buoyant legal jobs market with  many practice areas looking to hire new talent with relative urgency. However, by the same token, and amidst a still-current skills-shortage, the number of applications from jobseekers is still not accelerating along that same trajectory.

As we have seen before, demand once again exceed supply which translates to a highly competitive, candidate-led legal marketplace.

With competition at its fiercest, law firms are looking to attract the best (and often the same pool of) talent, so it’s imperative that they look for ways to create standout. And, once those candidates have expressed an interest, ensuring that the recruitment process from end-to-end is on point, engaging and compelling.

Are you making critical mistakes that could be hindering your chances of engaging and retaining the best talent to grow your law firm?

Here are some of the questions that will help you recognise if you’re in danger of making some critical hiring mistakes.

1. Is Your Recruitment Process Up to Date?

Are you clear on what you want from your ideal candidate? If your job description and person spec are vague, you won’t attract the top level of legal professional you need.

Too often, law firms believe they can reuse an old job description, but that just isn’t true. Today, legal candidates are looking for challenging opportunities in a career that will advance their knowledge and experience.

A dry, ‘dusty’ old job description that has clearly seen better days isn’t going to attract the right calibre of candidate to you.

So, think carefully about the job description, the person spec and the advert for your legal vacancy. Is your offer going to create a stir in the marketplace? Will candidates be beating a path to your door, eager to work for your firm?

If not, its time for a rethink and a revamp.

2. Is Your Offer Right?

Talking of which, it’s crucial to make sure you’ve got the offer right. And we’re not just talking about salary here.

Although remuneration remains an important factor, there are other big elements in the game that contribute to whether a candidate ultimately decides whether to apply for a legal position or not.

These deciding factors often include a package that offers additional benefits such as flexible hours, working from home options, the chance to work at different locations and with different teams, great company culture and friendly, productive environment, a clearly defined career pathway and extras such as healthcare, gym membership and profit-sharing schemes.

Now, that might seem a lengthy list of wants, but with Glassdoor reporting that 57% of job candidates list benefits and perks as among their top considerations before accepting a job, are you confident that your law firm has the right offer for the role?

Are you sure you can meet marketplace expectations?

3. Is Your Interview Strategy Thorough?

Having a well-timed plan for your interview process is pivotal in choosing the right candidate, having your offer accepted, and seeing your new legal hire at their desk.

Failure to achieve any part of the process in good time could see you miss out on securing your ideal employee.

Sorting applications and deciding who to interview can be a lengthy process if not planned well.

For a successful interview strategy, you need to consider:

• A timely plan for processing applications
• A crib sheet for marking to ensure all candidates are treated equally and fairly
• Synchronised diaries so everyone involved is available when needed their role in the interviewing/marking process
• An allocated member of staff to meet and greet – and set up tests if these are required
• Rooms for the interview and discussions afterwards
• Scheduled breaks for the interviewing team
• A deadline for deciding and contacting the successful candidate to avoid the candidates accepting another law firm’s offer first

If you believe you will struggle to deal with this time frame, it’s worth considering talking to a specialist legal recruiter such as ourselves at Clayton Legal, as we can help you speed up the process because of our unparalleled access to both active and passive legal candidates.

4. Are You Exploring Future Potential?

It’s advisable to resist hiring on qualifications (or first impressions) alone.

Personality is essential, as is the right cultural fit for your team. Will the candidate gel with your other team members? Will they make a good team player, and do they have the same ethos and values that your law firm holds?

Additionally, it’s worth considering the future – apart from the initial role they may hold in your firm, do they have the skills, or the ability to achieve them, that will enable them to develop with your team? Are they potential managerial or partnership material for the future?

Don’t be tempted to reject individuals out of hand.

Although the candidate may not be the right person for the current vacancy, if they have a good range of skills and traits, and a professional outlook, they may be worth retaining in your talent pipeline for future opportunities.

A good talent pipeline will enable your law firm to quickly find a replacement for a member of staff who leaves or an additional person for an expanding team. Having someone in mind already will save you time and money.

5. Do You Have a Strong Employer Brand?

It’s easy to put all your effort into getting the recruitment process right and forget that it’s important to maintain a credible and attractive employer brand to appeal to candidates.

But what exactly is your employer brand?

It’s the way you differentiate your firm from others; your USP, and what will attract the ideal candidates to apply to work for your law firm over another.

Having a strong brand will help you compete successfully in a candidate-driven marketplace. It should reflect your ethos, culture and approach to its employees. Keep it authentic to retain a trustworthy reputation.

6. Are You Onboarding Successfully?

It’s crucial that having found your ideal candidate, you don’t fail to onboard successfully.

A recent Harvard Business Review study indicated that a good onboarding process can reduce the average amount of time for a new employee to reach full performance by a third, from six months to four.

Conversely, many new employees leave their new role in the first few months due to poor onboarding. Forbes suggests a strong correlation between onboarding and unwanted employee turnover. For example, nearly all low-turnover firms (95%) have an onboarding process that helps with retention. In contrast, 20% of high-turnover firms do not have an onboarding process.

The onboarding process will play a pivotal role in your employee’s early days perception of the firm and will influence the level of loyalty they develop as a direct consequence. So, a great onboarding process won’t just result in having a team player up to speed quickly; it can also mean better retention rates and therefore lower recruitment needs and expense for the firm in the future.

With the (albeit forced) rise in remote working last year, and the anticipated step change towards hybrid-working models on a more long-term basis, virtual onboarding may also need to be taken into consideration. We’ve created a guide to onboarding remotely which contains the critical points to remember if this looks to be a viable option for your firm.

7. Are You Getting Expert Help?

Recruiting can be time-consuming and expensive. If you are struggling to recruit to your law firm, perhaps a specialist recruiter like Clayton Legal could help?

With over 20 years’ experience of partnering law firms to build resources, we can help streamline your hiring process.

Rather than tying your staff up in trying to find and hire the ideal candidate, we can speed up the process. With access to a vast range of contacts in the legal sector, including both active and passive candidates and a well-developed talent pipeline, we often have someone suitable straight away, saving you time and money.

Our expertise in the legal marketplace makes us the ideal partner for your busy law firm when looking to hire new talent.

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking to scale your law firm, call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121 and let’s have a conversation to explore your options. With our help, your transition can be smoother and quicker.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have placed thousands of legal professionals; from partners to legal executives, solicitors to paralegals and legal IT personnel to practice managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our latest guide here.

Whether you are a Child Care Paralegal or a Senior Conveyancing Solicitor, an interview is potentially the start of a new level in your career and a step nearer achieving your aspirations. So, it’s essential to get it right.

You’ve already made a positive impression with your CV, or perhaps a direct application or covering letter – so that first hurdle has been crossed.

The interview, be it over the phone, over a video call virtually, or face to face, is a chance to bring all of those points to life – and it’s essential to put your best foot forward and create a positive first impression that increases your chance of the job offer.

Here are our top seven steps to success…

1. Plan Ahead

Give yourself plenty of time to do your research. Learn all you can about the law firm and the job you’re applying for.

Don’t just look at the facts and figures; see if they have an online newsletter and sign up for it and follow them on social media. You may spot an interesting snippet of information or news story that you can bring into the interview.

Find out what specialisms they have, and what their plans are for future scaling.

These easy hacks will show your knowledge and demonstrate you are keen to work for their law firm.

2. Work with Your Recruiter

It’s also a good idea to work closely with your specialist legal recruiter. They will be able to discuss the role in depth with you and point out any gaps in your skillset that need addressing.

They can also help you assess your value and the strengths you bring to the role, such as soft skills, as they will have in-depth knowledge of the law firm you’re hoping to join.

3. Create a Cheat Sheet

Interviews are stressful enough without adding to the anxiety.

This top tip is useful in keeping you calm and avoiding any last-minute panic. You can use the notes app on your phone to list all the essential things about the recruitment job you need to remember.

Include:

• address of the interview
• contact number
• interviewer’s name
• time of your interview

Add three or four main points you want to make during your interview, some brief notes on your answers to competency-based questions and anything else that you think you might need.

You will then have all the information to hand for last-minute revision – allowing you to walk into the interview with confidence.

4. Be on Time

Being on time for an interview is crucial to setting yourself up positively in the eyes of the hiring manager. It says you are a reliable professional and conveys respect.

Conversely, being late for an interview is a no-no. It leaves a lasting impression and will not go down well with the hiring manager, trust me.

To minimise problems on the day, make sure you know where you are going for the interview and how you’re going to get there. Ideally, do a practice run and time yourself.

Everyone knows that hold-ups on the roads or public transport can affect us all.

If the worse happens and you are delayed, phone and apologise as a courtesy. Keep calm and provide them with details of how long you will be (if you know) or ask to reschedule.

It won’t hurt to follow up with a polite email later in the day to reinforce your apology. Good manners cost nothing but can convey a good lasting impression.

5. Harness Your Anxiety

Even with the experience of presenting at conferences or making court appearances, interviews can make the most experienced solicitor or paralegal nervous.

An excellent confidence technique is to “make friends” with your anxiety, says mindfulness teacher Charlie Morley. Acknowledge its presence, but don’t let it overpower you.

Try channelling all that adrenaline by changing your thought patterns – so you view your nervous energy as excited energy. You’ll still feel charged but in a positive way!

You may also consider doing some basic breathing exercises before you go into the interview. I’ve found this NHS exercise helpful.

Finally, positive thought can work wonders. So, picture yourself having a positive outcome and landing your dream legal job. It will boost your confidence levels and give you that extra push to sail through the interview.

6. Know Your Value

Your value to the company goes beyond your knowledge and skills in your specialist area of legal practice.

That doesn’t mean to say that these are not a priority; of course, they are paramount to the job, but your soft skills are also relevant.

Ask yourself what you bring to the law firm that is your USP. Are you a great team player? Do your ethics match those of the law firm? Are you a good culture fit?

If you have relevant testimonials, referrals or letters of recommendation from satisfied clients, take them with you to show the interviewer.

7. Watch Your Body Language

Interviews are not just about talking the talk. You may know all there is to know about your specialist area of family law or litigation and have a first-class degree, but your body language can still let you down and scupper your chances of success.

Body language is more important than you might think – in fact, Mehrabian’s findings are that:

• 7% of meaning in words that are spoken
• 38% of meaning is paralinguistic (the way that the words are said).
• 55% of meaning is in facial expression.

So, pay attention to it!

Avoid fidgeting, crossing your arms, making wild, distracting hand gestures, or slumping in your seat.

Eye contact is the fastest way to build rapport, but at the same time remember not to stare your interviewer out!

Three to five seconds of eye contact works perfectly. If you have more than one interviewer, give the person asking the question 60% of your eye contact when answering and share the remaining 40% across other panel members.

Finally, smile. It’s a fact that smiling will make you feel more confident and you will appear friendly.

The interview is your opportunity to sell yourself and prove your potential value to the employer. So, adopt a pleasant manner and follow these tried and tested interview secrets to get your dream legal role!

Next Steps

If you’re reading this article because you are looking for the next move in your legal career, call one of the Clayton Legal team on 01772 259 121 and let’s have a conversation to explore your options. With our help, your transition can be smoother and quicker.

About Clayton Legal

Clayton Legal has been partnering with law firms across the country since 1999 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability. We have made over 5,000 placements from partners to legal executives, solicitors to paralegals and legal IT personnel to practice managers.

If you are building your legal team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to know more about recruiting trends in the legal sector this year, download our guide here.