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Benchmark Committee discusses strategic plans

LCLD Benchmark Committee
Day-Two Working Session: Oct. 8, 2010

Key points, Qs & As, from the discussion:

Questions considered by the Benchmark Committee:

  • Are we asking the right questions?
  • What consultant(s) might help us design the survey?
  • What issues will LCLD members have?

Who will do the interviews? 
We will use professional interviewers from an outside vendor with a strong confidentiality agreement.   The vendor would need strong subject matter expertise to ensure value to the questions and analysis of the information received. 

Issues we want to probe?  What are our goals?
The questions relate to who is being included in the key strategic and financial areas of the organization.  What does the diversity of the people who drive the place look like? 

Why are we doing this? 
By asking the questions and getting the data, leaders of the organizations will confront and understand the numbers.  It will be important to report both on the positive and negative.

Comment:
We should learn from what other companies have done.  Build on what others have done. 

Is there value in talking with others in LCLD member organizations, in addition to MPs and GCs?   (e.g., practice area heads)
Yes, answers will likely vary with level and it will be important to identify disconnects between answers.  Caveat: watch out for individuals with axes to grind.  

Observation:
It is important to examine the law firm work assignment process.  Law firm systems can be arbitrary, and partners may believe that since they have their own relationships and clients they don’t need to worry about others.  It was noted that this outlook would be a derailer in corporations.  Ideas for measuring “organizational structure” included looking at the compensation system and how law firms value time spent on professional development. 

Other Member Comments:

  • From the interviews, we will likely get and should use stories. 
  • We should focus on US firms, not international.
  • We should ask about the diversity makeup of the top managers. 
  • We should focus on retention and promotion (recruitment may still be worth considering).
  • We need to use care in structuring the questions.  At some firms, the largest matters will have many people working on them.  We need to focus on the lead lawyers.
  • We should focus on how matters are assigned, and not focus on the lawyers who staff the matters.
  • Firms can use this data to self-analyze.
  • We need to drill down separately on how partners of color are doing (are they doing meaningful work?). 
  • Much debate and comments over whether benchmark questions should follow “the work” or follow “the pay.” 
  • Corporate law department should be asked about selection process for outside counsel and about the makeup of the outside lawyers to whom work is referred.
  • We can use the data to test some theories about correlation and causation of organizational structure and impact to diversity. 
  • We should share best practices regarding diversity practices in corporations.


“Parking Lot” Questions and Ideas:

  • What do we do with the data? 
  • Do we set goals?  What are our goals? 
  • Why is LCLD “research” different?
  • Is there any legal implications to this research? 
  • How do we define success?
  • Should we measure what firms are doing on the other LCLD initiatives as part of our benchmarking?