Recruiting, not just integrating, laterals.

• Author: Kaufman, David

The plate of most law firm marketing professionals continues to fill up. As marketers are increasingly regarded as true business advisors for the attorneys, our skills and talents are being put to the test in new ways. Lateral recruitment and integration are areas where we are being asked to contribute on a level unseen before. Among many law firms large and small, marketing staff have traditionally been expected to play a role in helping to integrate laterals, [see "'Lateral' Should Mean Up, Not Sideways," April/May 2008, p. 8].

It has been less common for marketing or business development professionals to be engaged in the recruiting process itself. However, a number of headhunters across the country report seeing marketing representatives show up on recruiting committees and actively engage in the recruiting process. Given the recent instability in the legal marketplace and the crucial need for marketing savvy in the attorney hiring process, this trend will likely escalate. Furthermore, firms are discovering that marketing can play a key role in helping firms quickly and persuasively respond when hiring opportunities arise.

The recent demise of large firms such as Thacher Proffitt & Wood, Jenkens & Gilchrist, Heller Ehrman and Thelen LLP have provided hiring opportunities for dozens of firms that sought these firms' rainmakers. The hiring firms with functioning and experienced lateral recruiting committees in place were able to respond quickly and organize interviews, keep the discussions focused and on track and help identify potential roadblocks such as conflicts among merged practice areas. When speed is of the essence, the firms that had already identified their recruiting needs, could clearly describe and communicate their firm culture and could keep momentum going inevitably did better in the high-stakes competition for available talent. Our firm, Nixon Peabody LLP, has effectively utilized members of its marketing group in lateral recruiting and integration. The firm, with more than 800 attorneys, has been committed to growth through strategic lift-outs of larger groups, siting of new offices in Europe and Asia and bolstering its mix of practices among its 19 offices globally. In 2008, more than 100 new attorneys were added through a combination of individual hires and lift-outs of larger groups.

Customized Approach

Although we are a single global firm, regional, office-specific and practice area factors play major roles in...