| “If law schools taught basic business management skills, we wouldn’t exist,”
says Dustin Cole, President of Attorneys Master Class, “but they don’t. So most attorneys had to figure it out for themselves. Some have done it fairly well, but even the best have skill gaps which cost them money, time and stress.”
“It’s a profession-wide problem. Most attorneys accept high stress, too many hours, and too-high overhead as ‘just how the practice of law is.’ They live with a level of personal frustration that simply isn’t necessary.”
“Books and seminars just aren’t very effective in changing this,” says Cole. “It’s just passive education. It usually doesn’t cause much more than a few short-term changes, and those usually get lost in the shuffle pretty quickly. The pressures of a busy, stressful practice squeeze out new ideas, and most of them disappear in the next crisis.”
“Developing new skills – and making them stick – requires the support of an expert who not only helps them learn the skills, but stays with them through the breakdowns and the natural resistance to change until those skills become integrated and habitual,” says Cole.
“The Individual Master Class is an intensely personal experience. It’s designed to help the attorney literally re-think and re-engineer his or her practice.”
Prior to beginning the Master Class, the attorney is asked to provide extensive practice back ground information and complete an in-depth personality profile. Then, the Individual program begins with a full-day on-site visit that allows the Practice Advisor to evaluate the attorney’s working environment, systems and procedures.
During the visit, the Practice Advisor first meets individually with the attorney to review the background information and personality profile. Then, the Practice Advisor meets with all colleagues and team members who work with the attorney.
“This gives the coach a powerful foundation for the coaching process,” says Cole. “They begin with a clear picture of the attorney’s practice and working environment, and that means they can focus the program on the issues that will create the greatest benefit in revenues, new business skills and personal satisfaction.”
At the conclusion of the on-site visit, the Practice Advisor meets again with the attorney to discuss an initial plan of action and make some specific assignments. Then, for the next 90 days, the attorney and the Practice Advisor work together via telephone conferences every week (or more often if needed) to work on implementation of specific skills, systems and processes. The attorney also has unlimited access to the Practice Advisor at any time for advice, input or to help in managing problems.
The goal of the Individual Master Class is concrete, measurable results: an increasing revenue stream, increased production efficiency (often resulting in more billable hours AND less total hours worked), more and better systems and procedures, and overall, a practice with more growth potential.
The Master Class process itself is multi- layered. It begins with education on specific issues followed by direction and training on skills, systems or processes, with continuing follow-up for trouble-shooting and accountability. This assures that the skill or system gets fully implemented and becomes part of the attorney’s normal skill set.
Beyond skill development, the Practice Advisor also serves as a mentor, providing advice, guidance and insights in dealing with conflicts, breakdowns, and team problems.
“I believe one of the greatest strengths of the process is its strict confidentiality,” says Cole. “It means the attorney can speak freely, openly and honestly about whatever is in their way. That allows the Practice Advisor to be of the greatest value in the process.”
The Team Master Class is structured differently than the Individual program. It is designed to increase team effectiveness and profit by providing not only new management skills, but also by re-engineering team systems, procedures and processes. The goal is to maximize profit, create a solid foundation for managing growth, and then free up time for attorneys to focus aggressively on client development.
“The greatest resources for the Team Master Class are the non-attorney team members,” says Cole. “Most staff are, frankly, more organized than the attorneys, and when they have the opportunity to re-engineer, they often do it with a vengeance. That’s important, because in truly effective teams, staff become the driving force, and actually reinforce the attorney’s commitments to change.”
The Team program begins with a 1-2 day on-site visit by the Master Practice Advisor, who meets with each team member, (attorney and non-attorney), then studies the group’s current systems and procedures.
Two to three weeks after the initial visit, the Practice Advisor convenes the team for a 2-4 hour on-site workshop.
“Each workshop is specially created to address the specific priorities, issues and problems the Practice Advisor uncovered on the initial visit, and to develop a 90-day action plan with the team”, says Cole.
Following the workshop, the team holds bi-weekly one-hour telephone conferences with their Practice Advisor. On alternate weeks each attorney team member has his or her own personal, confidential phone conference. To support the overall team progress, the Practice Advisor is also in frequent discussion with key staff members.
“One of the big goals of the team program for the Practice Advisor is to make sure the new skills and systems stay in place, and the team keeps innovating after the program itself ends,” Cole says. “That means putting in place an internal structure for accountability and support.”
After the initial 90-day Individual or Team program, many firms add a level of assurance and support by engaging Attorneys Master Class for a less intense follow-on program. Each follow-on program is designed specifically around the desires of the participant.
“Attorneys typically make quantum leaps in revenue and practice satisfaction in just 90 days. After all, they are, as a profession, brilliant and highly motivated. They can quickly see the value in the new actions, and with the help of the Practice Advisor, they’re able to make them both work and stick in their practices. In fact, one of the most frequent comments I hear is ‘Why weren’t you around twenty years ago?”
For more information on Attorneys Master Class call 407-830-9810, or Contact Us Online.
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