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We have an unparalleled opportunity to champion the professionalism and traditions of law and create new foundations that grow people and service in a way that will build up, not tear down, writes Sophie Tversky.
For a long time, the legal profession, and the professional services landscape more broadly, have thrived on the same model: reliant on big brands to bring in and retain talent. The hidden rhetoric is that the price that comes from the brand name results in long hours and conditions that appear to help you grow but are in place simply to see if you can “hack it”. Often, accompanying this, you’ll see poor leadership that is accepted as the norm.
Please let me be clear: this isn’t always the case – some workplaces genuinely seek to create platforms for their people to thrive. But I think we can all agree that these are not ubiquitous.
Along the way, we have accepted the “because I went through it, so must you” narrative. This assumes that poor experiences are how we “toughen up” and learn. These can be on a spectrum from the hostile open-door policy underscored by the feeling that you are wasting someone’s time, the clearly unrealistic tasks not set for stretch but rather to put you in your place, to more clear instances of bullying. I genuinely feel for every single person who supposedly grew through such experiences. Because the reality is that the science does not back up these approaches.
Of course, challenges help growth; that’s part of life. And yes, people should work hard; that’s a given in the workplace if you want to progress. However, what I am saying is that the norms that we have accepted are grounded in fallacy. In cognitive biases, in confirmation bias, because most of us haven’t experienced anything else.
The science shows us that people thrive when there are conditions that facilitate experimentation and healthy risk-taking, when holding different opinions is championed, when processes are made transparent, when there is recognition for growth, not solely financial outcomes.
All industries are facing a pivotal time, but this is particularly true for professional services, as the knowledge economy is changing. AI is redefining the perception of quality, service delivery and what being a trusted advisor means. It requires us to fundamentally look at the skills we want to foster for the future of work. It requires us to re-examine skills and mindsets that we may have downplayed in the past. In parallel with technological changes, PLT will soon review their curriculum and skills for the future, following regulatory review – what we deem to be necessary skills for the future is being put under the microscope.
The value that is created through legal services is directly impacted by the quality of output and thinking, engagement, and the client experience that is provided. There is a direct connection between employee experience and client experience. By building teams that drive engagement and purpose, you create brand ambassadors that place the client at the centre of service, and this drives profitability. The overarching quality is shaped by one core question: what infrastructure, skills and conditions are your organisations building to bring out the best thinking and interactions of your people? In essence, how are you changing the organisational health of your people and clients, for the better?
The legal profession, both service and educational providers, has a unique opportunity to create a fresh narrative about the workplaces they design. By this I mean the way we design our organisations: the structure, processes, capabilities and mindsets, not punitively but rather to enhance and augment. Will we choose to foster environments that enable real dialogue, collaboration, creative thinking, care and growth?
Will we hold on to the best parts of tradition, from the rule of law, pro bono services, to upholding ethical standards, and simultaneously acknowledge the parts that have run their course? We have an unparalleled opportunity to champion the professionalism and traditions of law and create new foundations that grow people and service in a way that will build up, not tear down. Redefining professional identity. Now and into the future.
Let’s build this identity together.
Sophie Tversky is an international, multi-profession award-winning Future of Work strategist, facilitator and keynote speaker, helping organisations transform how they work together, with their clients and partners. She previously worked as an Australian lawyer and was an award winner in Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards.
