With a global talent shortage, management teams at law firms must develop and implement more effective strategies in order to grow and develop their business successfully.

Executive chairman of Johnson Executive Search, John Colvin, will be discussing the increasing importance of focusing on the acquisition and retention of senior talent, including the key factors which cause partners to stay or go, at Thursday's (19 August) World Masters of Law Firm Management seminar, conducted by the Law Council of Australia.

"The acquisition and retention of talent for a service business will be the most important thing [managers] can focus on today and moving forward, even more so," Colvin told Lawyers Weekly. "There's a whole raft of changes that are playing through the world at large...[Last year] it was the first time in history, of the civilised world, that there were less people entering the workforce than leaving it. The pool of talent is shrinking..."

According to Colvin, gone are the days when business strategy focused on financial issues, market issues or competitor issues. With a declining pool of talent, the entire strategy of firms is now dependant upon getting the right people to achieve the goals of the business.

Joining Colvin at Thursday's seminar as part of an expert panel are Deloitte's lead partner for its NSW Human Capital Consulting Practice, Nicky Wakefield; Baker & McKenzie's director of talent management with the global talent management team, Daljit Singh; and managing director of Kriss Will Consulting, Kriss Will.

As a keynote speaker alongside Colvin, Wakefield will discuss how firms are currently responding to talent management challenges as well as best practices within firms.

- Briana Everett