My wife is a securities lawyer, one who puts in some crazy hours at her law firm. As a result, I like to keep track of developments in her field, thinking it might help us make life and career decisions down the road. Recently, I stumbled across this very interesting article from a firm called Law360, Gen Y Poised To Transform BigLaw's Workplace Norms, which got me thinking about one of my favorite topics, the digitalization of workforce and increased capacity for flexibility and mobility. I should note that, Avaya offers a number of products that enable this digitization, and if you have questions around those please reach out to me or leave a comment in the blog and we can get you information about those offerings.
The article outlines some projected and anticipated technological changes in an industry (law) that has not changed all that much, with a model based around partnerships and people working in their offices, surrounded by their colleagues. The catalyst for some of these changes are believed to be the next generation of lawyers coming into firms and running up against the legacy models of work and collaboration. "The traditional BigLaw work model is largely based on the concept of putting the firm first. But as Generation Y's presence in the legal profession grows, firms will need to rethink that approach to meet the younger generation's needs, legal experts say."
I was particularly interested in this article after a wide ranging discussion I had with a number of lawyers at an event a few weeks ago. It was a nice cross section of junior associates, senior associates and partners, talking about the use of technology in their own law practice. The variety of opinions around mobility and digital collaboration was stark, from some lawyers who are very attached to the reams and reams of paper they use on a daily basis to others that are getting pretty close to a digital-only work style. That diversity is great and excepted, and a good technology solution has to be flexible to these various work approaches.
Personally, I believe that regardless of your personal mix between digital and paper media consumption, the move towards digital is not going to fade. Do you think you will be reading more or less digital media in 10 years?
Transformation in action
So, how does this matter to organizations beyond the legal field? Well, the Law360 article outlines an example of the opportunities available to law firms, which is probably also an option for many other companies/organizations. The opportunity is created by right sizing the real estate footprint to the preferences and working approaches of employees.
But in order for work-life arrangements to be truly viable, firms and Gen Yers need to work together to design creative solutions that meet the needs of both the employer and the employee, Henry (Deborah Epstein Henry, founder and president of Flex-Time Lawyers LLC) said.Henry pointed to the example of one BigLaw firm that was recently faced with redesigning its Miami office. While the initial plans included a "corner office" scheme largely aimed at impressing clients, the firm interviewed its Gen Y attorneys to ask for their preferences and learned that the younger group was much more interested in working in a more communal environment.
Because the Gen Yers were also very amenable to telecommuting, the firm went with a smaller square footage than originally planned, and was able to pass that savings on to their clients while maximizing their young attorneys' productivity, she said
"It was a brilliant business move," Henry said. "They saved hard dollars while still meeting the demands of both their employees and their clients."
This might sound familiar, as I have written on the opportunity right here on the Connected Blog, Telecommuting as a smart green strategy.
One of the major benefits is the ability of enterprises to adjust their real estate footprint to accommodate fewer employees coming into the office on a regular basis, or switching to drop in areas as opposed to dedicated offices for everyone. This reconfirmation of the office setting can really increase the density of the office environment, while increasing the comfort and productivity in the office. Here at Avaya, we have seen significant real estate savings as a result of conscious decisions to hire and employ dedicated teleworkers.
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