Prague social event for PDME discussion group

Members of the Forbes Institute's Practice Development Managers Europe discussion group are invited to a meet up in person in Prague for networking and professional discussions.

This event will take place on Thursday 22 July 2010 from 17:00 - 18:00 (roundtable professional discussion – topics to be determined by participants) and then from 18:00 – 19:30 for networking and socializing.

The venue will be in the center of Prague and will be announced. Regarding refreshments, there will be FREE beer, wine, soft drinks and snacks. And weather permitting, we will be outside on a terrace. If you want to attend sign up here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PDME_Prague_SocialEvent_22-07-2010

Regional BD Director – Global law firm – CEE based – Salary negotiable

The successful candidate for this new position will help take the firm’s strategic plan to the next level within the CEE region.

This comes on the back of recent high-profile lateral hires and an expansion of the business development team.

We are now looking for the right person to lead and develop this team as well as become a trusted business advisor to the partners in the region.

So you should be smart and business savvy but also show good judgment. You will be someone who knows how to coach and inspire a team of Practice Development Managers (PDMs), other marketing support staff as well as partners, and be able to identify and capitalize on opportunities for the firm.

Emotional intelligence and good people skills are required, but beyond that, we are looking for a person with that rare talent of being able to motivate others and influence events with solid arguments, positive words and action.

The right person will be able to engage partners when it comes to client service and business development issues, as well as connect the dots with the people and the opportunities, by understanding our business and strategy in CEE.

In this role you are expected to: Work with stakeholders (Partners, support, the COO in Prague and the CMO in New York); Develop and lead PDMs in the region; Identify new business opportunities through your own contacts; Identify internal opportunities for cross-selling among practices and offices within CEE; Accompany partners to client-type meetings; Identify revenue objectives for key client accounts; Assess client profitability; Create alternative fee arrangements.

Candidates should have a solid track record of coaching partners and managing business development and marketing support in a professional service firm.

They should also have excellent written and oral communication skills in English. Though not necessary for the role, it would be advantageous to speak other languages in the CEE region as well as have experience living and working abroad or in the CEE region.

Ex-pats with a strong business development track record in global law or accounting firms who are willing to be based in a CEE country are welcome to apply for this position.

The travel commitment for this role is expected to be several days a week, each week, and home for the weekends.

The remuneration for this position is a highly competitive fixed salary + incentive compensation and will be based on the experience and skills the right candidate brings to the role.

If you are interested in this opportunity or would like to request a more detailed job description, please contact Jeffrey Forbes of the Forbes Institute, who has been retained exclusively to fill this new position:
___________________________________

  F O R B E S   I N S T I T U T E
___________________________________

Jeffrey Forbes - The Client Doctor

Email:    jeffrey@clientdoctor.com
Web:      www.forbesinstitute.com
Web:      www.clientdoctor.com

Mobile:   +420-732 374 191      
Office:   +420-220 570 463      
Fax:      +420-220 570 464

Jana Zajice 40
170 00 Prague 7
Czech Republic

Directory direction - Legal Directories in Europe

Law firms across Europe devote tens of thousands of hours of marketing time slaving over submissions for legal directories. But is the effort worth the results?

This topic was debated recently by Practice Development Managers Europe, an e-mail-based discussion group lead by Jeffrey Forbes of the Forbes Institute, whose members are marketing and business development professionals at law and accountancy firms across continental Europe.

A selection of their informative comments on this topic was recently published in the May edition of The European Lawyer. Download the article here.

Implications for profitable legal departments

Now that some legal departments, notably DuPont, are acting more like a stakeholder in their company, what are the wider implications for this evolution?

In the guest editorial column of the May/June 2010 issue of European General Counsel Jeffrey Forbes suggests four:

Was somebody not doing their job here?

What is in it for profitable legal departments?

Should there be a new ranking for legal departments based on revenue?

Should in-house lawyers fill in time sheets to prove the value they add to the company?

Download the article here.

Practice Development Manager - Global law firm - Based in Moscow

Summary Job Description:

This is a new position which has been created to support the firm's strategic plan to enhance the capabilities and expertise of its Corporate and M&A team in Russia as well as CEE.

This firm's high-profile hiring expansion and this new role will be a great asset to their existing Corporate and M&A team, as they focus on major economic transaction flows between Moscow and their global network, particularly London.

The right person for this role will be seen as a trusted business advisor to the partners of this practice group on a local and regional (CIS/CEE) basis.

They should be smart and business savvy; someone who knows how to coach and inspire partners to identify and capitalize on opportunities for the firm.

Emotional intelligence and good people skills are required, but beyond that, they are looking for a person with that rare talent of being able to influence without having authority.

For example, the right candidate will be someone who can facilitate a partner meeting with confidence, around business development issues.

They should also be able to connect the dots with the people and the opportunities, work closely with the marketing department, and understand the firm's business in Russia, CIS and CEE.

Candidates should have experience dealing with partners in professional service firms and have excellent written and oral communication skills in both Russian and English.

The salary package for this position will be highly competitive and based on the experience and skills the right candidate brings to the role.

To receive a complete job description or to discuss this opportunity, please contact Jeffrey Forbes of the Forbes Institute, who has been retained exclusively to fill this new position:

Jeffrey Forbes
Mobile: +420-732 374 191        
Email: jeffrey@clientdoctor.com
___________________________________

F O R B E S I N S T I T U T E
___________________________________

Jeffrey Forbes - The Client Doctor

Email: jeffrey@clientdoctor.com
Web: www.forbesinstitute.com
Web: www.clientdoctor.com

Mobile:  +420-732 374 191        
Office:   +420-220 570 463        
Fax: +420-220 570 464

Jana Zajice 40
170 00 Prague 7
Czech Republic

How the knife falls – for law firms in Russia

A high percentage of legal departments in Russia sought discounts from external law firms in 2009 for a wide variety of legal matters. A new survey reveals how deep those discounts were.

In the May 2010 issue of Top Legal International, Jeffrey Forbes reports on the actions that legal departments in Russia are taking to reduce external legal costs. This article is based on some of the major findings from the new 2009 report sponsored by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell: How in-house counsel in Russia are managing their legal departments.

Download the article here.

Russian legal departments reduce spending

A new survey shows most, but not all legal departments in Russia, had to reduce their budgets in 2009. This article reveals for the first time publicly the extent of their pain.

In the May/June 2010 issue of European General Counsel, Jeffrey Forbes reports on some of the major findings from the new 2009 report sponsored by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell: How in-house counsel in Russia are managing their legal departments. Download the article here.

Selling yourself to other lawyers

In April Top Legal International published a CEE survey that indicated almost two thirds of local law firms said they would consider a merger. But are they preparing themselves for suitors?

Jeffrey Forbes examines what merger candidates can do to prepare themselves when trying to attract potential suitors. This article was published in the May 2010 issue of Top Legal International and can be downloaded here.

Rescheduled In-house counsel panel discussion in Moscow

A panel with heads of legal departments of major companies in Russia will discuss the recently published survey on how in-house counsel in Russia are managing their legal departments.

Invitation

How in-house counsel in Russia are managing their legal departments

We request the pleasure of your company at this exclusive event where we will discuss the
findings of LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell’s recent study: How in-house counsel in Russia are managing their legal departments.

We will present unpublished data for Russian legal departments covering five major areas:

1)  Hiring, training, rewarding and motivating your staff.

2)  Increasing your legal function’s productivity and saving money by implementing process improvements or using technology.

3)  Ensuring your department is aligned with the priorities of your company’s business units.

4)  Reducing your external legal costs without sacrificing quality.

5)  Communicating risk and your company’s legal liabilities.

These findings will be “brought to life” by a panel of experts along with the active participation of
the audience which will be a mix of heads of legal departments and law firm partners.

Panelists:

Vadim Shubenin, Head of Legal Department, BNP Paribas Vostok
Anastasia Shkarina, Legal Manager, EFES Group Russia
Stephen Polakoff, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Integra Group
Evgeny Timofeev, Partner and Co-head of Salans Global Tax Practice, Salans
Derek Benton, Director International Operations, LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell

Moderator:  Jeffrey Forbes, Founder of the Forbes Institute and author of this survey

Date: Wednesday 26th May 2010

Time: 17:00-20.00 hours

Venue: Offices of Salans, Balchug Plaza, Ul. Balchug 7, 115035 Moscow  (map)

Format: Panel Discussion

Program: 16:30 Registration
                   17:00 Panel discussion
                   18:30 Networking reception
                   20:00 End of event

Handout: Free printed copy of the survey report

If you would like to attend, please contact Jeffrey Forbes jeffrey@clientdoctor.com.

If you would like to bring a colleague or send a colleague in your place, you can forward this email to them and they can use the registration button to sign up for this event.

This invitation is only valid for heads of legal departments or partners in law firms (limit one per organization).  Receipt of this invitation does not guarantee the recipient a reserved seat at this event.  Space is limited and will be confirmed in writing on a first come basis.  The panel discussion will be in English and there is no fee payable to attend. 

Organized by:

Sponsored by:

Managing legal departments in Ukraine and Russia

This will be the topic of a presentation that will be delivered at the III Annual In-House Counsel Conference in Kyiv, on 23 April 2010, organized by the Ukrainian Bar Association.

This will be a joint presentation with Yuriy Vakhel, who Chairs the in-house counsel committee for the Ukrainian Bar Association, and Jeffrey Forbes, who will present data from the first in-house counsel surveys he conducted in Ukraine and Russia on behalf of LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell.

For more details of this event please visit the UBA web site: www.uba.ua/eng/events/140/

You can download the presentation here.

Yuriy Vakhel (left) and Jeffrey Forbes (right) at the presentation.

Legal marketers get together in Moscow

A new group of legal marketers has decided to organize themselves in Moscow, and will be having their first get together in April, to network and discuss some hot topics in their industry.

Dear Colleagues!

Let us invite you to support our initiative of regular get-together of marketing/BD/PR pros of the legal market.

The idea to launch networking meetings of the legal marketing community occurred to a group of colleagues willing to push the market on and contribute to its further dynamic development. The plan is to have such meetings monthly in a very informal but informative format. Hope in the course of time they will become a true professional club with tens of participants representing leading national and international law firms.

To get moving now, we are delighted to invite you to the first get-together on Wednesday, 21 April 2010 at 7.00 p.m.

We have been so bold as to define the topics that may deserve our consideration during the first meeting as follows:

• Introductions

• Legal market in Russia: high time to get mature

What about criticizing our market, comparing it to more advanced ones, discussing its real gaps and giving a forecast when it will head out?

• HOT DISCUSSION: RuLFs vs. ILFs: who's better in marketing?!

We expect this session to be a stage for clashing of two opposite viewpoints. How will you support and defend your party? What arguments will you give? If you are inspired and would like to defend your position at the first meeting please send us your applications!

To ensure relaxed atmosphere, our working language is Russian, but English is also quite acceptable.

We are happy to add that Jeffrey Forbes, a professional service firms consultant, will join our discussion.

As we mentioned our meetings will be quite informal. The first one will take place in a relaxing atmosphere of the City Club International (23a Tarasa Shevchenko Nab., Tower 2000, Bagration Bridge, 2d floor). There is no attendance fee, but we will have a no-host bar where the guests pay for their own food & drinks.

Please R.S.V.P. your participation by sending us your full contact information by April 15 latest.

Should you have any queries or ideas please don’t hesitate to contact Julia Kobylinskaya at +7 916 555 8376.

Look forward to seeing you at the upcoming meeting!

Our kind regards,

Julia Kobylinskaya, Sergey Novikov, Alina Sokolova

Magisters BD Team in Moscow

As the Group of Initiators

Legal department benchmark survey sets world record

A new global legal department benchmarking survey is now the largest ever conducted with more than 300 legal departments around the world (including CEE) having taken part so far.

The Forbes Institute is responsible for the CEE region of this global survey and is pleased to announce that this is now the largest ever conducted.

More than 300 legal departments around the world have taken part so far and that includes many countries in CEE as well.

The survey statistics from participants so far include:

- 7,624 in-house lawyers,
- 1,791 in-house paralegals,
- 3,587 other legal department staff. 

- internal legal spend of $2.4 billion
- external legal spend of $4.4 billion
- combined company revenue during 2009 of $1.5 trillion. 

This survey is on track to reach 500 participants by early April, and due to this success, I would like to inform you that:

1) We have extended the deadline to receive the first FREE report if heads of legal departments participate by Friday 2 April.

2) Also, participants no longer have to answer ALL of the questions. We realize that many may not be able or willing to give out some of this information. For this reason, we are now accepting questionnaires that are not 100% complete.

However, we can only guarantee that they will receive graphs, charts and analysis based upon the data that they give. This means you must answer at least questions 1-9.

To participate just fill out the questionnaire and send it back to Jeffrey Forbes (jeffrey@clientdoctor.com) by email or go online and fill it in yourself at:http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LegalDepartmentSurveyPublicAccess

A business development boot camp for lawyers

In times like these, smart law firms realize that more of their lawyers have to be involved in the process of winning and retaining clients, especially with extra time on their hands.

Laird Cenotto is the CIS chief operating officer for US-based law firm Baker & McKenzie. He gives an inside view on how lawyers get basic training in business development skills, published in the March 2010 issue of The European Lawyer.

You can download the article here.

Local law firms launching in challenging markets

Romanian firm Tuca has opened a new office in Madrid and Czech firm Peterka has opened a new office in Moscow. Given the current challenges in both markets, is this a good idea?

In the case of the law firm Peterka & Partners in Prague, Jeffrey Forbes was invited to comment on their move, which was written about in the March 2010 issue of Top Legal International. You can download the article here.

New industry benchmark survey for in-house legal departments

The Forbes Institute has teamed up with a group of consultants internationally to produce a new global benchmarking report for legal departments based on industry sectors.

The Forbes Institute is responsible for the CEE region and this questionnaire is very brief – only 12 questions! – so it will not take much of your time.

You do not have to pay any fee to participate. And if you answer all 12 questions by 28 February you will receive a free electronic copy of the results in April 2010.

The report will include global, regional and where applicable, benchmarks and analysis for your country, with more than 20 charts and tables for your industry.

This survey is anonymous and only aggregated data will be published. I ask for your contact information so that I can send you a free copy of the report when it is finished.

Only the head of the in-house legal department is allowed to complete this questionnaire and only one company per country. Your company must also have revenue of at least 10 million USD annually.

The deadline to participate is 28 February in order to receive free benchmarks and analysis. If you participate after this date you will have to pay a fee to receive the results.

You can download the questionnaire here and send it back to me by email.

Or you can go online to fill it in at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LegalDepartmentSurveyPublicAccess

General counsel in Russia ride out the storm
 
Stephen Polakoff is general counsel to one of Russia’s newest energy players – Integra Group. He tells Jeffrey Forbes that his company and others in Russia had some hard decisions.

Read this fascinating and in-depth interview that was published in the January issue of The European Lawyer. Download the article here.

General counsels think right about the price
 
The economic downturn has made GC in Europe more price-sensitive. But what is new is how fixed-price billing is affecting both in-house counsel and their external law firms.

Jeffrey Forbes was invited to write the guest editorial column for the January 2010 issue of European GC. You can download the January issue here.