Can anybody help me with this one? I've been asked to do a 15 minute presentation on 'How to sell Management Training to Lawyers'. I'm not familiar with legal types so was wondering how to go about this. Any suggestions gratefully accepted. Thanks
Sean Kirk
5 Responses
a bigoted approach
Sean
This is both a serious and a lighthearted reply at the same time..
Lighthearted
Lawyers are unprincipled, money hungry people who care nothing about client satisfaction, job satisfaction, fairness, diversity or any other “soft” approach. Therefore, sell them the bottom line; either it will bring them extra profit, reduce their cost or be cheaper than the alternative.
Serious
This is pretty much the outcome of selling almost any management training at the end of the day.(if you don’t fulfill these criteria it will probably get cancelled or postponed)
(Sorry to be so biased but I have just had a very unfortunate/expensive experience with a lawyer!)
Management training
As with all training initiatives you have to sell the “what is in it for me?” question – ie improved skills, better performance, better career prospects, etc.
Experience
Hi Sean,
I’d like to add to what Sandra and Rus have both said by saying that this is an area more than any other where you absolutely have to demonstrate that you’ve delivered management development to other solicitors or barristers and what the tangible results were to their businesses!
Always useful to understand the impact of legal practise on soft skills too…
Best regards,
Megan
make it a performance issue
The easiest way is to have management responsibilities in their performance targets. That way you are just helping them to deliver what they will be held accountable for (and presumably this will impact on their remuneration)!
Audit
Why not conduct a mini company audit which elicits the views of staff on how they feel they are being led and managed? Then feed this back up to the lawyers?