Moving Lateral Integration Forward During a Pandemic

In spite of the pandemic, lateral attorney moves continue to transpire and, like much else in the legal industry, they present a unique set of challenges. Naturally, the biggest difference in integrating laterals during the pandemic is that they can’t visit every office in-person and meet stakeholders. It is more important than ever to have a plan in place to help new laterals hit the ground running.

There is no substitute for a well-coordinated effort to onboard a lateral among the many administrative departments that keep a firm running smoothly. How do firms achieve that coordination when offices are shuttered and stakeholders scattered? Here are five tips to help ensure onboarding is a success.

1. Prioritize. Tackle the lateral’s most pressing needs, and plot out shorter- and longer-term priorities. New laterals have a lot on their plates in the time leading up to joining their new firm. Client work continues while the administrative burden of closing up shop at one office and moving clients, matters and files to a new one piles up. In the midst of this, the many attorneys and administrators at their new firm will have information to share, questions to ask and paperwork for them to complete. Business development planning at the new firm will need to get underway sooner rather than later, too.

Under normal circumstances, a parade of new faces over a lateral’s first few weeks in the office may be a fine way to introduce colleagues and check tasks off the to-do list. In the virtual workplace, however, it’s best to limit the number of people reaching out to a new lateral as much as possible and consolidate priorities, so as not to overwhelm their inbox or voicemail. Try establishing primary points of contact — one for the partnership, one for the business development team and one for the rest of the administrative support team — to streamline outreach and field questions on behalf of the larger group. This doesn’t mean that the lateral won’t end up connecting with other professionals down the line, but ensures that the process moves forward efficiently.

A representative from the BD team should be in touch early — ideally before the lateral’s start date — to communicate what assistance the BD team can offer while also collaborating with the practice group leader and the lateral to determine who they should meet internally, and in what strategic order to do so. Discuss their short- and long-term BD priorities, but plan around the lateral’s schedule and let them drive the pace of their integration.

It can also be helpful to have a point person in IT and conflicts to assist with the transition in those first few weeks with any emerging tech or conflicts issues that may arise.

2. Be strategic. It may be beneficial to team up with the practice group leader and lateral to develop the right strategy for the lateral’s initial internal BD meetings, based on the lateral’s practice, clients, industry focus and domestic or international focus. These meetings should be driven by more than simply identifying internal introductions — it’s important at this stage for the lateral to share their practice focus and more about their clients and prospects with the team, while also learning about the various service lines offered by the firm to trigger cross-discipline collaboration. Make sure the lateral meets with:

• Key attorneys in practices that might overlap with their own
• Relationship partners of clients whose industry may align with the lateral’s services
• Those wh​o are already doing work for clients or prospects in common with the lateral
• Practice group leads and sector heads, to gain an overview of your firm’s services from the core practices and industries

When scheduling meetings with practice group leaders, include the BD professional who supports that practice to further reinforce and support the integration process.

3. Socialize. This may be easier said than done in the virtual workplace, but spending time with new colleagues in settings other than work meetings is a critical part of getting new laterals truly integrated into the firm and culture. Inviting the lateral to virtual happy hours, games and other events can help shorten the incubation time and strengthen connections. Find out if the new lateral has particular interests that lend themselves to a virtual social event and will resonate with them, like a wine tasting or trivia night.

4. Don’t forget administrative support. A trusted administrative assistant is an invaluable ally for any law firm partner. Many laterals bring their admins with them from their previous firms. When that is the case, consider pairing the incoming admin with an experienced assistant to ensure they have a direct resource of their own to assist in learning your firm’s people and processes. If the lateral isn’t bringing their own admin, consider pairing them with an admin at your firm who has experience onboarding new laterals. If you aren’t already, now is also a good time to start training a group of admins in the special skills required to support lateral partners. It will go a long way to ensure that matters can be moved over and quickly opened once conflicts are run and engagements are executed.

5. Embrace the benefits of the online workplace. Onboarding laterals didn’t necessarily get more difficult when the workplace went virtual, but it certainly changed. Some of those changes can be to the firm’s advantage if it embraces technology to make onboarding easier. A single online platform where laterals can access documentation and helpful resources, sign and return forms, see the status of various onboarding tasks and manage their business plan can make life easier for everyone involved. Many law firms probably already have technology capable of doing these things, so what better time than now to begin building the integration hub of the future.