This article appeared in Marketing the Law Firm, an ALM/Law Journal Newsletters publication reporting on the latest, and most effective, strategies for Chief Marketing Officers, Managing Partners, Law Firm Marketing Directors, Administrators and Consultants.

Office drama can be a big problem for law firms. Whether it is showing up as office gossip, the partner who is terrible to their associates and staff, two people who just cannot seem to get along, or a revolving door of lawyers or staff, drama can be distracting, hamper productivity, and reduce billable hours. Results from a recent survey showed that the average employee spends 4.34 hours a week dealing with conflict (The Myers-Briggs Company, 2022). If even a fraction of a firm's staff is losing over 4 billable hours a week, those losses will add up fast.

There are three key principles leaders should employ when aiming to manage office drama in a law firm effectively.