Growth is the linchpin of the traditional law firm model, as it creates an aura of confidence for partner/owners and the resources and opportunities necessary to reward junior lawyers for their hard work. For decades, growth occurred organically; as clients grew, so did the firm.

But every market has a saturation point. For the corporate legal market, the rise of The Am Law 200 ended comfortable regional oligarchies. Regional firms became national firms by moving into each other's backyards and poaching each other's talent. An unintended consequence of all this growth is that the supply of capable outside counsel exceeds demand.

For the foreseeable future, most of The Am Law 200 will only be able to grow by taking market share. Yet this business challenge is no more formidable than the one confronted by Steve Jobs upon his return to Apple in 1997, described here. For the better part of a decade, the company had been losing market share to Microsoft. For Jobs, focus was the key—create a handful of new products that were “much better” than anything else in the market. To achieve this goal, Apple would “start with the customer experience and work backward to the technology.” That singular focus can help large law firms take market share.