Marcie Borgal Shunk, president and founder of The Tilt Institute. Courtesy photo

Smart Strategy

A leader is anyone who has influence over another person. Yet not all leaders are effective ones.

Effective leadership has the power to reshape the legal sector. Research shows leadership behaviors—not leaders, but demonstrated leadership skills and characteristics—have direct and indirect impact on virtually every aspect of law firm performance including:

• Engagement (which translates directly into billable hours).
• Retention (which translates directly into lost revenue and sunk costs).
• Culture (which translates into improved diversity and retention).
• Client service (which translate into expanded, lasting client relationships).

In fact, Gallup's recent findings with respect to well-led organizations reveals the best-run organizations enjoy engagement levels of 70%—more than double the average—which translates directly into:

• 18% higher revenue.
• 43% lower turnover.
• 41% higher quality.
• 23% higher profitability.

Yet leadership skills have historically taken a back seat in law firms, whether due to misconceptions leadership skills are innate (think "natural born leader"), "more pressing" developmental needs, or the unfortunate habit of promoting those with big originations (rainmakers) over those with abilities to motivate, engage and energize those around them.

Fortunately, in recent years, law firms have acknowledged the critical importance of leadership skills. They have made greater investments in professional development and expanded leadership training programs, according to research co-produced by The Tilt Institute and ALM Intelligence. Learning professionals, however, still rate the efficacy of their programs just a 4.6 on a scale of 10.