Law firm leaders often move from decision to decision at breakneck speed. Now, two Stanford management professors are turning heads by offering a counterintuitive recommendation: adopt a mantra of “strategic slowness.”
Earlier this year, Stanford’s Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao took to the pages of The Wall Street Journal to counsel leaders of all stripes to ease up, bucking Mark Zuckerberg’s notorious “move fast and break things” philosophy. Sutton cites examples such as Elon Musk’s “impulsive missteps” at X and Elizabeth Holmes’ maneuverings at Theranos as compelling reasons to avoid the harsh consequences of “hurry sickness.”
Why Should Future-Focused Law Firm Leaders Embrace Strategic Slowness?
In their Wall Street Journal piece, Sutton and Rao — co-authors of the recent book “The Friction Project” — urge all leaders to know when to hit the brakes. They call out eight instances when “smart bosses urge people to slow down,” as follows:
- Making major, irreversible decisions. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos distinguishes between “one-way” and “two-way” door decisions. One-way-door decisions aren’t reversible, and they merit significant deliberation.
- Solving complex problems. Research shows that the smartest people typically take more time to solve complicated problems — and this additional investment of time steers them away from flawed conclusions and toward greater accuracy.
- Pursuing creative work. Put simply, there’s no shortcut to creativity.
- Encouraging ethical conduct. Research shows that leaders who are urged to evaluate their actions deliberately rather than rushing forward are much less likely to engage in ethics violations.
- Reducing prejudice. Stereotyping and prejudicial behavior can decline when people are encouraged to move at a more measured pace.
- Decreasing “destructive friction.” Employees should be discouraged from taking actions that put up roadblocks to productivity, by making them “pause, think and jump through annoying hoops before they can heap additional burdens on others.”
- Connecting with clients. A focus on rapid delivery can sometimes clash with providing an exceptional customer experience.
- Enjoying positive experiences. Lastly, a reduced work pace can enhance relationships and contribute to better mental and physical health. Leaders should urge employees to take the time to “bask in their accomplishments.”
What lessons can law firm leaders learn from Sutton and Rao in their journey to implement smart growth strategies? Here are three to consider.
Thoughtfully Navigate the Advent of AI
Generative AI is poised to revolutionize the legal industry. Law firms will confront a suite of major decisions and complex problems as they incorporate AI into their business models: What AI technologies are best suited to the firm’s practice areas? Which AI products can help the firm optimize its operational side? How should the firm adapt its pricing models as AI gains the capability to perform most entry-level legal work? How can the firm add new value to client relationships to maintain profitability? The list goes on. These are questions that warrant measured consideration, not snap decisions.
Invest in Professional Development
Law firms often fall short in helping less experienced lawyers acquire the legal skills and business acumen necessary to become partner-level contributors. Instead, many firms rely on a development approach where rookie lawyers are expected to “figure it out on their own,” with minimal investments of time on the part of more experienced lawyers. The strategic slowness model dovetails with the need to reimagine professional development strategies. For example, it is crucial for senior lawyers to actively mentor and develop their junior colleagues through consistent training, guidance and sponsorship, especially given the reduced in-office presence across all talent levels in the post-pandemic era.
This, of course, may necessitate adjusting firm values and compensation structures to recognize and reward partners for dedicating their valuable time to these essential roles. However, investing time in effective mentorship and training will yield substantial long-term benefits for the firm by attracting and retaining talent capable of high-quality work. It will also build a pipeline of leaders with the acumen to guide the firm through the serious challenges ahead.
Make Room for Work-Life Balance, Well-being and Nontraditional Staffing
The frenetic pace of work at law firms is no secret. Firms often expect their associates to meet heavy billable hour requirements. Likewise, billable hours and personal cash receipts are typically key factors in setting partner compensation, which encourages partners to hoard client assignments and work longer hours rather than embrace more efficient staffing strategies. While these practices may pay personal and firm dividends in the short term, thoughtful distribution of client assignments and a more measured pace of work will improve client service, reduce burnout and cut attrition rates. It will also foster a magnetic workplace culture that will produce a meaningful advantage in the competition for talent and clients.
Firm leaders should recognize that sacrificing some proportion of lawyers’ billable hours is a small price to pay for a healthy, hybrid workplace environment with committed bench strength. When choosing where to work, work-life balance is one of the main criteria lawyers weigh. Firms that overwork their talent risk having to replace productive lawyers with unproven talent. That can be a costly proposition: The lost opportunities associated with departing talent plus the expenses of recruiting, hiring and training a new lawyer can easily exceed $500,000.
Even more alarming, a 2023 study found that lawyers with “high work overcommitment” had a doubled rate of suicidal thoughts.
In a similar vein, a strategic slowness mantra is consistent with nontraditional staffing strategies that value different paces of career advancement. For example, as the share of women lawyers in the profession continues to grow, law firms can no longer afford to squander their investments in female talent by insisting on rigorous, inflexible work routines. Instead, firms should embrace part-time, flextime and hybrid work arrangements that meet the varying needs of working parents, and firms should welcome back lawyers who have taken time away from the firm setting to start a family or care for elderly family members.
Slow and Steady for the Win?
The strategic slowness business model has great potential as a counterweight to the legal industry’s frenetic pace. A more measured pace at firms will cultivate magnetic workplace cultures, encourage high-yield investments in developing junior lawyers, and promote well-considered decisions about technological shifts while furthering the vital goal of strengthening client outcomes and relationships. For leaders looking to position their law firms for lasting financial and professional success, slow and steady may, in the end, win the race.
Related Reading
The Friction Project: How Smart Leaders Make the Right Things Easier and the Wrong Things Harder by Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao (St. Martin’s Press, 2024)
“Protecting Your Investment: How to Realize a Robust ROI From Associates” by Wendy Merrill
“Slow It Down: Lessons for Women Lawyers” by Stephanie Scarborough
“Analog Attorney: Boost Productivity by Slowing Down a Little” by Bull Garlington
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