Articles From the Team

Attracting and retaining talent in a competitive market

Hiring the best people is not an easy task in any industry, legal included, yet it is vitally important to the success of any team. In a confident legal market with work available, finding a talented, successful and driven lawyer who can work well in a team and gel with clients is crucial, but can sometimes seem like an uphill struggle. Lawyers with solid experience are in demand, they can pick and choose options to work out which firm can offer them the best quality work and greatest opportunity to enhance their career. It is therefore more important than ever for a firm and team to be positioned in a way to maximise the likelihood of securing the best talent available.

For many lawyers in the current legal market, particularly transactional lawyers, there are a variety of options if they are looking to move - the problem is narrowing the opportunities. This fundamental shift in the market in recent years means that law firms must differentiate their offering and have an edge over their competitors to attract the best talent. For law firms this means planning ahead and adopting smarter recruitment strategies to keep ahead of the market - this is becoming more and more important as the work levels increase and the competition rises. Hiring the wrong person is expensive, time consuming and can have a negative impact on the morale of any team so must be avoided at all costs. A focused, strategic and well planned recruitment plan will not only increase the chances of attracting and keeping the best candidates in the market, it will avoid the frustration and cost involved in a wrong hire.

Motivations for candidates looking for a new role can be diverse – improved quality of work, culture, team-work, progression prospects, job satisfaction, responsibility and recognition, the desire to work for a specific client base, geography, and of course money, whether it be salary, bonus, profit share or wider benefits. Assessing the needs of those in the talent pool is a crucial part of the recruitment challenge. Many law firms are mistaken in thinking that their name, brand or profile in the market will make them the employer of choice. For many candidates this is not the case, and a deeper understanding of what makes potential employees tick can make the difference between a firm attracting them or losing them to competitors.

Effective communication is the key to recruiting – and retaining – candidates of choice. As confidence in the legal market continues to grow, there is a real opportunity for ambitious teams to not only grow, but grow with the best lawyers the market has to offer. Opportunity can simply be missed through ineffective planning and not listening to what the talent pool is seeking. Attracting and retaining the best right people is key, so short cuts should be avoided at all costs.

For more information contact BCL Legal or call 0845 241 0933.