Safeguarding Against Burnout: The Role of Leadership in the Legal Industry

But in reality, this working style is neither sustainable nor aspirational and is increasingly coming under scrutiny.

Now, with the growth of initiatives like the Mindful Business Charter, yulife and spill, firms are encouraged to sign up to ensure that their employees work in sustainable ways that help promote and maintain good mental health and wellbeing.

Planning Against Burnout

The rise of workforce planning and resource allocation has also offered the ability to see, at a glance, where there are pockets of capacity but equally to help identify associates with excessively high utilisation rates.

While these are a step in the right direction, they can only have the desired impact if the senior leaders - often partners in the case of a law firm - are willing to put in place the infrastructure to allow healthier working practices to be implemented. Ultimately, partners set both the expectation and the example to be followed.

At Odgers, our extensive expertise in the legal field combined with a global talent network ensures world-class executives are identified who are committed to and recognise the importance of supporting their teams in this way.

Being met with pushback from members of their team can read as a lack of commitment or entitlement.

Healthy Growth: The Rise of the ‘Retainmaker’

The billable hours model and the focus on the bottom line poses an essential question regarding employee wellbeing: is there really a healthy way to work in a law firm? 

Coining the term ‘retainmakers’ – leaders who spend time ensuring their people grow, not just their revenue – Jordan Furlong outlined the crucial role partners who prioritise their people play in law firms. But while these leaders are vital in the success of firms across the legal industry, retainmakers’ skills and efforts are not recognised (or indeed remunerated) in the same way as traditional rainmakers’ contributions. 

During the pandemic, the resulting global crisis sparked a profound shift in how mental health is discussed, elevating wellbeing to the top of every agenda. Now, some organisations are reflecting and reassessing their approaches in empowering individuals in flexible working, evident in the growing trend of mandating more in-office days.

Historically law firm partners were not to be disturbed unless a signature was required, residing in glass offices with closed doors. In the new open-plan world, partners and leaders are being asked to show up in a different way and to take an interest in not just the professional but the personal wellbeing of everyone in their teams – whether or not the wider organisation recognises that or rewards it is another story.

It is clear that in the absence of balanced and ethical leadership, younger members of the workforce will happily vote with their feet. As a generation increasingly searching for purpose and placing value on authenticity, their tolerance for command and control dictatorships is low.

Leaders Need to Strike the Right Balance 

Ultimately, in any professional services business, clients are paying for the advice of another human being. If that human being happens to be exhausted, overworked or close to burnout then chances are the quality of their advice will be poor.

Partners cast a long shadow, which is why embedding the right leadership team is critical to ensure a supportive and positive environment where more junior members of a team can thrive. 

Odgers’ Legal & Professional Services Practice specialise in sourcing responsible, inclusive leaders who understand how to balance supporting and developing talent whilst still achieving ambitious profit targets.

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Get in touch. Follow the links below to discover more, or contact our dedicated Legal & Professional Services leadership experts from your local Odgers office here.