Law Firm Mission Statements
Hi All,
We have long advocated for mission statements, both professional and personal. This week we are taking it a step further and talking about why law firm mission statements are beneficial and how to get started.
A mission statement is a summation of your goals and values. It answers why you do the work you do the way that you do it. As an attorney, having a mission statement can give you a clearer lens to look at the work that you do each day. As a law firm, a mission statement can help guide you as you make decisions that impact the firm from the practice areas you specialize in, attorneys and staff that you hire, firm expectations, and so much more.
Attorneys are often pulled in many directions in a given day. Just professionally, we have to meet the multiple needs of multiple clients. We may have to manage support staff and associate attorneys. We have to meet filing deadlines, we have to follow the deadlines given to us by a judge. A mission statement is a clear vision of why you are doing the work that you do.
We recommend asking yourself three questions when developing a mission statement:
What do I value?
What do I offer?
How do I offer this?
Creating a mission statement for your law firm requires a similar thought process, but if you have partners, your shared mission statement has to reflect your shared vision.
Haley recently joined a larger firm with a long-established mission statement. This tells Haley a lot about the firm that she joined. It also helps her build trust with her clients that the vision of the firm will continue to align with the work that Haley has always provided.
A firm mission statement also helps in the interview and hiring process. Finding candidates that are not only quality but will fit in with the goals of the firm can be difficult. A mission statements allows potential candidates the opportunity to understand more about the firm and whether it is a place that is a fit for them. It allows the people within the firm a base from which to explore questions during the interview, understanding the mission of the firm as a whole.
Does your firm have a mission statement? Let us know!
Have a great day!
Haley & Amy
Photo by David Iskander on Unsplash
Please keep in mind that your jurisdiction will have rules of professional conduct that you must follow. This discussion does not focus on the any such rules, including the rules from the jurisdiction where we practice. Rather this is a discussion of tips we have found helpful in managing client expectations in our own experiences. This should not be taken as legal advice.
We make absolutely no guarantee, expressed or implied, that by following the advice you will make any money or improve current profit, as there are several factors and variables that come into play regarding any given business or career. Primarily, results will depend on the business model, the conditions of the marketplace, the experience of the individual, and situations and elements that are beyond your control. As with any business endeavor, you assume all risk related to investment and money based on your own discretion and at your own potential expense.
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