You will proactively increase your market footprint and achieve bigger and more targeted returns on investment when you actively control your practice and visibility and determine what work you want to do and with whom. Bottom line, you increase your footprint by having a strong personal brand and an effective web presence. Test your marketability by Googling yourself on a regular basis.

When you focus on your lawyers’ time sheets, you will mine gold: the data that stokes the engine of your firm’s profitability. When you mine your gold, you can predict productivity market and activity trends. You can review quality and quantity of hours. You can gauge the variety, complexity, timing and nature of assignments.

It is time for you and your firm to endorse multi-track career options at your firm. This is not a second-tier program being put into place for second-class lawyers. In fact, a strategic and effective system will enable all your lawyers to excel. Some lawyers may opt straight out for specific career paths while others, through discussions and mentoring, will align themselves to paths deemed best for their career progression.