Governance of a law firm can be complex

At the Managing Partners Forum being held in San Diego, CA, Larry Bodine of PM Forum, reports that Mary Cranston, chair of Pillsbury Winthrop in San Francisco, revealed how her firm grew from a California firm to an international firm.

What struck me about Larry’s comment is the governance or structure that Ms. Cranston described; she revealed that the firm thinks in multi-dimensions:
Practice groups think of new “products” and new solutions to sell.

Industry teams, which are cross-office and cross-practice, take the firm’s products and refine them for specific industries.

Client teams are the methods her firm uses to deliver the product to current clients.

This is sounding more and more like the corporate model where large corporations have R & D Departments, industry or product management leaders and client or customer account executives. Wow!

Look for more changes in the legal world that reflect our corporate culture.

Categorized in: Management