« When the Legislator is a Lobbyist |
Main
| From Music to Law and Back Again »
The Lateral That Got Away
Recruiting law students is like shooting fish in a barrel, suggests headhunter Stacy Humphries, a principal in the Houston office of MS Legal Search. But when it comes to luring in those more trophy-worthy laterals, few firms know how to land the catch. "Too often, poor communication, bureaucratic processes, disorganization and misinformation thwart even the best firms' efforts," she writes this week in The National Law Journal. To help firms reel in the prized lateral, Humphries offers 10 anecdotes illustrating what not to do, all drawn from real life. Like Harry Highbiller, for instance, someone we've all met at some point:
Harry Highbiller's secretary informs him that Lee Lateral is waiting to see him in the lobby. Harry, always conscious of his billable hours and wanting to look important, keeps working away for another 30 minutes before asking his secretary to bring Lee into his office. Throughout the interview, Harry keeps his eyes on his computer in case he receives an important e-mail. At one point, Harry even pulls out his keyboard drawer and begins composing an e-mail message. Harry keeps the conversation focused on his own accomplishments rather than telling Lee about the firm or trying to get to know Lee. Harry does ask Lee a couple of questions about his current firm's clients and recent partner attrition, but those questions only make Lee more uncomfortable.
The "convince us why we should hire you" approach is fine for law students, but it simply will not work with laterals, Humphries writes. "When it comes to lateral recruiting, firms should consider themselves sellers in a buyer's market -- any misstep or misinformation along the way could mean the difference between getting and losing many potential hires." As for the law students out there, jump right in the barrel -- the water's fine.
Posted by Robert J. Ambrogi on May 13, 2008 at 12:48 PM | Permalink
| Comments (0)