Human Resource Professionals in law firms can sometimes be considered glorified administrators, when in reality they can perform many management tasks, from full-cycle recruiting, training and development, employee motivation, and tying Human Resource Strategy to your firm’s strategic vision.
Recruiting
Instead of paying external recruiters high fees for results that don’t match your needs, in-house HR Professionals are able to provide full-cycle recruiting, from creating your job posting to onboarding your new hire and everything in between. In our industry, where turnover rates are fairly high, having an HR Professional who can perform the recruiters’ tasks internally can save your firm a significant amount of time and money.
Training and Development
While your HR Professional is not a lawyer, law clerk, nor legal assistant, and won’t have the required legal knowledge to pass on to new hires when training them, they can work with you to develop a training program that would better help your new hires absorb the information. When working with particularly green new hires, the way in which you deliver the training to them can be just as important as the information contained within.
Employee Motivation
HR Professionals are responsible for ensuring that your Firm’s morale is high and your employees are happy. From creating long-term reward systems for high performers to planning a simple lunch, having a dedicated HR Professional ensures your firm’s culture stays positive. This leads to lower turnover rates, increased individual performances, and higher levels of employee loyalty and consistency, which is valued by clients.
Law Firm Objectives and Strategic Vision
Your firm’s long-term objectives and goals require having the correct employees with the right skills to meet those goals. By having an HR Professional on staff, they will ensure their HR Strategy is tailored to your needs, ensuring your company has the people and skills required to succeed.
While Law Firm Objectives and Strategic vision are typically the responsibility of upper management, HR Professionals are frequently the bridge between upper management and employees. They are equipped to communicate your goals to others within your corporate environment to set future expectations and align long-term individual and corporate goals.
In my role at Andriessen & Associates, I support the Team with all of the above and make sure they’re at the top of their game when they work on client matters. This means low turnover and a Team that works really well together.
Dylan Coffey, Human Resources