As leaders should we be focusing on our people or our profits?

As leaders should we be focusing on our people or our profits? Part 1: rewriting the leadership book for lawyers as we discover the 'new abnormal' following Covid-19

A webinar presented by the IBA Law Firm Management Committee

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It is during a crisis that our personal strengths and weaknesses as a leader come to the surface. Against a global background of fear and uncertainty, we are witnessing both extreme cases of anxiety and aggression plus also acts of great kindness and altruism. Many of us are suffering personally, both mentally and physically, from the ongoing situation, and it is likely that things will get worse before they get better.

As we seek to understand this ‘new abnormal” is it time for a wake-up call to a profession that has largely overlooked the changes around us in terms of working environment, technology, inclusiveness and diversity, gender and generational change?

What can we learn from the Covid-19 crisis and how should our leadership improve to ensure we create a global profession that is more human, empathetic and takes care of its biggest asset – our people - better? In which areas have our teams struggled and where have there been gains that we can learn from? As we transfer back to the ‘new abnormal’ how can we expect to see improvements in the daily life of a lawyer and ensure we do not risk simply going back to ‘business as usual?’

The session will be informal and interactive, participants are encouraged to share any specific questions with the two moderators in advance. Issues we will cover include:

Demonstrating our emotional authenticity and willingness to engage in ‘emotional conversations’
Focusing on the needs of our people as individuals, understanding their personal situation as well as their work reality and relating to them on a more human basis
Building trust, managing by deliverables and not inputs as our people work from home with very different work routines and personal conditions
Moving from ‘boss’ to ‘coach’ relying on inspiration more than motivation as we lead our people remotely

Melissa Davis
MD Communications, London; Member, IBA Law Firm Management Committee Advisory Board

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Alexis Caught
Writer and Speaker, Associate of the Møller Institute, Cambridge University

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Gbenga Oyebode
Chairman, Aluko & Oyebode, Lagos

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As leaders should we be focusing on our people or our profits?