Research
Q&A
By
Chuck Lowry, Director
of Client Relations
Q.
So, Chuck, what’s up?
Answer:
Well, that’s not much of a question, but many of
you know that I engage in some far-reaching discussions
with our database users, especially those who are involved
not only in RFP preparation but also, more strategically,
in planning and client prospecting. I have noticed in
my discussions that there are three areas that continue
to come up, largely because of an acceleration in activity.
Branch
offices continue to open, close, expand
and contract with the assertion of client preferences,
with law firm and client mergers and dissolutions and
with the movement of lateral partners, often accompanied
by associates and other professionals from practice groups.
The main tracking device for this activity has been the
NLJ 250, but with your help, we have determined that the
NLJ 250, an annual survey, can and should be supplemented
throughout the year by a spreadsheet that will track office
openings and closings and significant changes
in headcount or focus. This spreadsheet will make its
first appearance in December, after the November issuance
of the annual NLJ 250.
Associate
starting salaries have crept up for a few
years, and the creeping has turned into a leaping this
year. We have a spreadsheet, the Associate Salary Update,
updated through July 2007, that tracks and sources associate
salary increases. We are now offering the spreadsheet
free to subscribers, and free to non-subscribers with
the purchase of another ALM Research product.
Law
firm mergers are now viewed through a very
strategic lens, and law firm administrators are looking
at past mergers and their rationales and motives analytically.
We are preparing a spreadsheet that will track and source
these mergers at least going back to the middle of 2006,
and it is something we shall keep updated regularly after
it is prepared, which will probably be around Labor Day.
We
try to make the database as responsive to your needs as
we possibly can, so continue to let us know! And I am
always happy to talk with you about law firm business
development research and information needs: 212.592.4932,
clowry@alm.com
Email
your questions to Chuck Lowry at clowry@alm.com
