LPM Birmingham conference 2016 report: New ground
This article was originally featured in the February 2017 issue of LPM magazine, download LPM. To learn more about this year’s LPM conferences take a look at the pages for LPM Birmingham and LPM London.
SME firms face a challenging future and wherever they operate, no matter their client base, those that constantly evolve and innovate will prosper. Innovation was the overriding theme of the first LPM Birmingham conference last November (fittingly held at the Institute of Engineering and Technology’s Austin Court, an institution which has long been a platform for new ideas in its field).
A handful of key issues emerged during the conference as industry-leading speakers took the stage, including: how legal businesses can better engage people, defend themselves from digital trespassers and prepare for regulatory upheaval.
For keynote speaker Andrew Hedley, legal strategist and director of Hedley Consulting, firms that want to make themselves fit for the future must identify the good, the bad and the ugly in their organisations, stand in the shoes of clients, and: “Take the lowhanging fruit from the tree.” Indeed, firms that strive to better themselves and revolutionise their processes will – much like former IET president and lightbulb inventor Sir Joseph Swan – secure a brighter future.
Rules of engagement
One of the first questions that emerged during the conference was: how can firms better engage clients and prospects?
According to twitterati speakers Steve Kuncewicz, former head of IP and media at northwest firm Bermans, and Brian Inkster, managing partner at Glasgow-based firm Inksters, finding innovative ways to use social media can make your firm stand out to potential clients and talent.
Kuncewicz said: “If you think social media will pass us by, you’re wrong – it’s not necessarily a good thing or a bad thing, it’s just a thing.
But the opportunity for developing a business’s brand, making contacts and engaging clients is huge.” He warned, however, that social media can also be the downfall of businesses and firms should have a social media policy to ensure platforms are used correctly across the business. But perhaps if SME firms want to better engage with people, they first need to rethink their business structures. Michael Burne, founder and chief executive of new model law firm Carbon Law (pictured bottom right), said that new and innovative business models can help firms better serve clients and build teams.
“If we look at the story of David and Goliath, the interesting thing isn’t their comparative sizes but the way David won. If David had fought on Goliath’s terms he would have lost – and like David, if SME businesses do things differently they will succeed.”
Finding innovative ways to engage employees is also crucial when defending a business from cyberattack. Jane Pritchard, speaker, LPM columnist and systems and business development director at London firm TV Edwards, told the audience that there are ways to help your workforce tackle dark digital forces.
“SME businesses should constantly test their defences – perhaps send the odd fake phishing attack. Follow up with a combination of fear and embarrassment if they fail to drive the point home.”
We don’t need no regulation?
But perhaps a scarier issue still came from the morning’s panel discussion on regulation with Michelle Garlick, partner at Weightmans, Jeff Wright, head of transformation at TLT and Kate Jackson, director of Honne Consulting. According to the panel, firms need to embed risk and compliance management across the business to make it resilient enough to thrive during regulatory upheaval. And it seems upheaval may be right around the corner, if plans to deregulate unreserved work and combine regulators into one regulatory body are approved.
Whether legal businesses seek to engage people, defend their gates or become more resilient, it seems that a good dose of innovation is in order. At LPM we’re looking forward to finding out what new ideas SME firms have going into 2017.
