Is there More than Money to your Career in Law?

I have said before that challenging economic times tend to lead to immense innovation and change. My team and I have been specialist recruitment consultants in the legal industry here in Australia for a long time and have seen the industry through its peaks and troughs. We have also been witness to the associated business and working life improvements that naturally follow times of change.?

The currently tight candidate market, however, is one of the tightest I have seen. Our legal industry clients are crying out for talented lawyers and are doing what they can to make offers attractive and employee value propositions compelling.

In recent times speculation has occurred about whether lawyers are trading other lifestyle benefits for their high salaries. At Legal People we have seen almost the whole industry shift to work from home and every time it seems like we might be heading back to the office, this pandemic of ours throws us another curve ball!

Throughout my recruitment career, I have found that there are six considerations most in play when it comes to a lawyer changing jobs.

1. An Attractive Salary

An attractive salary is still important, and lawyers are still expecting an increase compared to what they currently receive to convince them to change roles. Market conditions and a candidate tight market have pushed salaries up recently and I am also seeing demand for sign-on bonuses. Talented candidates are fielding multiple offers and clients are having to meet the market to get them. This is further demonstrated by Gadens, Thompson Geer, and Gilbert + Tobin all increasing lawyer salaries by 10-15% in late 2021. This is most likely a talent retention strategy, particularly as we are hearing so much about the great resignation that we may see here in Australia later in the year.

2. Values alignment

I love how important this has become in the legal industry recruitment market. If values are aligned between employer and employee, then there is much more likely to be a successful outcome and longer tenure with associated career development opportunities. During the pandemic many legal industry employees have taken the opportunity to reassess what they want out of their career. Candidates have come to understand that without a values alignment, they will never get the culture fit that they are looking for.

3. Flexibility

Whether it be working from home 5 days a week, 3 days a week or a 9-day fortnight, the legal industry has well and truly discovered the lifestyle benefits of flexible working during the pandemic. I am seeing this request repeatedly from talented candidates with good experience and I do not expect this to change in the medium term.

The structure of a legal practice is changing in that they will have less headcount in the office at any one time for the foreseeable future. Legal professionals are working more flexibly than they ever have before. This flexibility, however, is not being written into contracts, rather it is being agreed upon by an employee and their direct supervisor and covered under flexible working arrangement policies. I am also Hearing that most working arrangements include a collaborative team day in the office for employees.?

This shift in work-life balance is exciting. It is particularly exciting to see firms offer more flexibility than we have ever seen at Legal People in our 45+ years of legal industry recruitment experience. It really has been a long time coming.

4. Manageable Workloads

The pandemic blurred some boundaries between home and the office, and many found themselves working even longer than usual hours. It was challenging to replace staff that left and or were ill and many had to pick up extra workloads to cover. Demanding billable hour targets for private practice lawyers continues to be tough on mental health and family life.?

5. Performance Recognition

Whether this be based on formal appraisals or real time feedback, employees want to be told they are doing a great job and be given constructive feedback around what could be improved on regularly.

6. Everything else!

I am finding that candidates are wanting it all post Melbourne’s extended lockdowns. Their new job wish list features cash, career development opportunities, flexibility, sign-on bonuses, to work with great clients, future bonus opportunities based on performance, values alignment, and wellbeing programs. Many candidates are also asking about a firm’s billable hours per day requirements and comparing this to other firms prior to accepting a role.?

How are Firms responding?

In a highly competitive market, my team is having to carefully manage expectations with our clients and really educate them about the candidate tight market we are in. We are telling our clients that if they see a great candidate, they should put their best foot forward and make an offer, not to wait for a comparison.?

We are also being asked for much more information about a role and a company from our candidates. They are seeking more than a position description; they want a real understanding about benefits being offered including health and wellbeing policies and the whole employee value proposition. Many of our clients are subsequently currently working on improvements to their employee value propositions to demonstrate this.?

As a specialist legal industry recruiter, I support our candidates to help them make the best decision on a role based on what I understand they truly want in a role. It can be challenging to balance managing expectations on this side as to whether their wish list is realistic! I find myself having to listen very carefully to what it is that a candidate wants in a new job and their reasons for looking for a new role.?

It is a great time to be looking for and landing a new role, especially if you are a high performer with good industry experience.?Should?you?be looking for a new role in 2022, contact our team of legal industry specialist consultants for a confidential discussion. We have a number of exclusively listed opportunities with legal industry employers of choice. We can help talented lawyers and legal support staff find a role at the firm on the top of their wish list. Contact us [email protected]?to get started!

Bio: Sharon Henderson is a Legal Recruitment specialist, Partner and heads up the Lawyer and Management & HR divisions of Legal People, a leading specialist legal recruitment agency. To browse our currently available roles click here.

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