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SCHOOL DAYS

How to Hire and Develop In-house Legal Professionals

By mArK roeLLig And CHriSTine gouin

A focus on hiring and development produces superior performance

if you believe, as we do, that the strength of any legal organization is its people, it is critical that hiring be a central starting focus. After that has occurred, the most important action we can take is to ensure that we continue to develop and improve our legal team. A favorite saying in our department is, “never skimp on technology or education.” our enterprise-wide legal team is comprised of approximately 100 lawyers globally and operates on a decentralized basis. The parent company, to which most of the ideas in this article relate, consists of approximately 50 lawyers and 25 paralegals and other professionals. However, law departments are different in size and structure and, therefore, the ideas or examples in this article are dependent on your department’s strategy, size and budget.

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We demand superior performance and routinely stretch our team by expecting them to grow, expand their skills, and as-sume new and greater responsibilities. In our current world, in-house teams need to continuously do this to improve results and deliver services in a more efficient and cost-effective manner. To meet these demands, we must provide our profes-sionals with the tools to be successful. In addition to the effective tools of technol-ogy, ongoing education and development for lawyers and paralegals in an in-house environment can significantly enhance the value of your team in terms of their knowledge base, productivity and ef-ficiency. We consider the five components of an effective development program to include: 1) introduction to the company and department; 2) learning the basics of in-house practice; 3) learning the busi-ness (both specific to your company and general business concepts); 4) personal development; and 5) continued education (legal, business and industry).

Developing non-lawyer professionalsWhen implementing a hiring and development pro-

gram, it is crucial to remember the importance of the other non-lawyer professionals, who are a growing and an essential part of any in-house legal team. our non-lawyer professionals (including paralegals, investigators and project managers) attend external continuing educa-tion and development conferences specifically tailored to their profession. Such programs provide legal education and development, and offer an opportunity for these individuals to network and develop relationships with others, which can serve as a valuable resource as they work on more complex matters. We include paralegals in all relevant training and development programs that are offered to the lawyers.

In addition, we have established a Paralegal committee that is continuously looking for development and networking opportunities for our paralegals, and has quarterly paralegal meetings. These meetings can range from a formal presen-tation on a topic of interest, to a more informal meeting in which the paralegals can learn about each other and the work being done in other areas of the company. The committee works closely with the head of our law administration unit to ensure that the meeting topics are aligned with the legal department’s goals, and they regularly meet and interact with the general counsel to ensure alignment of their initiatives with the company’s and law department’s strategies.

The development of non-lawyer professionals to add value in the in-house legal setting should be one of our core competencies; they play a key role in the delivery of efficient, quality work. our paralegals and other non-lawyer profes-sionals are increasingly taking on more responsibilities and are handling more complex matters than they have in the past. We believe that if we invest the time to train and develop our profes-sionals in a certain practice area, there will be less of a need to replace a lawyer who leaves the department; much of that work could potentially be assumed by a paralegal or another professional in that area. Through the expansive and efficient use of these individuals, we can continue to increase the ratio of non-lawyer professionals to lawyers and, as a result, reduce costs by efficiently allocat-ing work to the appropriate level. This

also makes the jobs of the lawyers, the paralegals and the other legal professionals more rewarding.

Whom we hireDuring interviews, candidates often ask our general

counsel about the important issues he has to deal with. He always responds, “What I am doing now. Whom we hire is probably the most important decision we make.” Not only is it critical to have the right team, but your current team watches your hiring decisions very carefully. All hiring deci-sions should be consistent with the type of department and culture you want to build.

Although some in-house groups hire lawyers directly out of law school, we find that such an approach does not generally work well. Most in-house groups are not equipped to train lawyers on the basics of practicing law. This is one of the areas law firms focus on, and the large ones do it quite well because they actually make money in the process. Unlike an in-house group that loses mon-ey on entry-level lawyers who have no knowledge of how to practice law, law firms bill the development hours of these entry-level lawyers to their unsophisticated clients. Thus, traditionally, clients have “de facto” been paying to train law firm lawyers in the basic elements of the practice of law.1

In addition, we find that most lawyers do not stay in their first jobs for long; spending the time and effort to train them, just to have them leave, is expensive and inefficient.

Finally, law firms are a great “proving ground” for whether a lawyer will likely be successful in-house. Any

MARK ROELLIG is the executive vice president and general counsel of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual), responsible for

all legal, corporate secretarial, regulatory and governmental affairs of MassMutual. Before joining MassMutual in 2005, Roellig served as general counsel and secretary at Fisher Scientific International, Inc., Storage Technology Corporation (StorageTek) and US WEST, Inc. Roellig received his bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics from the University of Michigan, his JD from George Washington University and his MBA from the University of Washington. He can be contacted at mroellig49@massmutual.com.

CHRISTINE GOUIN is a paralegal in the Corporate Law Department at MassMutual, where she supports the corporate real estate, corporate

development, corporate finance and investment management divisions. She received her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Massachusetts and her Certificate of Advanced Paralegal Studies from Elms College. She can be contacted at cgouin@massmutual.com.

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the type of culture that you want to impress upon your new hire — dilly dallying for months is an attribute of a culture that can’t make decisions.

Introduction to the department and company The human resource departments of most companies

provide fundamental and necessary company on-boarding. but, in addition to on-boarding, it is important that the in-house department provide its own training or orientation to new hires. As stated earlier, we need to provide the tools for a professional to be successful and that needs to start on day one. When a lawyer or other legal professional shows up for work on their first day, their computer should be up and running, their smartphone should be ready and work should be waiting for them.

The legal on-boarding then begins with the naviga-tion of the key legal resources available in the depart-ment. This includes the use of the legal department’s website, explanation of the organization and department structures, provision of bios and areas of expertise of the other professionals, key company policies, an acronym list (corporate America doesn’t always speak in english) and an overview of our technology, such as our docu-ment management system and the department’s e-billing technology. because our department no longer main-tains a physical legal library, the access to legal research resources, such as Westlaw, needs to be explained. Access to various company policies and codes of conduct also needs to be reviewed (although this is generally handled in the human resources on-boarding).

We have also found that developing a 30/60/90 day plan for all new hires prior to their start date is valuable. First, it causes the hiring manager to spend the time to consider what they want the new hire to do upon entry — and have it waiting, which ensures an alignment of expectations. Fail-ure to have such alignment can often be a derailer for new hires. Second, it forces the hiring manager to think about the basic learning materials that the new hire will need as they begin their new position (what books, materials, poli-cies or other documents should they read or review). Third, it ensures that the hiring manager thinks about the key contacts the new hire will need to have to be successful and ensures that steps are taken to make these introductions (in fact, these meetings can often be calendared before the new hire arrives, as their calendar is likely to be rather light in the first couple of weeks). Finally, it creates clear alignment on the key projects for which the hiring manager wants the new employee to focus.

We also believe that mentoring is key to providing a new hire with valuable insight into the company and depart-ment. We assign two “mentors” to each new lawyer. They are advised of their mentor on their first day. For lawyers,

lawyer who has survived five to 10 years (the period when we generally hire them) at a major law firm is probably rather competent and has the basic attributes of a successful lawyer. We also find that most associates with larger firms have received written annual perfor-mance appraisals that are valuable to request prior to making an offer.

In terms of paralegals, we generally require a bach-elor’s degree, with the key attributes discussed below; and there may be value in a paralegal certificate from an AbA-accredited program and/or significant paralegal experience. As our expectations of paralegals increase, so can the importance of paralegal education and experi-ence. Such background allows new paralegals to hit the ground running and enables them to quickly assume more responsibilities. These credentials may also lessen the amount of time and effort needed to train them for particular tasks.

So whom should we hire? Although we often hire to fulfill a need for particular expertise, we believe that the attributes of the individual are more valuable to us. It is easier for individuals to develop and learn different areas of law during their in-house career than to learn the spe-cific traits or characteristics that will serve your team and company well.

The key attributes we look for in our legal profession-als are: smart, performance-driven, results-oriented, partners with the business, strategic, proactive, creative, hardworking, collaborative, accountable, passionate, innovative, responsive to clients and diverse. ethics and integrity are “never compromise” factors. Such individu-als must be dedicated, supportive “team players” who can effectively participate in or lead teams to bring the correct information or decision-makers together. The ability to develop and work with diverse teams effectively and listen to and understand conflicting views is a critical skill and will only improve the opportunity to integrate various perspectives to obtain the best decisions.

Some degree of business sense and financial or ac-counting acumen is generally beneficial for most in-house positions. This business grounding assists in communi-cating effectively with our clients and also knowing what additional information might exist or should be obtained to make a better decision.

Generally, we conduct structured interviews to assess these attributes. Interview training is provided to the individuals conducting the interviews in order to target our questions through hypotheticals or past examples relating to the required attributes. We attempt to com-plete these interviews in no more than two visits and are routinely prepared with a decision within hours of the last visit. Making prompt yet thoughtful decisions reinforces

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tion, for those professionals who join our dispute resolution practice, we provide them an article that summarizes our overall litigation philosophy and processes.

Throughout the year, we have monthly “Lunch and Learn” sessions where we invite the entire department to get together for lunch and an hour-long presentation about a particular area of the department or company. In these sessions, we have different practice or client groups ex-plain what they do and the key issues with which they are engaged. We believe these sessions are important since dif-ferent areas often impact each other (sometimes unknow-ingly). For example, it is valuable for the entire department to understand what a class action or derivative lawsuit is, how it develops and how it is managed by the company and department. They are also helpful in learning about and sharing resources, breaking down silos and building relationships across the department.

one of the most important responsibilities of in-house lawyers is identifying and assembling the right teams to work on particular legal issues. This often entails the retention and management of outside counsel. What we learned in law school or a law firm does not prepare us for how to retain and manage a vendor. Thus, we provide new hires with an outside counsel manage-ment manual, which covers the steps necessary to retain outside counsel as well as our retention and billing rules. In addition to this manual, we have ongoing sessions with our lawyers where we discuss best practices with respect to the management and effective utilization of outside counsel. We have developed a training “deck” that focuses on our overall philosophy and approach to working with outside counsel, including how one makes the decision to hire, whom to hire (partners, associates, paralegals, etc.), how to allocate the work and establish and monitor performance, and fee agreements (including the various forms of fee structures that can be utilized depending upon the matter).

In addition to the new hire education, we provide ongo-ing programs on how to be better in-house legal profession-als. We look for programs that have general applicability to all our professionals. one benefit of this training is that it is also a teambuilding event. employees generally enjoy learning together as a team. Usually, the training will be conducted offsite and will be followed with a social event where we can discuss what we have learned. In developing these broad-based learning sessions, keep in mind that legal professionals tend to be very critical and value their time (maybe something we learned in billing all those hours). We are very careful to be respectful of their time by ensur-ing that the training is targeted and valuable.

Programs of general applicability that we have provid-ed include legal writing (e.g., clear and concise writing

the mentors include one “peer” who is from a different practice area, so no competition exists, and a member of our senior legal team who is not in the new hire’s line of reporting. We encourage each new paralegal to be assigned at least one mentor. This mentor should be an experienced paralegal outside the new hire’s practice area. We request that each mentor meet the new hire for lunch within the first week to begin to develop their relationship and become a quick resource for questions and feedback.

In order to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our new hires, and that our legal on-boarding process is effec-tive, our general counsel meets with each new hire lawyer after the first three months, while the experiences of their previous employment are still fresh in their minds. He asks them: 1) how the on-boarding process has worked for them; 2) how our company compares to their previous employ-ers in terms of technology, knowledge sharing, support and any other resources that they had available to them; and 3) solicits any thoughts they have for improvement. This feedback is critical to ensure that we are continuously improving not only our on-boarding process, but also our department as whole.

Learn the basics of in-house practiceFor those of us who have been in this field for a long

time, we forget that many of the aspects of in-house practice are very different than in the government or in a law firm. To assist in this transition, we provide new hires with pre-reading that includes articles we have developed on topics concerning transitioning into the in-house practice and how a law group can add strategic value to the company. These materials are distributed to new hires on day one. In addi-

One of the most important responsibilities of in-house lawyers is identifying and assembling the right teams to work on particular legal issues. This often entails the retention and management of outside counsel.

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on this topic in order to assist litigators in communicat-ing with business and non-litigation lawyers in a business language they can understand.

The General counsel roundtable (Gcr) of the corpo-rate executive board and other industry groups also offer programs on law department management, which can be valuable for the managers in the legal department. Many of these groups will also provide on-site legal briefings for your entire team.

Another way to learn about the company and its busi-ness is through meetings of the entire law department, including all lawyers and legal professionals. every two years, we hold an enterprise-wide legal offsite where we ask business leaders to attend (our ceo often participates) and present key business issues and strategic directions. These offsites are also a great forum to educate the team on topical legal areas of broad application. And the “network-ing” is invaluable as we learn about each other and the resources we have in our organization. At these events, we periodically request that our lead law firms come in and populate panels and have other business leaders discuss their products, strategies and challenges.

Finally, there are programs offered by the Association of corporate counsel (Acc) and other groups that assist the legal team in learning the in-house practice. Acc offers Large Law visits, which can be customized for your team, at no charge to members. We subscribe to the “all you can eat” program offered by the Practicing Law Institute (PLI) so our lawyers and paralegals may attend all of the webcasts and programs without worrying about the costs. Many of them download webcasts to their iPods and listen to them during their commutes to and from work.

Learn the company’s business and business conceptsWhen asked what is the most important thing for a new

in-house legal professional to learn, our answer always is, “Learn the business, learn the business, learn the business.” To be strategic and provide creative solutions that are pro-active and advance the business, legal professionals simply need to know the company’s business and business 101.

on business 101, we generally prefer to hire individuals whose background or undergraduate degree was in business or an analytical area. However, with or without this founda-tion, business training is valuable. We have sponsored MbA programs for several of our high-potential lawyers. We have also encouraged attendance at mini-MbA classes, such as those offered by Acc, PLI or Gcr. Finally, we also take ad-vantage of additional continuing legal education programs, such as finance for lawyers, which can assist in the develop-ment of these skills.

Most companies provide educational courses that assist with learning the company strategy, Lean Six Sigma or

that is not overwrought in legalese), negotiation skills and presentation skills (written and verbal). For example, we have twice had bryan Garner of LawProse (who has coauthored books with Justice Scalia) deliver fun and engaging trainings on better writing skills. We have also provided a case study in a business school format that focused on improving “judgment” and the ethical chal-lenges in exercising such legal judgment. Finally, because we use probability-weighted assessments to analyze and manage all litigation matters, we have provided training

ACC Docket• CareerPath — The Fastest Way to Get Promoted

(May 2011). www.acc.com/docket/careerpath_may12

QuickCounsel• Contract Training of the Non-Attorney

(Dec. 2011). www.acc.com/contract-training_dec11

Articles• Essential Ingredients for Career Longevity

(April 2012). www.acc.com/career-longevity_apr12• Career Lessons to Carry into the New Year

(Jan. 2012). www.acc.com/career-lessons_jan12• Communication Skills More Important than

Ever for Career Advancement (Dec. 2011). www.acc.com/comm-skills_dec11

• Emotional Intelligence: Driving Success in Today’s Business Environment (Oct. 2011). www.acc.com/emotional-intelligence_oct11

Education • In-house counsel have taken up new roles,

spearheading efforts to invent and improve in response to industry changes. If your role is entering a new phase of development, attend ACC’s business education in “Leading Innovation & Change: The Evolving Role of In-house Counsel,” Nov. 13–15, 2012, Boston. For more information and to register, visit http://acc.com/education/businessedu.

ACC has more material on this subject on our website. Visit www.acc.com, where you can browse our resources by practice area or search by keyword.

ACC Extras on… Hiring and Developing In-house Legal Professionals

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portunities also can be found in employee resource groups and on local boards where we have positions due to our involvement in the community.

As your superstars continue to learn and grow, one of the best ways for them to further develop is to interact with thought leaders in the legal or leadership areas. We are a member of an international think tank organization that holds two international meetings a year, usually attended by high-level general counsels, international justices, district and appellate court justices and US Supreme court jus-tices. For one of your stars to have the opportunity to sit at dinner with Justice breyer or Justice Scalia is invaluable. In addition, as a member of the Gcr, we use this as a way to encourage our lawyers at that level and learn from their peers across the in-house legal community.

Finally, another opportunity for personal development is exposure to different practices areas or supporting differ-ent clients. We attempt to offer our legal staff opportunities to move into other positions throughout their careers. This keeps them fresh and brings new perspectives to areas of practice. Some may argue this may not make sense for a legal expert such as a patent lawyer. However, even a patent lawyer who is dealing with the protection of intellectual property in the software space may grow and get value working in the hardware space.

Don’t forget continuing educationAs mentioned earlier, we use Acc and PLI and encour-

age our professionals to attend seminars and webinars in their areas of practice. In addition, we look for and sup-port targeted continuing legal education programs of value in the areas of a particular legal professional’s expertise. And, in this current world, as technology replaces develop-ing knowledge with accessing knowledge as a key skill, groups such as Acc, the Practical Law company, PLI and the Gcr provide our team with access to information and knowledge that assist them in performing their work.

Some of our in-house sections have helped develop programs that cover a particular subject area and outline

other business concepts. Some of the programs from other divisions in the company can be helpful, too. For example, attending new insurance agent training can be valuable to learn more about insurance products and how they are sold.

Trade organizations also provide programs where one can learn more about the industry. In the life insurance space, there is the Association of Life Insurance counsel, which provides programs targeting both topical business is-sues and the application of law to those issues. The Ameri-can council of Life Insurers also has industry programs on key issues in the life insurance industry.

Personal development At least annually, there should be a focus on individu-

alized personal development. This focus should not be ad hoc, but should be specific, related to the areas for improvement and included with other annual individual performance objectives. Most companies include these ac-tions as a part of succession planning, where the discussion is not just about individual development but also succes-sion opportunities or developmental steps inside or outside the legal area.

Most managers spend a significant amount of their time addressing performance-related issues. We push our team to try and reverse this. We find it more valuable to the en-terprise if we spend more time making our star performers superstar performers.

one way to start this process with the strong perform-ers is to invest in assessment for development. For all of our high-potential leaders, we conduct a full one-day assess-ment. We do not use it for selection, but for future devel-opment. As a result of these assessments, which include 360s, written tests, simulations and other input we receive as managers, we create individual development plans. The plans can include a focus on areas such as communication “bootcamps,” classes on accountability or judgment, attend-ing the World business Forum and other targeted leadership or developmental programs.

In addition to these programs, we look for opportunities to further build leadership and team member (followership) skills. This can be through leading or participating in Acc activities or one of our standing task forces (we have had them on pro bono, diversity, knowledge management and the annual creation of our Strategic Long range Plan). In fact, a task force on the development and education of your in-house team can be a very valuable endeavor. It allows for the leaders of the group to use and grow their leadership skills and assists in the “buy-in” of the department’s overall education and development structure and programs.

In addition, we provide training on being a mentor, which assists those who are mentoring our new hires, other employees or individuals in the community. Leadership op-

We find it more valuable to the enterprise if we spend more time making our star performers superstar performers.

pany with the best talent wins, we simply cannot skimp on developing our legal resources.

A structured, integrated development and training program covering the five areas outlined in this article is a good start to creating such a culture. Within the first 90 days of a new hire, a plan should be put in place that outlines what they will do to learn and further develop. Throughout every year, there should be programs to assist in further skills development. bottom line: From the day we start in-house until the day we retire, we should continue to learn and develop so that we can add more value to our shareholders or owners. ∑

Have a comment on this article? Visit ACC’s blog at www.inhouseaccess.com/articles/acc-docket.

NoTeS

1 We do not hire first- or second-year associates except in rare cases, with written approval by the general counsel or deputy general counsel.

how the matter is handled within the company. Not only is this good for training and development, but it ensures consistency in many of our legal processes. For example, we provide an overview on company/corporate documen-tation, the duties of directors and effective minute taking.

Another way to obtain cost-effective training is from our outside law firms. We share access to key legal alerts with our legal teams in various practice areas. These alerts are an excellent way to stay abreast of key develop-ments in various areas of practice. In addition, we request that our “preferred provider” law firms provide on-site, targeted legal seminars to our legal staff and clients on important legal issues and developments. Some of these firms even invite our lawyers to their associate training programs, which are well developed.

Create a culture of continuous improvementSome of the programs mentioned may work for

your department; others may not. Some may cost money; others may not. but what is critical is that you create a culture of continuous improvement for all of your legal professionals, giving the team the tools and education to achieve great things. If we truly believe that we are only as good as our people, and the com-