I was looking at some of my old coaching files. In 2010, I coached 125 lawyers located in Canada, and from New York to California in the United States. In 2017, I’m coaching far fewer.

I was wondering, have firms developed their next generation of rainmakers? With more baby boomers retiring each year, business succession has never been more important.

I have always thought that business succession for law firms starts with making good hiring decisions.

A few years ago I posted what turned out to be a controversial post: Are You Hiring Law Students Who Will Succeed? I was trying to make the point that it takes more than good grades to be a successful lawyer. I received several comments from readers.

More recently I read an ABA Journal on-line article Why Law Firm Interviewers Are Asking ‘Tell Me About a Time’ Questions. As I said above, the  answer is really simple: It takes more than good grades to be a successful lawyer.

Another 2 Women

According to the article law firms are looking at these four behavioral patterns:

  1. Decision-making and problem-solving skills
  2. Motivation
  3. Communication and interpersonal skills
  4. Planning and organization

I like questions looking at those behavioral patterns, but I would add two more:

  1. Integrity
  2. Cooperation, collaboration and teamwork

I would love to hear from you. Tell me about a time you….