By Sandra MacKay

When asked to comment on associate retention strategies here at Lang Michener, my first instinct was to touch wood. For in spite of what we and other firms do in order to keep associate talent, we will still inevitably lose some great lawyers to other opportunities.

So I offer up some observations on how Lang Michener is approaching the subject, somewhat gingerly. This is a work in progress and I hope we are dancing fast enough.

There is now broad acceptance in this Firm that times have indeed changed, and we aren’t going back. We are well past the “why can’t this new generation think like we did” attitude that I believe still exists in many firms.

For some years now, Lang has coordinated secondment opportunities, both abroad, through relationships with foreign firms, and domestically with the other offices, in order to allow the associates to broaden their experience and sample international opportunities without severing their ties to the Firm.

We hire with a very deliberate honesty about the Firm; by that I mean, we present Lang Michener as we are, so that the match of an individual to this type of firm and practice is as exact as we can get it. We are moving away from a formal mentoring program to a general apprenticeship model whereby all senior lawyers are expected to guide and teach all junior lawyers with whom they work.

We have modernized the Lang Michener economic model. It doesn’t hurt Lang Michener that the partners here work hard. Lang Michener’s expectations for partner contributions and associate contributions as to productivity are remarkably close. We share results with the associates with what I consider to be unique candour. We have a rigorous annual business planning process for all associates which we find an effective tool in ensuring that the associates’ careers are developing as they and the Firm wish.

We encourage client contact at all levels. Lang Michener’s partners aim to demonstrate to the associates how they manage client expectations and demands and how they prioritize and compromise when that presents balance issues. We encourage direct client contact by the associates, in part so that they too feel the accountability to the client that really is at the root of the work/life balance struggle.

We don’t burn bridges with those who do leave. If this is an excellent firm offering great experience, then by virtue of that the associates will have opportunities elsewhere; we’ll take some credit and pride in that, rather than despair over it. We want those who leave us to leave as friends of the Firm and potential returnees; we have continuing relationships with former associates from Europe to Asia.

As a final comment, I would encourage a larger view of the whole issue. Yes, the market for associates and the demands of this new generation require a reconsideration of traditional firm thinking, but is that such a bad thing? I think many from my generation wish we’d had the courage or the bargaining power of today’s associates. So, looking at the associates from that viewpoint: more power to them. Yes, you make my job challenging, but keep it up.

Sandra MacKay is the Practice Director of Lang Michener LLP, Vancouver, in which role she oversees associate recruitment and development and participates in firm management. Before joining Lang Michener to take up this position, Sandra practised law both privately and as in-house counsel.

This article was published in the June 2007 issue of BarTalk and is subject to the copyright by the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, 2007, all rights reserved.