BY SCOTT WESTFAHL AND CARRIE FLETCHER
ACCELERATED
STRENG THS
DE VELOPMENT
SOME IDEAS JUST MAKE SENSE WHEN YOU HEAR
THEM. Here’s one: Identify a group of attorneys with a particular strength in common. Provide them with specialized training
to build upon and complement that strength. Watch them serve
clients more e;ectively as their excitement and enthusiasm for
their work increases. Bene;t as a ;rm by having these strong performers become more likely to stay—and succeed—as they attribute some of their success to the ;rm’s increased and customized investment in their development. ;is is what accelerated
strengths development could look like for law ;rms.
THE NEXT EVOLUTIONARY STEP
So, why is this a new model? At the risk of overgeneralizing, con-
sider how law ;rm training has evolved:
• For many years, one-on-one leverage allowed the apprentice-
ship model to thrive. Lawyers learned by closely observing a
trusted mentor, with the goal of succeeding to or developing
a parallel practice one day. Time was available (and used) for
focused, individualized training.
• As law ;rms grew and leverage increased, regulators imposed
CLE requirements in many jurisdictions. In response, ;rms
began to develop more formal in-house training programs
to help ensure that attorneys met applicable jurisdictional
requirements. Many lawyers were still trained as generalists
and understood that if they worked hard and developed strong
legal skills, the rest (e.g., partnership) would take care of itself.
• In the 1990s, ;rms expanded upon the CLE compliance model
and broadened the scope of their formal training programs,
particularly around substantive areas of law. Scaling training
programs helped address the learning de;cits that resulted
from growing leverage ratios and ever-increasing demands on
partner time. More importantly, adapting training in this way
