“A goal need not be a complicated fiscal target but may be setting personal development plans for each staff member or seeking testimonials from clients or setting aside a day for a team activity. Setting a goal means you are looking at the purpose of your business as it exists in the world,” she said.

Moreover, she added, sharing those goals with team members is critical: “The rewards of including your team in the goal-setting or making their development a focus of the goals will reap rewards far greater than the fiscal impact of goal achievement.”

It is especially critical, Aspect Legal managing director Joanna Oakey (pictured, far right) reflected, given she perceives that "not many" lawyers truly understand what makes their firm something that they can ultimately sell.

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"It just doesn't seem to be a topic that I ever hear about in legal circles. What is really important to me is knowing that our firm is building systems and processes that set us up for success in the long term, which is why we focus strongly on building assets that will support the business as it grows," she said.

Understanding what to aim for

Ms Oakey – who appeared on The Boutique Lawyer Show to discuss how law firms can give back and why SME firm owners should be entrepreneurs first and lawyers second – own firm, she listed, is setting goals in the following broad categories: revenue and profit, finding new clients, ensuring longevity with existing clients, optimal client experience, staff satisfaction, branding, and impact. 

Different firms will, of course, look to set different goals. However, there are some key teachings that small practices can learn from as the global pandemic continues and firm owners look towards the new financial year.

For Ms Knoester – whose firm, Brave Legal, was founded earlier this year and who also recently spoke on The Boutique Lawyer Show about client needs dictating firms of choice and why clients may move away from BigLaw – it is imperative for SMEs to further develop EQ among its lawyers so as to better understand not only staffing needs but those of clients.

“It may seem like ‘soft stuff’ or ‘soft skills’, but in a post COVID world, clients and employees seek increasing connection and understanding from their advisors and employers,” she argued.

“Boutique firms can do this best where the sheer volume of staff and clients can mean the personal investment in each individual is achievable.”

Prioritise investing in staff, Ms Knoester continued, so they are empowered to be better professionals for the firm’s clients.

“Make hybrid working easy so that moving from home to office is normalised and the change from one to the other is not a source of stress but continue to have in place the systems and supports that develop your staff (CPD, training, brainstorming),” she suggested.

For KLM Solicitors managing partner Kelli Martin (pictured, far left) – who won the Partner of the Year (SME) category at the 2020 Women in Law Awards – firm owners must be unafraid to take bigger steps towards success.

“There is far too much advice given to small business owners to be careful about growing too quickly. Sometimes an overly cautious approach stops us from reaching our true potential,” she argued.

What boutique firm owners have to do, she opined, is seek and take good advice and then do what is right for them and their practices.

“Taking risks can be scary, but provided you have taken advice and managed the risks – the sky’s the limit!” she said.

Elsewhere, Just Defence Lawyers principal Jeannette Fahd (pictured, second from right) espoused taking time to “truly master” the specialisation of one’s firm and understand what makes the offering different to competitors.

“The appeal of a boutique law firm is the capacity to offer a level of personalised service and care which just isn’t possible from larger practices,” she said, noting that clients come to her firm because of its “highly networked experts” who are dedicated to complex criminal law matters,” she said.

“A sharpened focus will allow you to attract and keep the kind of clients that you want.”

Going about achieving goals

When it comes to achieving the targets set for the firm, Ms Fahd believes empowerment has to be at the centre of a leader’s approach.

In line with Ms Knoester’s attitude, she said that “the more exposure someone is given, the more opportunities they have for development and success”.

“Leaders need to inspire and empower their team, regardless of whether they are working remotely or besides one another. We work best collaboratively, and we haven’t let that drop,” she submitted.

“Don’t be afraid to challenge your staff, and make sure you stay informed and responsive. When it comes to working with agility, boutique firms already have an advantage. It’s up to leaders to build capacity in their people.”

More broadly, Ms Fahd continued, all such actions should complement the longer-term vision.

“We only take on the types of criminal matters, complex in nature, which we are specialists in – this, ultimately, benefits our clients and our capability,” she surmised.

Ms Oakey said it is also extremely important for firms to think about metrics other than the standard billings and utilisation figures so as to ensure longevity. 

"Those metrics are of course extremely important, but revenue is such a passing metric that shows how you are progressing in the short term, but it is not a great metric to understand how you are setting yourself up for the future - both in terms of the future running of your practice and in terms of its ultimate value when you decide to exit," she posited.

"You can be running really hard in one year and achieve great success, but be working at a rate that is not sustainable for the future, or you could be going great while you have stable staff, but then lose some of your best players and end up adrift. In those situations the revenue of past years has no impact on the strength of your business as a whole, so your goals and targets must be a lot broader than those regularly used metrics."

This all said, triaging will be key, Ms Knoester added.

“As a boutique firm operator, you can wear many hats – HR, finance, IT and then lawyer.  As such, triaging is really important so that you focus on ‘must haves’ rather than ‘nice to haves’,” she said. 

“I would always put staff first as a priority – investing and developing staff, checking in, ensuring work variety and reward. A firm is only as good as its team and that isn’t just the lawyers.”

Ms Martin supported this, outlining the importance of putting one’s self and staff members first.

“Remember: in law, we are our own livelihood, especially in boutique practice. Make sure you aren’t overcommitting yourself or your team. Also, make sure you have a good business plan and a good team to talk this over with,” she detailed.

Importance of such planning

It cannot be forgotten, Ms Oakey warned, that (particularly in the current climate) survival and success in the short term is necessary, and thus short-term targets pertaining to performance will have to be included so keep the train on the tracks.

"But building your practice for the future, and building the systems and processes that will support that growth, are so incredibly important to provide you longevity that they absolutely must be given an extremely high priority," she said.

"It takes a lot of discipline to keep long term goals moving while the craziness of everyday running a firm gets in the way. But it is the only way to ultimately achieve them."

Goal setting in such circumstances, Ms Knoester insisted, helps set the firm’s intentions for the financial year ahead – both for the owner and the team.

“It is a chance to articulate a common purpose and set measurable goals. That then creates an opportunity for collaboration and reward,” she said.

Ms Fahd agreed: “An aligned team and focused specialisation will translate into longer term clients. Client loyalty, built on professional relationships, will help to future-proof your firm ahead of unforeseen market turbulence.”

Ms Martin reflected on how essential good planning has been in her own success story, having established her firm six years ago and having just employed her 28th staff member. This month, she is also opening her fourth office in Brisbane’s CBD.

“I have always set goals to grow and continue to make my team happy, everything else has fallen into place. The possibilities are endless,” she recalled.

This said, she noted that boutique firm owners shouldn’t be comparing themselves to others in setting their goals for the coming financial year.

“Concentrate on you and your goals and remember to give words of encouragement to your colleagues along the way – you never know what kind of day they are having!” she said.