At some point, if you want to be a partner, then you need to have a conversation about your partnership prospects.
Ideally, the partnership conversation is instigated by a senior decision maker at your firm who taps you on the shoulder and tells you that you are on the slate, has his or her backing and the support of the partnership. Your business case is largely written for you and your supervising partner will pass on to you a reasonable stable of clients to provide a nice base for the first years of partnership.
More often the partnership conversation can feel more like dating than a business decision, with the firm often being the party playing hard to get.
There are more partnership aspirants than positions available and as a result, it is very competitive. Up until this point promotion can tend to be linear, it’s largely dependent on years of experience. Not so when it comes to partnership—what exactly you need to do to make partner can be much harder to pinpoint. Not only does it differ from firm to firm, but it may also differ from candidate to candidate.
You may or may not have to instigate the conversation, and it may be more of a series of conversations, and it can come in many forms. Whatever your situation, it seems sensible to take a strategic approach to this.
If your next step is partnership and you need to have that conversation, here are a few things that might be useful to consider.
Do You Really Want to Be a Partner?
If you are uncertain as to whether partnership is the right option for you, you may want to be selective about who you tell about your doubts.
Sharing your uncertainty with your supervising partner might not be the best move strategically, because even if you do decide this is the right option for you, you want them to be completely convinced about your hunger for the role, not wondering if you really want this.
If you are exploring several career options other than partnership, one way to make sure you come across as confident in your decision is to explore each option as if it’s your only option. This is arguably the best way to come to a decision anyway, but also ensures you don’t come across as uncertain.
Are You Prepared for the Outcome of the Conversation?
It may be that one conversation will not give you the clarity you need. It’s more likely a series of conversations with a number of people, and you may not feel like you are actually in the running for partner until you are actually in the partnership process itself.
That said, there are any numerous outcomes and possible nuances.
First, there is “Yes, we would like you to become a partner, you will be on the slate this year.” This is the ideal. It provides you with clarity and you can move towards the next steps of shaping and honing your business case, and work towards building some momentum behind your partnership tilt.
Second, “Yes, but not this year. Or: Yes, but not sure when.” This is favorable but introduces some ambiguity and uncertainty. Here feedback can be very useful. The nature and tone of the feedback can provide you with important information.
Third, “No. We just don’t see you as a partner here.” You don’t want to hear this, but it does give you clarity. In the long run, if this is the reality then you are better off knowing this as early as possible because you can then make the best decision for your career.
Finally, there is: “No, not this year. Or not right now. Or you just need to…” A lot of the conversations will contain some version of this, or an aspect of ambiguity or elusiveness. You can be cynical about this, and sometimes that is very healthy because prolonging the process can be advantageous to the firm—they keep you working hard with the hint of a possibility of partnership, the proverbial carrot.
But a more circumspect view is that there are many factors at play that you don’t get to see, particularly in an international firm where the number of candidates can be determined by a range of factors—commercial, strategic (your practice area is not currently a strategic focus), geographic (your region isn’t doing so well), or even the personal influence of senior partners.
The follow-up to this conversation is to discover what is within your control and do something about it.
When to Have the Partnership Conversation
Obviously, you have this conversation when you are ready. But it will help if you do some discovery first, and this requires an understanding of both the formal and informal partnership processes.
The formal process should be easily attained from Human Resources or Learning & Development, and it’s best to have some idea of your business case. Business cases tend to be a work-in-progress document but starting them can get the conversation of partnership moving more quickly. Often, it’s not until a business case is in writing that you’ll get some serious feedback.
Many large firms will have a pre-partnership course for senior lawyers, so you want to make sure you have this under your belt and have met any other internal requirements.
The informal structures can be more elusive, things like how much self-originated work is expected, does your business case fit in with the strategic direction for the firm, internationally, locally, within your practice? Who needs to support your case? Who else is on the slate? Who needs to know you and what you do?
With Whom Should You Have the Conversation?
Clearly, your practice head or supervising partner will need to support your case, so they are probably the first port of call. It may also be necessary to canvas views more broadly, with key decision-makers. But you can be strategic about this.
What is your first step? A gentle conversation exploring your career options, or simply telling them you want to be a partner and asking when can we make this happen? How you approach this depends on your personality, your relationship with your supervising partner and your bargaining power—how compelling your business case is.
Profitable work is the key to law firms. If you are doing this in a sustainable fashion, you will be very well placed. If not, then the more subjective elements come into play.
Once You Have the Conversation You Can Take the Next Steps
Whatever the outcome of this conversation, or conversations, it provides you with information on which you can make an astute commercial decision. Ideally, you get the clarity you need and can move forward with the support you need to make partner.
If not, then you have a choice: You can stay and wait to see how it pans out, working on any feedback you get. Or, you can leave. Ultimately, the choice is yours.
DM me if you'd like to discuss your partnership prospects. www.stuartjbarnett.com
This article first appeared at Law.com, International.