Total Quality Management
Total Quality Management, customer satisfaction index, zero defects, client service - all arebuzzwords of management in the 1990s. Yet what is all this about anyway? After all, lawyers andlaw firms successfully made it through the '80s without all the commotion about quality and service.Why all the fuss now? Is this just another fad, some passing fancy that will come and go likeHula-Hoops, disco dancing or designer jeans? Hardly. While the jargon may change over thebalance of the decade, a fundamental change is taking place in client service, and the attorneys whorealize this and change with it will be the attorneys who will be successful in the '90s and beyond. All structures are built upon a foundation. A high-rise is built upon a foundation of concrete and steel.The taller the building, the deeper and stronger the foundation required to support it. Similarly, a legalpractice is built upon a foundation, specifically upon the foundation of relationships with people. Likethe high-rise, the greater the intended accomplishment and productivity of the firm, the deeper andstronger these bedrock relationships must be. In fact, the limits of accomplishment, productivity andsatisfaction within the firm are all a
Nothing makes a strongerimpression than a face-to-face meeting. The worst mistake an attorney can make is to get rightdown to business when first meeting a prospective client. Likewise, truly successful lawyers have always built their practices upon a foundation of strong clientrelationships. The lawyershould never sit behind a desk. The most critical result to be producedduring the first meeting is to begin to build a strong relationship of trust. In the locker room following the team's stunning Super Bowlvictory, Johnson poignantly told his team that, more than anything else about the day, they wouldremember the love they had for each other. Even recommend a member of another firmif it's appropriate. The team's success was built upon a foundation of strongrelationships, deep appreciation for one another and, yes, even love. No customer satisfaction survey cantake the place of personal contact, old-fashioned courtesy and genuine concern. Businessshouldn't be discussed until the attorney is satisfied that he or she is comfortable with the prospectiveclient and, more importantly, that the client is comfortable with the attorney and the firm. Telephone counsel and find out what he or shemight be looking for in a firm. However, during the '80s, when a seller's market existed for legal practitioners, manylawyers were able to build successful practices without this fundamental component. Gosee counsel and ask lots of questions. No matter what you've heard, clients don't hire law firms or even lawyers, they hire people. As with every other purchase decision, individuals prefer to do business with people they like, withpeople who seem genuinely interested in them and with people who really care about their concerns.
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Acceptance Essays
