The acceleration of change is straining human capacity to adapt. The implications are profound for individuals, families, business, societies, geopolitics, and the planet. How can humanity meet the challenges change poses and realize the opportunities it presents? The urgency of  adaptation is  already impacting the workforce, business and society.  Business is confronting an acute digital talent gap. A recent global, cross-sector study by Capgemini, in collaboration with LinkedIn, reveals the breadth, depth, and severity of the talent gap. The Capgemini findings are based on in ..read more

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, not the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” ― Charles Darwin Macroeconomic and geopolitical shifts, digital transformation, technological advances, and new enterprise risks are among a growing list of forces transforming business, the workforce, and careers. The speed, breadth, and interconnectivity of change requires business to reimagine its organizational structure, economic model, technology, processes, talent, strategic partners, and supply chain from the customer perspective. This ..read more

People try to put us d-down (talkin’ ’bout my generation) Just because we get around (talkin’ ’bout my generation) Things they do look awful c-c-cold (talkin’ ’bout my generation) I hope I die before I get old (talkin’ ’bout my generation) This is my generation This is my generation, baby –The Who, “My Generation” Generational divides are common intra-familiarly as well as in the workplace. That is nothing new, but never in modern history has the workforce comprised five generations as it does now. Longer life expectancies, the high cost of living, and technological advances that have morphed ..read more

“How did you go bankrupt?” Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.” ― Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises   Thomson Reuters (TR) released its “2023 Report on the State of the Legal Market.” This came on the heels of its “Alternative Legal Services Providers 2023 Report,” TR’s fourth biennial review of providers that do not share the legacy firm partnership model, practice/lawyer-centricity, and DNA. Both data-rich analyses reveal a gradual—but accelerating— shift in the corporate legal market segment. The ALSP Report’s  sub-heading, ”accelerating growth and expanding service c ..read more

How Transformative Will Generative AI And Other Tools Be For The Legal Industry?  As the legal industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace, it’s becoming increasingly clear that generative AI will play a transformative role in how legal services are delivered. From streamlining the contract review process to automating document discovery, generative AI is already being used to improve efficiency and reduce costs in the legal profession. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the potential impact of this technology. As AI continues to advance, it has the potential t ..read more

“The future is already here—it’s just not very evenly distributed” observed William Gibson, the noted science fiction writer. He was not referring to the legal industry but could have been. While there is no shortage of self-proclaimed “disruptors,” “innovators,” and “visionaries” in the legal space, the industry is a digital laggard, misaligned with the needs of business and society. Law is an analog function in a digital world. Why is the legal industry clutching the short end of the future stick? After all, lawyers are highly educated, trained to think critically, and  high- achievers ..read more

Dentons will soon turn ten—and with a characteristic bang. The firm sent a letter to its clients heralding its forthcoming birthday milestone and looking to the future. Days later, Dentons announced an historic agreement to combine with leading Indian law firm Link Legal, making it the world’s first global firm to combine with a law firm in India. The convergence of these two events is emblematic of Dentons’ commitment to “always be the firm of the future.” Dentons was formed in 2013 when Salans, Fraser Milner Casgrain (FMC) and SNR Denton combined. Dentons has been big and been bold from ..read more

EY’s leadership recently green lighted a major restructuring, ending months of heated speculation. The plan has two key prongs: (1) EY’s audit and advisory businesses will split; and (2) the advisory business will replace its partnership model with a publicly traded corporate structure. The restructuring presents a unique opportunity for EY Law to expand the scope and meaning of “legal services,” reinvent how they are delivered, broaden the range of legal careers for licensed attorneys and allied legal professionals, and extract greater value from the legal function by aligning and in ..read more

The legal industry has been remarkably buoyant in a tumultuous world. It has weathered 9/11, the global financial crisis, economic downturns, automation, digital transformation, domestic and international instability, and the Pandemic. Through it all, the legal sector has prospered financially, even as its resistance to change has misaligned it with business and distanced it from society. Law’s financial success has come at a steep price—the health and well-being of its workforce, an obscured purpose, and high profits but low customer satisfaction. Public trust in lawyers, legal institutions ..read more

EY and Deloitte recently made headlines and fueled speculation by purported plans to spin-off their audit and advisory arms. EY, Deloitte, PwC, and KPMG (The Big Four) have come under protracted, intense criticism for a lack of independence in their auditing of company accounts because of fees their advisory partners generated from consulting, tax, and advisory work. A split would liberate advisory teams from those conflicts and enable them to vie for a significant chunk of additional legal work.   Untangling the audit and advisory arms would be a big deal. It would rachet up pressure on ..read more