Baby Boomers are reaching retirement…is the younger generation prepared to take its place? Eliminating the current knowledge and experience gap will require law firms to develop a formal structure that will build the rainmaking skills for the next generation of lawyers.

At many law firms, there is a significant knowledge and experience gap between the “finder” generation of senior partners and the “minder and grinder” generations of junior partners and senior associates.

“Too many law firms are far too reliant on far too few lawyers,” said Mark Maraia. “Often, when you look closely, a handful of people are responsible for the bulk of the firm’s business.

“Over the course of the next decade, many of these rainmakers will be retiring,” said Maraia. “Who will fill the gap? This is a ticking time bomb – and legal administrators are perfectly positioned to recognize and defuse it.

“The best way to get your lawyers’ attention is to show them the actual numbers,” said Maraia. “Illustrate the potential impact on the firm’s bottom line should the firm’s senior rainmakers retire today. Then, demonstrate what can be done about it.”

Maraia is a lawyer and business development coach to lawyers (www.markmaraia.com), as well as author of Rainmaking Made Simple. He discussed the need to develop a law firm’s next generation of rainmakers at the April 19 th meeting of the Mile High Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators, held at the Adams Mark Hotel in Denver, Colorado.

“To solve this problem, law firms should create – and put into practice – a formal structure to encourage and reward the passing of rainmaking skills from one generation of lawyers to the next,” said Maraia.

“The best time to start this process is in an associate’s third or fourth year with the firm,” said Maraia. “A firm cannot simply make an associate a partner and expect him or her to automatically understand the rainmaking process. It won’t work.”

In fact, Maraia challenged each legal administrator to adopt a promising “next generation” lawyer in order to focus on the development of his or her rainmaking skills.

Maraia cautioned administrators against expecting their young lawyers to adopt a “hard-sell” sales or marketing technique. “Most lawyers do not like doing business development, and this kind of aggressive approach will sour them on the whole process,” said Maraia. “Instead, teach them a relationship development approach.

“In addition, teach them an approach that leverages their natural strengths,” said Maraia. “Too often, we look at weaknesses and try to fix them. Instead, look for strengths and try to build upon them. If a lawyer hates public speaking, don’t ask him or her to do it. Find something the lawyer does well – networking or writing – and build a plan on that.”

Administrators and current rainmakers can work with young lawyers to help them determine their ideal, narrowly defined target markets; identify new prospects within these markets; develop a plan for meeting and creating relationships with these new prospects; and create metrics to make sure that these plans get put into practice.

“Remember, however, that your ideal client is not the same as their ideal client,” said Maraia. “Your job is not to create a clone, but to help each young lawyer discover and pursue his or her unique passion in the law.”

One of the best ways to pass rainmaking skills along to associates and junior partners is to involve them in the process of preparing for and participating in business development activities, including meetings, speeches and presentations, and networking events.

Maraia advocates the NQA approach to any business development endeavor. “Think about and list ‘needs, questions and advances’ well ahead of any engagement,” said Maraia. “First, whom will you meet? Determine the personal needs of this individual – like looking good to the boss, staying within a budget or getting promoted.

“Then, prepare a list of four or five thoughtful questions that will uncover important information about the potential client’s legal needs,” said Maraia. “Practice listening carefully to the answers and responding with additional questions – rather than launching into a long presentation about you and your firm.

“Finally, decide ahead of time and write down the ‘advance’ you want to achieve,” said Maraia. “If it is a meeting, what is the next step? If it is a presentation, how will you follow up with attendees? What will you have ready to send them? If it is a networking event – where you have determined ahead of time the individuals you want to meet – what steps will you take to further the relationship?

Younger lawyers should be involved at all stages of the NQA process – and with the activity itself. “It is a win/win situation for administrators and senior lawyers,” said Maraia. “The associate or junior partner learns how to prep for and participate in a business development event, while the senior person is relieved of some of this burden.”

After any business development activity, debrief the involved individuals as soon as possible. “Immediacy is critical,” said Maraia. “Many important details can be forgotten in just a few days. Discuss what went right and what could be done differently the next time. Discuss who is going to executive the ‘advance’ – when and how.”

Successful rainmakers can train their successors by sharing – not only their experience, but also their clients and billing credit. “Give one of your clients to a younger lawyer,” said Maraia. “It does not have to be a top client, but it should be a good client with growth potential. Nothing breeds success like success.”

Sharing billing credit with other lawyers liberates senior lawyers to do more rainmaking while inspiring associates and junior lawyers to work harder – because they have a stake in the outcome. “Give them some skin in the game,” said Maraia.

“One of my clients went from bringing in $500,000 a year in work that he did mainly by himself to $3.5 million a year in work that he shared,” said Maraia. “Shared billing has made him the most popular lawyer to work with in his firm.”

A formal structure that encourages and rewards the passing of rainmaking skills from one generation to the next will go far towards remedying the gap that exists between today’s rainmakers and a firm’s succeeding generations.