Expand and repeat your
communications
Beyond using a unifying theme to get your people behind you,
you also need to take into consideration how well your messages
are getting across. Consider the struggles that Culvahouse has at
O’Melveny. The firm has more than 1,000 lawyers spread across
the globe. His decision-makers aren’t just busy, they’re working in
different time zones and often are inundated with e-mails and
phone calls. That’s how he came up with a rule of thumb for communication.
“I read someplace, I can no longer quote you the source, that says
you need tell the average law firm partner something eight times
before it really sinks in,” he says.
It’s not that Culvahouse thinks his people intentionally block out
messages, he just knows that there is a lot of information out there.
“We live in a world of communication overload, so if you communicate something eight times, you’re hoping at least one of the
messages gets through and is retained,” he says.
“You can say it’s really, really important that we have acquisition
finance capacity in China, but if you say it only once, you may only
have 20 partners that heard you.”
And if you are only getting it across to 20 people, then everyone
else is already down a path to misunderstanding.
“And if our partners don’t have current and up-to-date information, then they will assume the worst, which is what we’re taught
to do as lawyers, to imagine the unimaginable horrors,”
Culvahouse says.
So Culvahouse follows the eight-times rule by constantly considering how important it is to get messages to people not just several times
but also through several avenues. One reason for that is obvious: A
law firm doesn’t just throw its strategic plans up on a blog where the
world can see it. But there’s more to it than that. Part of trying to get
something across is understanding that some people might have one
method of communication that they often ignore or one that they are
constantly tied to. The best communication strategies include not just
consistency of message but also different forums.
“I think each one adds value,” he says. “One-on-ones or small
groups are the most effective, but they’re the most time-consuming.
We try to be a transparent firm, all of our financial information, our
strategic plan, we have no secrets from our partners.”
That means that O’Melveny has diversified its communication
strategies. The company does the usual stuff to lay groundwork —
off-site partner meetings, practice group retreats, etc. — but also
makes an effort to have communications available when people
can get to them. The firm has 90-minute videos that it places online
so people in different time zones can access them at any time. The
firm also is completely open with information, sharing financial
decisions and structure so that that no other communications
seem shrouded in mystery.
Beyond that, the governance structure of the firm has adapted to
include an executive committee that is made up of those value-award-winning types that acts as an additional bandwidth for communication between senior leadership and the firm at large.
All of this helps Culvahouse create a firm where people have consistent outlets that help them understand the firm’s direction.
“Every partner understands that they’re entitled to information,
and it’s really our responsibility to respond to that need because our
partners are very good lawyers and they want to understand decisions,” Culvahouse says. “Lawyers by style are not command-and-control types, we don’t salute and say ‘yes sir’ or ‘yes ma’am,’ and it
takes some convincing and some explanation, so you really need a
multiplicity.”
