Conversations with Cohen

In this episode of Conversations with Cohen, I sat down with Karen and David Skinner of Gimbal Canada. As former practicing lawyers, they understand the struggle lawyers face to run and scale their businesses. They work on teaching lawyers the business and practice management skills they need to build successful businesses, in less time, and with a lot less effort.

Karen and David stress that doing the work the right way and using the right process can help lawyers increase their productivity and profitability. A sustainable approach to process improvement can lead to significant material benefits, as well as the economically efficient and effective allocation of limited resources.

Karen and David know, from their experience, that firms that have a high-achieving growth over a sustained period of time generally share two characteristics. One, they are obsessed with providing the best possible experience for their clients, and two, they are laser-focused on being efficient. If you’re interested in learning more about the coaching and courses taught by Gimbal, visit their website.

On this week’s episode of Conversations with Cohen, I had a great discussion with Natalie Loeb, CEO of Loeb Leadership, and David Robert, Chief Talent Strategist at Loeb Leadership.

Loeb Leadership is a firm that focuses on training, coaching, one-on-one executive coaching, and workplace culture work. More than half of their clients are law firms. During Covid, their culture practice has exploded. Companies are making the investment into building their company culture.

We dive into the issues of retaining employees during a hybrid work environment, building trust, authenticity, and expressing realistic expectations. We discuss the importance of managing partners showing they care about how their employees are doing, and how to authentically build trust. This will lead to happier employees that like where they work. David shares research that shows that companies that invested in intentional trust-building had lower voluntary turnover, and higher financial gain.

If you’re a managing partner in a law firm, this episode is one you won’t want to miss.

In this episode of Conversations with Cohen, I am tackling an issue that keeps many managing partners at law firms up at night. I had a great interview with Dr. Fritz Galette of Loeb Leadership. Fritz is a psychologist that has worked with many in the legal field over the years. He does coaching and consulting to help companies improve inclusion and diversity in the workplace. With all that has been going on in the world, many firms are looking for not only an in-depth approach to inclusion, but are looking for a positive change in their company culture.

We dive into the difference between the ‘optics of diversity' and the ‘culture of diversity' and how law firms can do more than just tick boxes. Change takes time, but getting people into these dialogues is the first step. Training starts from the lower rungs of the organization, all the way up to leadership and management. When leadership takes the initial step toward change, that will create momentum that leads to a more inclusive environment and safe space.

This is a very important topic for law firms today. There is much more that needs to be explored, and I look forward to speaking to Fritz again. If you’d like to reach out to Dr. Fritz Galette, you can reach him by email [email protected]. Stay tuned for my next episode of Conversations with Cohen.

In this episode of Conversations with Cohen, I interview Anthony Davies, Chief Revenue Officer at Forrest Solutions. Anthony provides great insight into the issue law firms are facing with employees working from home and not wanting to return to the office full time. One way that law firms are combating that is by hoteling, flexible workspace, or hot-desking.

Many firms are operating on a hybrid work schedule, offering flexibility through shared desks and conference spaces. As an outsourcing provider, Anthony sees many firms redesigning the office space using hoteling. This has led to an increased need for a layer of hospitality in this hybrid model. Having a workplace concierge staff is key and is what makes it work.

In addition, Anthony discusses the challenges faced by law firms in creating their office space experience and feels that creating loyalty and prestige for their brand as most critical. Covid changed the way that law firms feel about outsourcing. All the non-core responsibilities, outside of the legal function, can be handled through specialist providers without the headache. This is something law firms may want to consider if they’re having trouble finding talented and knowledgeable core staff.

You can reach Anthony Davies on LinkedIn or through Forrest Solutions in NYC.
Are you a law firm considering hoteling or outsourcing? Let me know your questions or thoughts.

On this episode of Conversations with Cohen, I speak in-depth with Peter Fidler of WCA Technologies. We dive deep into law firms and how they handle the issue of their attorneys working remotely.

Peter is the founder and president of WCA Technologies, a boutique consulting firm that works with a large number of law firms. Peter identifies issues that may arise when attorneys work from home using their own laptops and computers, including ransomware and maintaining the integrity of clients’ data.

Many law firms are having employees work from home on the firm’s equipment, which extends the company firewall. By investing just a little bit into each attorney working from home, law firms can safeguard their client’s and their firm’s confidential data safely and securely.

If you’re a law firm and unsure how to get started in protecting your company’s data, this interview is perfect for you. Don’t miss out on this information-packed season of Conversations with Cohen where I touch upon all things law firms are wanting to know. Hit subscribe and let me know your thoughts and questions on this episode.

Connect with Peter Fidler: wcatech.com or [email protected] and read his articles on cybersecurity here.

Welcome to the second season of Conversations with Cohen, where I dive into all things pertaining to law firms.

My guest on this episode is Larry Marner of Marner Architecture. His company specializes in designing space for law firms in New York and New Jersey. At the moment, we are seeing law firm occupancy upwards of 50%. Larry shares his insight into law firms and is confident that the office will always be a big part of law firm culture. In fact, last year has been great for many law firms!

Larry shares his thoughts on how law firms will work more efficiently with their real estate, and what effects that will have on the various parts of their real estate. We dive deep into how law offices will look as we move forward in the pandemic. If you're a law firm looking for office space, this video is for you!

 Don't miss out on this information-packed season of Conversations with Cohen. Hit subscribe and let me know your thoughts on this episode.

Connect with Larry: You can reach him at https://www.marnerarchitecture.com/

In my most recent interview, I spoke with Dr. Alden Cass, a sports psychologist, and performance coach. He offers coaching, often conducted online, to help people overcome fears and achieve the life they want through being more productive and through accountability. 


We discussed ways that you can tackle your to-do list and be more productive. This has been increasingly difficult for a lot of people due to the challenges presented by working from home.


Dr. Cass explained how people try to tackle too many things at once and assign the same importance to each task. This often results in most things going undone as people get overwhelmed. The Doctor shared with me his system of creating three different lists; a hot list, a lukewarm list, and a cold list. By assigning your tasks by level of importance and due date, you can develop a system that helps you be more productive. 


If you are struggling with productivity, getting things off the to-do list, or working from home, I suggest you watch this video for how to set up your lists and try this technique out for yourself.

In my recent interview, I spoke with Aaron Gordon of Gordon Companies about insurance coverage and how to protect your business as well as save it money. The last few months have taught us a lot and who better to opine than a member of an insurance business that has been around for 50+ years. 

Additionally, Aaron explains best practices for businesses to help limit their exposure as well as limit their out-of-pocket expenses. It's about adequate coverage and preparing for the things that may never happen but sometimes do. We also speak about how to protect your company during remote working including cyber threats, business interruption as well as the benefits of an insurance audit right now. 

Aaron provides invaluable information for companies looking to navigate the 'new normal' in regards to their insurance coverage. If you're a business owner, you don't want to miss this interview!

Today I interviewed Mary Miele, of Evolved Education, about the best way to help our children succeed this school year, whether they are learning remotely or heading back into the classroom or both.

Mary has been an educator her entire career and has degrees in both special education as well as general education K-12. Her company, Evolved Education, supports families through one-on-one tutoring, parent education, and school placement advisement.

With all of the uncertainty surrounding school right now, we as parents are feeling very uneasy. Many of us don't know what to expect and we have questions about how to best set our children up for success. Mary gives great insight into how to approach back-to-school so that it is a positive experience for your child. She offers some great advice on how to best advocate for your child including checking in with your child's teachers if you think a certain aspect of remote learning isn't working for your child. 

Mary suggests having a Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C to help set up our children for success. Parents need to work through the uncertainty as best they can. This is new territory and advice from a professional is helpful.

Mary delves into the topics of synchronous and asynchronous learning, breakout rooms on Zoom, 'pods', and much more! If you have school-aged children, you do not want to miss my interview with Mary Miele!

Company Culture. It's crucial.

But how do we maintain it and even strengthen it when we aren't all in the same office?

In this interview, I spoke with David Friedman, the CEO of High Performing Culture. He's a subject matter expert given that his company consults with businesses across the United States to help them implement strategies to enhance their company cultures. He has a proven method that he has used with over 300 clients.

David shares with me ideas of how companies can maintain office culture while working remotely. From small businesses to large enterprises, company culture is something that every business either thinks about or should be thinking about. 

With the physical barriers created by COVID resulting in employees working from home, some companies are struggling with team engagement and maintaining the culture of the organizations they've worked so hard to build. 

A cornerstone of David's program involves instilling fundamental behaviors amongst employees. The goal is for these behaviors to become routine, thus resulting in more high-performing employees and thriving company culture.

David offers the strategies he is helping his clients put in place to help them build stronger company cultures. Have a listen to see what you might be able to do to enhance your own firm’s culture.