Professional Practices Alliance (PPA)

We are pleased to share with you the recording from our recent Professional Practices Alliance (PPA) expert discussion, ‘Neurodiversity in Professional Services Firm Leadership’.

Individuals who may be described as “neurodivergent” bring a plethora of skills and different perspectives to an organisation, offering firms a sustainable, competitive advantage that will be particularly beneficial in the current economic climate. Harnessing and embracing the cognitive divergence of a workforce will enable professional services firms to home in on an untapped pool of innovators and high performers to inform its decision making and wider strategies, and promote an inclusive workplace culture. It is important for firms to raise awareness about neurodiversity related issues, whether through the day-to-day advocacy of senior management or the delivery of firmwide training, to help managers and colleagues to better understand neurocognitive differences and the needs of their neurodivergent colleagues.

In this webinar, you can hear session Chair, Emma Bartlett, CM Murray LLP, and speakers Daniel Aherne, Adjust Services, Caroline Ramsay, TLT LLP and Rob Millard, Cambridge Strategy Group, discuss a range of issues relating to neurodiversity for professional services firms to carefully consider, including the following:

• the importance of harnessing cognitive diversity in leadership and the various ways in which firms can boost decision-making, creativity and innovation through neurodiversity;

For more information on any of the topics covered in this recording, please email Emma Bartlett: [email protected].

The Professional Practices Alliance is a multi-disciplinary collaboration between leading UK independent legal, accounting and law firm management specialist advisers, CM Murray LLP, Buzzacott LLP, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP, Pep Up Consulting and Cambridge Strategy Group.

In this webinar, you can hear session Chair, Emma Bartlett, CM Murray LLP, and speakers Daniel Aherne, Adjust Services, Caroline Ramsay, TLT LLP and Rob Millard, Cambridge Strategy Group, discuss a range of issues relating to neurodiversity for professional services firms to carefully consider, including the following:

· the importance of harnessing cognitive diversity in leadership and the various ways in which firms can boost decision-making, creativity and innovation through neurodiversity;

· how professional services firms can encourage a culture that is more understanding of neurodiversity, including implementing policies and procedures promoting and generating awareness about neurodiversity; encouraging senior individuals to lead from the top; and offering training to managers and colleagues to help them to better understand these issues; and

· potential statutory protection under the Equality Act 2010 for those who may be described as “neurodivergent”; in particular, focusing on an employer’s duty to make reasonable adjustments, and offering some practical suggestions as to what might constitute a reasonable adjustment in this context.

For more information on any of the topics covered in this recording, please email Emma Bartlett.

The Professional Practices Alliance is a multi-disciplinary collaboration between leading UK independent legal, accounting and law firm management specialist advisers, CM Murray LLP, Buzzacott LLP, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP, Pep Up Consulting and Cambridge Strategy Group

The transition that any firm must undergo if it is to survive and thrive after its founders retire affects every aspect of the organisation. It is at the same time both strategic and intensely personal. For founding partners, it involves giving up control of an organisation that in many cases defines who they are and trusting the next generation to lead and manage it into a successful future. For that next generation, it means stepping up to a whole new level of responsibilities. It almost always involves difficult discussions, including about money, power and influence. For the firm’s employees, the outcome determines no less than their future livelihoods. For clients, such transitions can significantly impact the quality of service that they receive in both the long term and while the transition is underway.

If England’s COVID roadmap progresses as planned, stringent COVID restrictions should be lifting or lifted during summer 2021. The office and future working arrangements are dominating discussions at all levels within professional services firms.

This peer-to-peer discussion aims to provide an understanding of market practices and trends, addressing topics affecting your people, your business and your clients.

In this discussion, you can hear Session Chair Corinne Staves, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP, Beth Hale, CM Murray LLP, Robert Millard, Cambridge Strategy Group, and guest speaker Oliver Richards, Orms, discuss the following:

• What the ease of adaption to such significant working changes has proven about the resilience of the professions

• How the past year of home working has already altered everyone’s horizons and how Firms will need to reflect this in their long-term strategy

• What the key components of a successful workplace will be, allowing people to balance companionship and communication, without compromising privacy needs

• The challenges of effectively supporting the new hybrid of office-based and remote working, including through investment in office technology and considered office reconfiguration

• The legal and non-legal considerations of firms imposing changes on team members and the potential impact of same on firm culture

• What firms need to consider in managing their partner body, including where tensions may emerge if there has been a disparity in contribution during COVID.

We are pleased to share with you the recording of this Professional Practices Alliance expert interactive panel discussion on what the medium-term holds for law firms emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic and how they can prepare for changes to the economy, office life, and the tax landscape.

The panel addressed issues including:

- The impact of the pandemic on law firms and how to emerge stronger on the other side.

- How office workspaces can be adapted to meet the requirements of a workforce that wants greater flexibility.

- The key points of the UK’s first 2021 Budget and the measures that will most affect law firms and their clients.

- The employment law challenges that arise out of new ways of working.

The panel:

James Campbell - International Partner, Cushman & Wakefield (Guest Speaker)

Andrew Hosking - Managing Director, Restructuring & Insolvency, Quantuma (Guest Speaker)

Beth Hale - Partnership and Employment Law Partner, CM Murray LLP

Alastair McQuater - Tax Partner, Buzzacott LLP

Claire Watkins - Partner & Head of Professional Practices Group, Buzzacott LLP (Chair)

The Professional Practices Alliance is a multi-disciplinary collaboration between leading UK independent legal, accounting and law firm management specialist advisers, CM Murray LLP, Buzzacott LLP, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP, Pep Up Consulting and Cambridge Strategy Group.

Join the Conversation

We are delighted to launch the Professional Practices Alliance LinkedIn group, a collaborative networking and information sharing space for professional services firms. Join our LinkedIn group here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13930936/

Follow us on Twitter: @PartnershipAlln

The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), concluded in late December 2020, addresses a range of topics of interest to professional practices, but a glaring omission is a framework for trade in services between the EU and the UK.

This has significant strategic implications for professional practices that are based in the UK but service the needs of clients in the EU (and vice versa), or who have offices in both the UK and EU. While much remains to be agreed, over time frames that might extend to several years or more, there is a lot that such practices need to do now.

In this discussion, you can hear Session Chair, Robert Millard, Cambridge Strategy Group, Zulon Begum, CM Murray LLP, and guest speakers Mickaël Laurans, The Law Society of England and Wales, Ceris Gardener, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP and Markus Hartung, Kanzlei Chevalier discuss the following:

• What steps professional practices need to take in the short term in order to align with the new realities.

• What impact the TCA will have on market access compared with EU single market access.

• What the potential regulatory impacts may be in the absence of mutual recognition.

• What services UK LLPs may provide in EU countries.

• How firms should prepare for further changes as they unfold, including with respect to mobility and immigration issues.

• How firms can seek out and take advantage of the opportunities that may result from Brexit.

We are pleased to share with you the recording of our recent Professional Practices Alliance (PPA) live panel discussion on “Life and Partnerships without The Billable Hour: Business Model Transformation Post-COVID-19".

The increasing use of technology to deliver professional services in new and more efficient ways means the billable hour is under pressure. Our expert panel consider the potential impact on business models in the professional services sector if it became impossible or irrelevant to measure billable hours.

In this discussion, you can hear Session Chair, Zulon Begum (CM Murray LLP),  Corinne Staves (Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP), David Shufflebotham (PEP Up Consulting), Robert Millard (Cambridge Strategy Group) and guest speaker Philip Goodstone (UK&I Head of Law at EY) discuss the following:

· Why do business models in law firms and other professional services firms need to evolve?

· How has the increased use of technology in the professional services sector driven changes in business models?

· Would the way that performance and profitability is measured by firms need to change?

· How would a firm’s governance systems need to develop?

· Would a change in business model impact the metrics and process that a firm uses for assessing partner contribution and compensation?

We are pleased to share with you the recording of our recent Professional Practices Alliance (PPA) live panel discussion on “We Need to Talk About the Office".

In this discussion, you can hear Session Chair, Corinne Staves, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP and speakers Beth Hale, CM Murray LLP, Claire Watkins, Buzzacott LLP and Robert Millard, Cambridge Strategy Group discuss the following:

The partnership model is proven to be effective in generating cash and reward for partners of professional practices but is the partnership model attractive for external investors and how will partner reward structures be impacted by external investment?

In this session, our PPA experts and guest speaker discuss:

· The benefits of the partnership model

· How partnerships can facilitate fair reward structures

· The different types of business models we see now

· Identifying the right time to go down the external investment route

· The pros and cons of employee ownership

· Other forms of external ownership and how investors measure their rate of return

Guest Speaker:

John Aldred, Barclays - Industry Director of Business and Professional Services joins the PPA panel to provide the bank’s view when it comes to attracting finance from external investors.  PPA Speakers:

Matthew Katz, Buzzacott LLP - Partner and Head of Corporate Finance David Shufflebotham, PEP Up Consulting - Partner Remuneration specialist Robert Millard, Cambridge Strategy -  Law Firm Management Consultant    Zulon Begum, CM Murray LLP -  Partnership Law & M&A specialist Chair: Claire Watkins, Buzzacott LLP - Head of Professional Practices Group