The reason your law firm isn’t growing is probably your fault. Not you personally, but your firm’s culture. And before you roll your eyes thinking “here we go, another culture lecture,” stick with me. This isn’t about your values statement hanging in reception or that team-building day you did last quarter.
After two decades of helping law firms grow, I can tell you that regardless of the symptoms – whether it’s haemorrhaging talent, stagnant revenue, or market share erosion – there’s usually one primary antagonist: culture. But not the culture you think you have. The culture you actually have.
I can typically spot what’s kneecapping your growth within minutes of sitting in a partners meeting. It’s written all over the faces in the room, hidden in the subtle eye rolls, and buried in the pregnant pauses between comments.
Let me introduce you to something that will blow your mind in its simplicity but devastate you with its accuracy. My colleague Steve Simpson, a culture expert, calls them UGRs – Unwritten Ground Rules. These are the real rules that govern how your firm operates, not the ones in your employee handbook or plastered on your website.
The Unwritten Ground Rules (UGRs) in Your Law Firm
Here’s how it works. Steve has this brilliantly simple technique where he asks people to complete one sentence anonymously:
“Around here, the way things really work is…”
That’s it. No outlandish consultancy frameworks. No 200-page reports. No holding hands singing “Kum Ba Yah. “Just one sentence that reveals everything that’s actually going on in your firm.
Let me give you some real examples I’ve seen:
A firm’s official values state: “We embrace innovation and encourage fresh thinking.”
The UGR reveals: “Around here, if you suggest a new way of doing things, you’ll be reminded how we’ve always done it successfully for 30 years.”
The firm handbook says: “We believe in work-life balance.”
The UGR reveals: “Around here, if you leave before 7pm, you’re not serious about your career.”
The partnership agreement claims: “We value collaboration and teamwork.”
The UGR reveals: “Around here, you protect your clients because that’s your path to partnership.”
These aren’t hypotheticals. These are real responses from real law firms, and they’re killing your growth potential.
Here’s why this matters: Your firm’s actual culture – the one defined by these UGRs – is the operating system that runs everything. You can install all the apps (read: initiatives, strategies, or systems) you want, but if the operating system is corrupted, nothing will work properly.
I see this play out constantly. A Managing Partner calls me, frustrated that their expensive new lateral hire isn’t working out. “They interviewed brilliantly,” they say, “but three months in, they’re a nightmare.” What’s really happening? Your UGRs are rejecting the transplant.
Often, the custodians of these negative UGRs are influential people in your firm. They might not be partners, but they’re the long-serving senior associate or the practice manager who “knows how things really work around here.” They get their hooks into your new recruits before the ink is dry on the contract, and suddenly your bright new hire is assimilated into the problematic culture you’re trying to change.
So what’s the solution?
Here’s your three-step action plan:
1. Uncover Your UGRs
Start by running the sentence completion exercise. But – and this is crucial – it must be anonymous and it must be comprehensive. Don’t just ask the partners; ask everyone. Your receptionist probably knows more about your firm’s real culture than most of your equity partners.
2. Confront Reality
Once you have your UGRs, you need to face them honestly. If the feedback shows that “around here, we talk about innovation but punish anyone who rocks the boat,” you need to acknowledge that reality. This isn’t about pointing fingers; it’s about recognising the gap between your intended culture and your actual culture.
3. Change the Rules
This is the hard part. Changing UGRs requires consistent, visible action from leadership. If you want to change the UGR that “around here, feedback means criticism,” then partners need to start publicly praising good work and constructively handling mistakes.
Here’s the brutal truth: Your firm’s growth is capped by your culture. You can hire the best lawyers, invest in the latest tech, and spend a fortune on marketing, but if your UGRs are toxic, you’re just pouring money down the drain.
The good news? UGRs can be changed. But it requires courage to uncover them, honesty to face them, and commitment to change them.
So, before you approve that new marketing budget or sign off on that expensive consultant, take a hard look at your UGRs. Because until you fix what’s really going on “around here,” nothing else you do will deliver the growth you’re looking for.
Remember, culture isn’t just some soft, fuzzy concept. It’s the hardware your firm runs on. And right now, your UGRs might be running a program called “How to Stop Growth at All Costs.”
What are you going to do about it?
