Intimacy?

“Intimate” might at first seem like a funny word to describe the in-house attorney’s relationship with his corporate client.  But what is intimacy in the context of in-house lawyering?  According to Dictionary.com: Intimacy is “a close association with or detailed knowledge or deep understanding of a place, subject, period of history, etc.”

So, intimacy is really quite an appropriate word to describe the important relationship an in-house lawyer has with his client.  Because of our professional obligations, we cannot help but have a “close association” with our clients. As in-house lawyers, we also strive for a detailed and deep knowledge and complete mastery of our businesses.  

When people ask me why I chose to work in-house, one of the reasons I offer is my desire for a higher level of intimacy with the client - a higher level than can be achieved as an outside lawyer.  As an “embedded” legal executive, I am with the business people on a day to day basis.  I sit with the top executives, participate in policy making meetings and on committees formed to address issues in various disciplines, attend marketing presentations and sales meetings and work closely with the purchasing, risk management, marketing, finance, audit, human resources, accounting departments and the board.  But even more importantly, I have the opportunity to see the warehouse, tour the plant, visit the loading dock and the quality control labs.  An in-house lawyer has a unique opportunity to learn the entire business from the bottom up.

Many companies today require executives to spend time in the manufacturing facility, at the retail store, on the production line, in the research lab, manning the grill or working some other front-line job to help them understand how the business operates.  If your company does not do this, then you should be proactive about doing it yourself.  Knowing the ins and outs of your business is essential in making you a better lawyer for the business.

When you know the business inside out, it is easier to: defend cases, draft contracts that better address the unique needs of your business, appreciate the human resource climate, understand the culture and know what is important to the business.  Most importantly, it becomes much easier to be proactive and provide value in ways the business might not expect from their lawyer.

For example, a lawyer friend of mine from another company was called by the president of one of the operating companies he supports when a customer approached the president about jointly creating a new product.  My lawyer friend's company is not an R&D company; it manufactures a low tech product sold on the commodity market.  Because my friend is embedded in the business, he knows it very well.  His clients, including the president, know how engaged he is and thus regularly consult him on a myriad of legal and non-legal matters.  The president called him as soon as she hung up the phone with the customer.  My friend sat in on the initial meeting with the business folks and the potential partner and was able to identify several very important potential pitfalls that were not even on the president’s radar screen.  My legal friend helped craft an agreement that protected his company from the pitfalls as well as ensure proper ownership in the potentially profitable jointly developed product.

In short, the lawyer who knows his business is a better team member and a much more valuable asset to the company than a lawyer who does not.  In order to be a good team member, the lawyer must be focused on cooperation and coordinate his effort with the group.  Of course, a successful team member must understand how the team works and, ultimately, the final goal of the team.  Becoming “intimately” involved with your business gets you and your team to the goal line and beyond.

Think

Think (think) think (think) think (think)

think (think) think (think) think (think)

Yeah, think (think, think), let your mind go, let yourself be free.

(Aretha Franklin – “Think”)

I once had the opportunity and privilege to hear Charlie Wunsch speak to a group of legal professionals at a daylong conference in Chicago.  Charlie is the General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and in charge of Legal and Government Affairs for Sprint Nextel.  Charlie struck me as a fairly modest man, not one to herald his title or accomplishments to impress people.  Which, of course he certainly has the right to do since he works for one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world and has a terrific amount of responsibility.   I mention his position only because it helps to know his background when we consider his remarks.    

Charlie spoke of the fast pace at which technology has advanced over the years, reviewing how human communication has evolved from pre-history communication of a few hundred feet (the distance at which the human voice can be heard) to mail delivered by horse to crude telephone communications all the way to instant communication from anywhere in the world via the internet.  I don’t have the space to relate all of the wonderful examples he gave, but each was a fascinating example of progress for that time.  Let’s just take notice of the fact that in today’s world, we can communicate instantly with anyone in just about any place on earth and beyond.

What does the age of instant communication have to do with lawyering?  Well, an awful lot.  With the age of instant communication comes the expectation of instant answers.  Clients look at us  as if  we are the legal equivalent to the internet.  Google a question and wait a few seconds for an answer.  Well, we as corporate lawyers know that providing counsel to a client requires careful thought, analytical skills, judgment, experience, emotional intelligence to interpret the data, context and other factors.  Lawyering is not only an acquired skill, but an art.  The process of thinking requires us to use all of the above mentioned qualities and roll them into an answer suitable for our client.  We can’t deliver well thought solutions without the opportunity to “well think” them!  We are not the legal equivalent of the internet with a Google search page built into our systems.

I will paraphrase some of Charlie’s remarks on how this affects lawyers.  Change is too rapid and profound today for lawyers to always be in reactive mode.  Lawyers must not only anticipate  change, but also the consequences of change in order to be prepared to help our companies.  We have to help our clients navigate the changes using the very technology that makes it harder to have the time to do the job right – by taking away the time we need to THINK!

Charlie reminded the group that we have to force our clients to give us time to think.  Why?  Because “It is our capacity to think critically, creatively and clearly explain our reasoning, that gives our service value.  If you eliminate the thinking time, you eliminate the value of those costly legal services.”

You would almost think that Aretha was singing about the lawyer/client relationship when she sang:   “You need me and I need you (don't you know).  Without each other there ain't nothing people can do. Think (think) think (think) think (think). ”

A very thoughtful lady that Aretha Franklin!        

Emotional intelligence — don’t forget the human element*

A lawyer friend told me a story last week about a case she had been working on. Turns out that years ago, one of the employees at her company was severely injured in a tragic plant accident while on the job in South Carolina. The case settled long before her tenure at the company began. Because of a bookkeeping snafu, the company continued to make payments for medical coverage for the injured worker for years after the settlement, payments that it had no obligation to make. Recently, upon discovering its error, the company decided to discontinue making the payments. My friend, the company lawyer, was tasked with communicating the decision to the former employee.

The former employee was well respected and very well liked. Her injury impacted many of the people with whom she worked as well as those in the administrative offices who handled the subsequent lawsuit, human resources issues and workers’ compensation claims. The company bent over backwards and went far beyond its legal obligations in assisting the employee at the time of the injury and, as it turns out, after the matter should have concluded with the settlement. Even decades later, people at the company who worked with the former employee tear up when discussing the case.

You might guess that it was difficult for my friend to manage the case because of the emotional elements surrounding the injury and the impact it had on the injured worker’s life. However, lawyers deal with many “emotional” issues and must separate themselves from the personal aspects of cases such as this one. She handled the matter as she would any other personal injury case – in a very business-like and professional manner. No problem there.

 
However, the real challenge came from within the company – from those who worked closely with the former employee. Because she was so well-liked, the emotional scars that remained were aggravated after all the years. My attorney friend experienced pushback from some of the employees with whom she needed to work to resolve the cessation of the gratuitous medical benefit payments. To her, it was simply a part of her everyday business/legal work. But to those with whom she worked, the case tore open long since hidden wounds and emotional trauma that evoked very emotional responses.

As in-house lawyers, we often deal with emotional issues. To preserve our sanity, we disassociate from the emotional elements of the matter so that we can make an objective legal decision. However, once we have done that, we must invoke our emotional intelligence skills in order successfully implement the recommended action, especially when working with others who may not be used to doing that. A lawyer’s “business as usual” manner may well be off-putting to those unaccustomed to turning off their emotions in this way.

In a situation such as this, to help ensure that such an emotionally charged task goes smoothly, the first thing one should do is reach out to those involved in the original case to get a handle on how the company dealt with the emotional issues at the time of the accident and the emotional impact that it had on the work force, paying particular attention to the people who were directly involved and their feelings at the time. Then reach out to those still with the company, and who would be assisting in effectuating the change, to assess their current emotional state regarding the incident. Clearly, as it turns out, they were still very much impacted by what had happened to the former employee. According to my friend, there may have been undue feelings of guilt associated with the accident and a general feeling of “there but for the grace of God go I” mentality. This may have accounted for the generous manner in which the matter was resolved in the first place many years ago. Whether these resurrected feelings are appropriate or not, they exist and must be taken into consideration when formulating a plan.

If you are tasked with carrying out such a charged assignment and you take the time up front to assess the emotional environment, you will be that much better able to implement a plan that accounts for the feelings of those who would be needed to assist in getting the job done and help them handle it without so much additional upset. In other words, you would empathize with those with whom the former employee worked, acknowledge their feelings and address the resolution of the matter in a proper tone and manner, taking into consideration their feelings about the matter, rather than adopting a “business as usual” approach. The objective would be the same but by accommodating the current employees’ feelings, you will make the job much easier for all involved and likely minimize pushback.

The lesson of the day is to be aware of the emotional impact your legal recommendation may have on your client base and communicate your advice so that it is received not only with an appreciative intellect but with a welcoming heart.

* Originally posted December 8, 2011

Emotional Intelligence

“…the subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions” Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer, “Emotional Intelligence”, 1990

A high Emotional Intelligence Quotient, or EQ, is an essential element of a successful lawyer’s personality. This is readily apparent from the definition set forth above. Some scholars believe that one’s EQ is set at birth while others believe that Emotional Intelligence can be learned and developed. In either case, breaking down the several elements that make up the EQ helps one to better understand the concept of EI. When one is aware of the various factors that enter into the EQ, one can work to harness the insight gained and enhance the ability to interact with the client.

As is the case in traditional psychological sciences, there are several schools of thought that address the concept of EI. I will look at the model posed by Salovey and Mayer in their 1990 article “Emotional Intelligence.”

Salovey and Mayer break down EI into four basic elements: (1) Perceiving emotions; (2) Reasoning with emotions; (3) Understanding emotions; and (4) Managing emotions. In the context of our profession, it is very important for us to be in tune with the emotions of our clients.

You might wonder why someone’s emotional state is so important in our delivery of legal advice. It is important to remember, while our client is the company, the company is made up of people. People cannot be separated from their emotions. As people and employees, they may have concerns about their job performance, the decisions they have made that are now being questioned (or are going to make based on your advice), the mistakes they may have made (or are perceived to have made) and impact they are having on the business. People also have lives outside the company. A sick wife, child or parent, financial problems, major life decisions – all have an impact on the emotional well being of the individual and hence impact the manner in which they address the business problem at hand and in turn the manner in which you provide counsel.

As lawyers, once we have a sense of the emotional state of our client, we need to understand the root of that emotion. Is it business related, or personal in nature? Does it revolve around you and the advice you have given in the past and anticipation about what advice you might give now? Or, does it involve someone else in the business? What is the client’s relationship with that person? What is your relationship with that third person and with the client?

The most important aspect of the Salovey and Mayer model for you to consider is how to deal with the knowledge and insight you have gained into your client’s emotional state. This is the real test of your EQ. Those lawyers who are successful are able to make an accurate assessment of what they are dealing with and react with an approach that is complementary to the given situation.

My friend Jenifer Robbins, General Counsel at FPL Advisory Group, summed up lawyers’ EQ in one word – “Empathy”. The ability to relate to your client on an emotional level is absolutely essential for the successful corporate attorney and business person.

As you approach your daily activities, take a moment to think about those with whom you are interacting and try to gauge their emotional state, think about why they might be feeling the way they do, and take into consideration their perspectives and emotional state as you interact with them.

“Human behavior flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge”

Plato

Listen

“We are given two ears, but only one mouth. This is because God knew that listening was twice as hard as talking.”

Unknown

Lawyers are taught to listen.  Good lawyers actually do listen.  But many of us are too busy thinking about what we are going to say next to actually listen carefully to what our partner in conversation is saying and the meaning behind the words.  Lawyers spend countless hours honing their writing and verbal skills.  However, being an excellent lawyer and a great business leader require exceptional listening skills.  People admire other people who listen to them, more so than the big talker in the room who believes that what he has to say is more important than what anyone else can possibly add to the conversation (or at least he acts this way).  Becoming a good listener will help you advance your career.  So what does it take to be a good listener?

Concentrate.  Good listening requires the listener to put aside all distractions and focus on the language, words and non-verbal cues the speaker is giving to you.  Focus on the words, the ideas and the feelings the speaker is expressing. Concentrate on the main ideas and points, try not to be distracted by off topic meanderings.

Pay attention.  Pay attention to the speaker, let her know that you are listening by acting like a listener.  All the while that you are assessing her communication with you (words, interpreting voice inflection and modulation, reading body language and facial expressions) she is doing the same.  She is looking at you trying to determine if what she is saying resonates with you, if you understand it, if the words “touch” your emotions or break through to your intellect.  Let her know that you are listening by maintaining eye contact, giving non-verbal cues such as nodding or leaning forward, look her in the eyes and let her feel that you “hear and you understand” what she is saying to you.

Maintain a receptive body posture – do not cross arms and legs or sit turned away from the speaker.  Rather, sit with arms gently to your side or slightly folded hands on your lap.  Do not play with your personal communication device – if necessary, turn it off in front of the speaker, sending a message that nothing is more important than what she has to say to you right now.

Be open.  Maybe, just maybe, the speaker will have something to say to you that you don’t already know.  If you have an attitude of objective receptiveness, she might convince you of a different and better way of thinking about a particular topic or a novel (to you anyway) means to approach a problem.  As lawyers, this can prove exceptionally difficult because we are often expected to have all the answers.  So we start to act as if we do.  It is amazing what we can learn when we accept that we do not have the answer for every problem and then listen carefully with an open mind to those who might have a deeper knowledge on a particular subject.

Restate the message the speaker gives you.  In this manner, you show that you are listening very carefully and that you have a desire to know exactly what she is trying to communicate to you.  Many times repeating the message in your own words gives rise to clarification or further development of the communication such that both parties benefit from a deeper dive into the subject matter.  Also, ask questions.  If you do not understand a point, or require further refinement, ask for clarification.

Do not interrupt.  You may think you can say it better than the speaker, but interrupting sends a clear unequivocal message that you believe what you have to say is much more important, relevant or insightful than what the speaker is saying.  Otherwise, why would you need to put an end to their message to get your own thoughts verbalized?

Put yourself in the speaker’s position so that you really have a better perspective as to where she is coming from.  Context is extremely important in understanding a person’s message and the “why” behind the need for its expression.

Remember, a conversation takes at least two people – a speaker and a listener.  Each party flips from one to the other in an instant.  For productive, meaningful conversations to take place, we cannot be thinking only about what we are going to say next.  We must exercise good listening skills to fully engage and learn the most we can from the conversation and hopefully, advance the cause of both the listener and the speaker.

“If you love to listen you will gain knowledge, and if you pay attention you will become wise.” 

Sirach 6:33