Can the interests of employers, employees & clients ever be aligned?
3 Min Read
Our Managing Partner, Nick Robison, is on the trail of elephants…
The ‘standard’ model for a law firm is to combine a number of lawyers’ practices: in the context of Guernsey, advocate ‘A’ may have a valuable practice, comprising loyal clients and advocate ‘B’ may have a similarly valuable practice, albeit one that specialises in a different type of law; so, the two advocates combine their practices, sharing (and thereby reducing) overheads, while referring work to each other in order to increase turnover. If a junior lawyer working within the partnership wants to become a partner-owner, they must develop a client base of their own such that, in time, their practice will be sufficiently valuable that, if joined to the practices of the existing partners, the broader partnership will grow even more.
So far, so good… or so it seems. There is an ‘elephant in the room’ – an inherent conflict that all businesses, whether advocates’ partnerships or otherwise, must overcome.
In the 104 years since Advocate Joseph Naftel first commenced his practice, which planted the seed for the firm that Babbé is today, Babbé has, like all businesses, had to grapple with the inherent tension that exists between the interests of its partner-owners, its staff and its clients. There is nothing novel about that tension, or awkward about acknowledging its omnipresence: all business owners want profits, which means the highest number of clients and the fewest practicable expenses; however, an abundance of clients can lead to fewer ‘relationships’ with those clients, while low overheads can mean low salaries and fewer benefits for employees.
In reality, therefore, any business driven only by its owners’ desire for profits will face stormy weather. Its clients and staff may feel devalued and quickly look elsewhere, leaving the firm and its owners behind, needing new clients and staff, many of whom may – in time – feel just as devalued as their predecessors.
And so, the cycle continues.
How can that cycle be broken? Can the interests of employers, employees and clients ever truly be aligned?
Babbé has attempted to ‘square this circle’ by prioritising clients’ interests: if our clients are satisfied, they will continue to look to Babbé to assist them (in the face of competition from Guernsey’s twenty – yes, 20! – other advocates’ firms) which will, in turn, ensure the firm generates sufficient work to enable employed staff to build their practices, and sufficient income to reward the owners’ investment.
But what does that actually mean? How does a firm prioritise the interests of its clients, really?
The guiding principle of Babbé is ‘putting clients first’. Underpinning that mantra are the firm’s five core values: excellence; honesty; respect; accountability; and unity. If we provide excellent service, are honest with our clients and show respect for their concerns, while being accountable (individually and collectively) for the quality of the service we provide, and show unity towards each other and our clients all the while, our clients will get the benefit of us ‘living our values’. Focusing our business in this way allows Babbé to take problems off our clients’ desks, and put them onto ours, thereby allowing clients to get on with the ‘business of business’ comforted in the knowledge that their interests are being looked after.
A client-first model may not be perfect; at times it may suffer the odd strain (especially when a client is less than quick to pay the bills); but, after 104 years of serving Guernsey – and amid competition from 20 rival firms – the ‘elephant in the room’ is pretty well trained at Babbé and doesn’t trample too many flowers.
This article first appeared in En Voyage, issue 38