Northwest Legal Search, Inc. - The Northwest's Leading Attorney Placement Consulting Firm.
Our Services
Professional Development Services
Securing clients, exhibiting leadership and managing a practice on an increasingly complex playing field - that is the lawyer's charge. Yet little is offered in the way of assistance in these endeavors.
Vision Mechanix can help. We work with lawyers and law firms to establish and build a strong foundation of professional development skills. From junior associate to senior partner, our services are architected to maximize your professional success and satisfaction.
Training Programs
Our multi-part, interactive training programs deliver effective methods to establish a solid baseline of professional development skills from which to expand.
Foundation Skills Workshop. This 3-hour interactive course opens the door to building a successful legal practice. Combining conceptual analysis with 9 practical exercises, the Foundation Skills Workshop covers the fundamentals of Business Development, Leaderships Skills and Practice Management. The course is CLE approved and can be delivered on-site or at retreats. Cost is $249/person, which includes a 27-page course book. Follow-up coaching sessions to increase the course's effectiveness are also available. Download the Foundation Skills Workshop Synopsis for more details:
Download Foundation Skills Workshop Synopsis (pdf)
Transition Boot Camp. Transitioning to senior associate/junior partner is a big step in every lawyer's career. Expectations are on the rise. The work is more complex, the responsibilities are more significant and the focus to development clients is more acute. This 2-hour content-rich course hones the skills of Rainmaking, Leadership, Mentoring and Practice Management to prepare these attorneys for what's ahead. The seminar is perfect for firm retreats, or it can be delivered on-site. The course costs $299/person and includes a 30-page course book with the presentation. Follow-up coaching sessions to increase the course's effectiveness are also available. Download the Transition Boot Camp Synopsis for more details:
Collaborative Consulting/Coaching
Training can be very effective, increasing productivity up to 22%. But training coupled with consulting can increase productivity up to 88%! (UpLevel Strategies, June 2005) Vision Mechanix works with individual lawyers, practice groups, and law firms through customized engagements to increase productivity, accelerate performance and enhance professional satisfaction.
Because each client is unique, our work is tailored to each engagement. Whether it's
- Coaching an individual to greater effectiveness
- Facilitating a practice group teambuilding session or
- Presenting to your lawyers at a firm retreat
Vision Mechanix adds value each step of the way. We work with clients on these and many other areas:
- Business Development. With the increased specialization in law, knowing who your prospective clients are can be a challenge. Even if you know who they are, you might not be targeting them in the most effective way. We work with clients to refine their development opportunities and achieve higher conversion rates.
- Leadership/Mentoring Skills. Practicing law is more than a purely intellectual pursuit. Managing clients, staff, associates and opposing counsel takes both intellectual and emotional intelligence. Clients seek us out to work with them on developing both their leadership and mentoring skills to get the most out of their practice and the people they work with every day. We can help anyone be a better leader and mentor!
- Practice Management. A well-managed practice means different things to different lawyers. What does it mean to you? Productivity? Satisfaction? Efficiency? Planning? Effectiveness? Growth? Visibility? Freedom? Technology? Not only can we help you discover what it means to you, we can help you achieve it!
- Transition Assistance. Many lawyers find that practicing law simply isn't for them. It can be a heart-rending experience to realize that the lofty goals you set for yourself were off target. Not only have we been there, we've discovered that not all is lost. So much of what you've learned as a lawyer can be applied to a new venture that you'll eventually realize that getting to this point was just a step along the path.
For additional information about Vision Mechanix, visit our FAQ page or Contact Us with any questions or to schedule a free introductory consulting session.
For more information contact Paul Burton at: paul@nwlegalsearch.com
After practicing corporate finance law in the Portland, Oregon, large firm arena for five years, Paul spent six years as General Counsel to two area corporations. At the second, he also managed operations for the rapidly growing, 35-person professional services department. During Paul's tenure as corporate counsel he taught as an adjunct law professor at The Lewis & Clark Law School, developed or participated in several CLEs, and consulted numerous start-ups during their emergent stages.
In 1999, Paul joined one of his clients as a co-founder in what is today the largest online paddlesports retailer in the country - Outdoorplay, Inc. (www.outdoorplay.com). Outdoorplay ultimately hired a general manager to run Outdoorplay and Paul re-focused his energies back on developmental consulting. In reviewing his client base, Paul was immediately impressed with the number of lawyers he was advising. Delving further into that phenomena resulted in targeting his consulting towards professional development for lawyers and law firms.
As a recovering lawyer who has worked in both the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds, Paul is well qualified to work with lawyers and law firms in all types of practices. He is passionate about what he does and derives great satisfaction from his clients' successes, be they large or small.
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