{"id":1351,"date":"2016-05-26T14:11:05","date_gmt":"2016-05-26T14:11:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bignondekeyser.siteadwin.fr\/en\/staying-one-step-ahead-the-need-for-law-firms-to-study-their-environment-in-order-to-develop-a-successful-strategy\/"},"modified":"2016-09-21T12:35:36","modified_gmt":"2016-09-21T12:35:36","slug":"staying-one-step-ahead-the-need-for-law-firms-to-study-their-environment-in-order-to-develop-a-successful-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/staying-one-step-ahead-the-need-for-law-firms-to-study-their-environment-in-order-to-develop-a-successful-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"Staying one step ahead"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The next decade will be very different from\u00a0the previous one in many respects. Over\u00a0the next few\u00a0years, law firms will have to\u00a0adapt to a new economic and legal environment,\u00a0and to a permanent\u00a0shift in Europe\u2019s\u00a0position within the global economy. In this\u00a0context of a transforming market, it has\u00a0become more important than ever for law\u00a0firms to design and build creative strategies.\u00a0However, to\u00a0do so, law firms must\u00a0begin by gaining an in-depth knowledge of\u00a0their environment, which will\u00a0allow them to:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Build development and organizational\u00a0strategies;\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Assess clients\u2019 expectations as\u00a0precisely as possible;\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Understand the main current market\u00a0issues.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Knowledge of their environment will help\u00a0law firms to\u00a0understand and foresee the\u00a0needs of their clients, as well as the\u00a0main trends within these clients\u2019\u00a0industries.\u00a0Anticipating clients\u2019 future expectations\u00a0will allow law firms to develop new\u00a0service lines,\u00a0either directly or through\u00a0strategic alliances and partnerships.\u00a0Additionally, studying the legal\u00a0market\u00a0and understanding the strategies implemented\u00a0by their competitors are prerequisites\u00a0for\u00a0law firms if they wish to succeed\u00a0in their market.\u00a0In order to illustrate this observation, this\u00a0article\u00a0will look at several recent trends\u00a0in the French economy and identify the\u00a0useful lessons law firms\u00a0can learn from\u00a0them in order to better tend to their clients\u2019\u00a0needs. It will also give examples of\u00a0ways in which law firms can monitor their\u00a0competitors and their market.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Noteworthy new trends in\u00a0the French\u00a0economy:\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">In spite of a difficult economic situation\u00a0and a low growth rate in recent\u00a0years,\u00a0France has many economic assets and\u00a0retains a strong competitive advantage\u00a0in several\u00a0key areas, such as the luxury\u00a0sector, the aviation, aerospace and defense\u00a0industries, and the\u00a0agriculture and\u00a0food industry. It is also of note that 40 of\u00a0the 500 largest companies worldwide\u00a0are\u00a0French. Well aware of these assets,\u00a0the French government has been trying\u00a0to boost several\u00a0industries and sectors\u00a0which it expects to be the most promising\u00a0in the next few decades. It has\u00a0also\u00a0identified small and medium-sized companies\u00a0as strong vectors for French economic\u00a0growth.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Governmental focus on small and medium-sized\u00a0companies and on international\u00a0exports:\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">A salient\u00a0trend in the current French\u00a0economic environment is the effort being\u00a0made by the French\u00a0government to promote\u00a0the growth and international development\u00a0of small and medium-sized\u00a0companies\u00a0(\u201cSMEs\u201d). With the continuing rise\u00a0of the Internet and e-commerce and the\u00a0development of emerging markets, it is\u00a0becoming easier and of more interest\u00a0than ever for small\u00a0and medium-sized\u00a0companies to expand internationally. In\u00a02012, the only French SMEs that\u00a0managed\u00a0to retain a significant growth rate\u00a0were those operating on an international\u00a0level: on\u00a0average, their turnover rose by\u00a03.9%. However, many French SMEs remain\u00a0exclusively national,\u00a0meaning they\u00a0do not export their products or services.\u00a0The current French government has\u00a0therefore made the internationalization\u00a0of SMEs one of its main economic priorities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Additionally,\u00a0as it is eager to achieve a\u00a0better fit between French exports and\u00a0international demand, the\u00a0government\u00a0has identified four priority sectors for\u00a0international commerce: agriculture\/\u00a0food, h\u00a0ealth and well -being\u00a0(pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and medical\u00a0equipment), communication\u00a0(software, IT \u2026) and urbanization\u00a0(construction, energy efficiency and\u00a0transportation).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Importance\u00a0of the IT sector and the digital\u00a0economy:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The IT industry is currently one of the\u00a0most promising\u00a0sectors in the French\u00a0economy. For instance, over 38 million\u00a0French people use the Internet, with\u00a0French nationals spending an average of\u00a065 hours online every month. Similarly,\u00a0the turnover\u00a0generated by \u201cmcommerce\u201d\u00a0(cell phone shopping) increased\u00a0by 120% in the first quarter of\u00a02013.\u00a0The increasingly rapid evolution of\u00a0hardware (smartphones, computers,\u00a0tablets \u2026) and electronics\u00a0and the rise in\u00a0computer services are some of the developments which seem to\u00a0indicate that\u00a0the internet \/ digital economy sector\u00a0will remain one of the most dynamic\u00a0in the years\u00a0to come.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The explosive rise of computer performance,\u00a0the continuing growth of\u00a0high speed and\u00a0mobile networks,\u00a0and the generalization of the cloud\u00a0and big data are challenging the\u00a0status quo in\u00a0every industry. Not a\u00a0single sector will remain unchanged\u00a0by this digital revolution.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Rise of the\u00a0social economy sector:\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">France is home to over 1 million nonprofit\u00a0organizations (associations,\u00a0corporate foundations, mutual insurance\u00a0companies, co-ops, federations\u00a0and unions, etc.), 20% of\u00a0which have\u00a0paid employees. These organizations\u00a0operate in a wide variety of sectors:\u00a0culture,\u00a0sports, health and welfare\u00a0institutions, etc. The social economy\u00a0sector continues to grow in\u00a0France,\u00a0and today represents 10% of GDP\u00a0and approximately 10% of jobs nationwide.\u00a0In spite of\u00a0the economic\u00a0crisis, this sector has grown by 2%\u00a0every year since 2008, while the\u00a0private sector\u00a0growth rate has stagnated\u00a0or even declined.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>What useful lessons can law firms\u00a0operating in\u00a0France learn from these\u00a0trends?\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The increasingly crucial role of SMEs\u00a0in the French economy\u00a0brings its own\u00a0set of challenges and opportunities\u00a0for law firms. In order to support\u00a0small- and\u00a0medium-sized companies\u00a0in their development, law firms must\u00a0identify the skills these companies\u00a0will need in the years to come. The\u00a0services law firms can offer these\u00a0SMEs may range from\u00a0facilitating the\u00a0transfer of family-owned businesses\u00a0and accompanying corporate restructuring\u00a0operations, to helping companies\u00a0adapt to the digital era, or assisting\u00a0companies which are only\u00a0active in France that wish to expand\u00a0internationally, which may require\u00a0knowledge of export\u00a0incentives offered\u00a0by the State in order to assist\u00a0clients to make the right choices.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Firms should\u00a0also strive to anticipate\u00a0the sectors of the economy which will\u00a0be the next to boom, based on the\u00a0government\u2019s strategic choices as\u00a0well as their own specializations and\u00a0assets. This means\u00a0monitoring economic\u00a0changes in the market and\u00a0understanding its long-term developments.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Additionally, law firms should not\u00a0only consider the effects of the digital\u00a0revolution on their clients\u2019\u00a0industries,\u00a0but also on their own \u201cbusiness\u00a0models\u201d, by asking themselves relevant\u00a0questions,\u00a0such as: \u201cwhat consequences\u00a0will the digital revolution\u00a0entail for our international development?\u201d\u00a0Such considerations will allow\u00a0law firms to reap the benefits\u00a0and seize the opportunities offered\u00a0by\u00a0this new digital era.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>The importance of legal market intelligence:\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Whatever the importance of the\u00a0wider\u00a0macroeconomic context, a law\u00a0firm can accelerate its development\u00a0by improving its\u00a0knowledge of its own\u00a0environment, i.e. its competitors.\u00a0This will allow firms to compare their\u00a0organization with that of other law\u00a0firms in order to streamline. Knowing\u00a0one\u2019s environment\u00a0involves learning\u00a0about the services lines developed\u00a0by competitors, understanding them,\u00a0and\u00a0then analyzing what works and\u00a0what doesn\u2019t. Law firms should also\u00a0look at the innovations put in\u00a0place\u00a0by competitors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>What are the tools law firms can use\u00a0to monitor the economy and their\u00a0own\u00a0environment?\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">In order to understand the trends\u00a0affecting the economic market and\u00a0their own\u00a0environment and competitors,\u00a0law firms are able to choose\u00a0from a wide array of tools, ranging\u00a0from\u00a0market analysis to benchmarking,\u00a0studies based on international\u00a0and national legal and economic\u00a0press, rankings, press reviews,\u00a0Google Alerts, etc. Using these tools\u00a0on a regular basis can help\u00a0law firms\u00a0to keep track of the changes in their\u00a0market. This type of knowledge will\u00a0provide them\u00a0with a much needed\u00a0competitive advantage in today\u2019s\u00a0demanding environment.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The need for law firms to study their environment in order to develop a successful strategy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":541,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1351"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1351\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1972,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1351\/revisions\/1972"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1351"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bignondekeyser.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}