Latest news legal recruitment on rise inhouse hires increasing gender crucial in procurement

Major projects drive legal recruitment
A survey has forecast that increased hiring of legal professionals will occur this year, driven by major construction projects, corporate transaction growth and regulatory reform. These forces are increasing demand for in-house counsel at the major banks.

According to the 2015 Global Salary Survey from recruitment consultancy Robert Walters, Sydney law firms are gearing up for a strategic push, which will boosting recruitment in 2015. “After years of salary freezes, more associates are now driven by remuneration, and companies will need to make competitive offers if they want to secure top talent, possibly including sign-on and retention bonuses,” Robert Walters legal director Andrew Hanson says.

“Financial services, construction and corporate M&A associates will probably be the most difficult to source, while construction and corporate candidates, although not so scarce, may have already moved practice or been well compensated for staying.”

In-house hiring on the increase
Meanwhile, recruitment firm Hays, in its January to March 2015 Hays Quarterly Report, states that it expects to see several law firms begin recruitment early in 2015 “after undergoing structural changes in their organisations”.
“Activity continues to pick up in the in-house market and demand is high for candidates with mid-level experience as organisations try to keep as much work in-house as possible, while only briefing out to firms when absolutely necessary,” the report states. “This is in order to reduce costs.”

The report identifies that in-demand candidates will include corporate lawyers with more than two years’ post-admission experience; candidates with strong M&A experience; senior associates for corporate private practice or in-house teams; telecommunications, media and technology lawyers; banking and finance lawyers; insurance lawyers at a senior level; and property lawyers and licensed conveyancers.

Gender agenda in legal procurement
Men are two-and-a-half times more likely than women to buy legal services based on their level of trust in a firm. A recent global survey from Acritas of more than 2000 general counsel also found that for women ‘understanding of my business’ and ‘knowledge of how I work’ were significantly more important factors in determining the share of legal spend.

“Stereotypical approaches to new business and client service, based around masculine values and preferences, can jeopardise a firm’s chances of winning work from female GCs,” says Lisa Hart Shepherd, chief executive officer of Acritas. “A change in thinking and culture is needed if men want to impress an increasingly influential group of female in-house counsel who value business understanding and efficient communication over reputation, personal relationships and trust when choosing their preferred legal partner.”