Brent Williams
With its roots dating back to 1853, Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr (CDH) has a long and proud history in South Africa. But with such a rich heritage comes certain perceptions around the willingness of the firm to embrace change. This saw CDH embarking on a strategic new direction to refresh its brand and differentiate it from competitors.
Brent Williams, chief executive officer of CDH and a director of its Corporate and Commercial practice, says the firm conducted a session in the third quarter of last year to examine how it could do this.
“It is quite challenging to differentiate the CDH brand among the top law firms as there is a large overlap of services. The decision to carry out a brand refresh was well-timed, as we recently separated from our international partner.”
He says that at a high level, the strategy is focused on the strengths of the firm and becoming much more efficient through revising its economic model as well as its partner evaluation system.
“We have also started looking at our compensation model and our African expansion but both these components are still a work in progress. It is now a case of bolstering the key corporate practice areas in the firm related to mergers and acquisitions, such as finance, banking, and tax. CDH has also broadly started positioning its sectoral offerings.”
Fit for purpose
Williams explains by way of example that when a person buys a car, he does not ask who manufactured the air conditioning system, who supplied the tyres, and who developed the electrical system. It is a case of purchasing a vehicle fit for purpose. Law firms traditionally focus on vertical offerings that do not necessarily translate into what is required by a client. By embracing a more integrated, sectoral approach, CDH is able to shape services to clients and be more team-centric around its employees.
“But change like this does not come without having to push hard internally. The legal profession is typically quite conservative and a bit resistant to this kind of thinking. Fortunately, there is a lot of positive disruption in our firm with our partners understanding the need to move on and embark on this journey. Even though we are a year down the line in the repositioning, we started with subtle shifts over the past three years. And while we still have approximately eight months to go on this phase of the roll out, we are excited by what we have accomplished.”
For Williams, it is about ensuring the future sustainability of the firm.
“Some of our competitors have an equally rich bloodline to ours. For us and the leadership of CDH, we regard ourselves as custodians for the future generation of young lawyers. So what do we do to remain relevant?”
The answer seems to be quite a lot.
“Auditing firms have professionalised their offerings much faster than law firms. Some of their services have become a lot more professional than in law. Now, more than ever, corporate law firms need to take themselves seriously. But a different approach is required beyond skills and technical qualifications. Clients want competent service delivered at the right price and at the appropriate time. The law firm of today needs to be agile and adaptable to the needs of clients.”
Born from crisis
In many respects Williams believes the 2008 financial crisis was the best thing to happen to lawyers globally.
“This changed the power relationship between firms and their clients. The old-fashioned notion of some premier law firms globally that clients come to them is a notion that will die out. At CDH, we do not want the stuffiness of some of our competitors. Fortunately, our clients find us pragmatic and easy to work with.”
He feels that technology and the connectedness of people adds to the challenge of differentiation.
“Today, there is a problem of choice. With information overload being a real concern, clients are able to more carefully select a firm that fits their needs. Clients are more astute and have become more knowledgeable – they do not make decisions simply by searching on the Web. For them, it is all about the experience, the ease of use, and the pricing of the firm.”
Another element where technology is beginning to change law firms is that it has made it more efficient to deliver services to clients. The customer experience has benefitted from this. Williams admits that it is still a case of taking baby steps around integrating technology but it is essential in a new digital world.
“The way law firms do things based on hourly rates is simply outdated. We are demystifying what we do and are making our offerings more cost-effective. It is not only about cost but also making it easier for clients to use our services. Auditing firms have been leading the charge in this as they have realised that there are much more revenue opportunities in providing advisory services.”
The fresher approach CDH has embarked on also results in it attracting young talent.
“With a law firm, it is about having a reputation in the market. For us, this reputation is our mergers and acquisitions. To this end, we have been leading the way in South Africa for the past five or so years. CDH has always played in the top echelons. For young people who want to join a law firm, this is important. Through this repositioning and our other activities, we want to show the young graduates that we are an attractive firm to join and one that is cognisant of the requirements of the new world of business.”
About CDH
CDH is committed to providing a high degree of client care and relationship management. Getting to know our clients is our priority. In this way, we are able to support their strategic and operational needs by offering high quality legal advice across our full range of legal services tailored to their requirements.
We have the depth of skills to respond to a client’s business operations locally or anywhere else in the world. Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr brings together the resources and expertise of leading law firms across Africa. This combined experience and geographical spread produces an extensive Africa capability.
Practice areas
• Competition
• Corporate and Commercial
• Dispute Resolution
• Employment
• Environmental
• Finance and Banking
• Pro Bono and Human Rights
• Projects and Infrastructure
• Real Estate
• Tax
• Technology, Media, and Telecommunications
• Trusts and Estates