As the year winds down, law firms across the country are gearing up for success in 2025. In a recent Surepoint webinar titled “Planning for Success: Year-End Essentials for a Profitable New Year,” industry leaders from Chambliss Law, Jenner & Block, and Morse shared insights on leveraging technology, strategic growth, and employee retention to ensure continued success in the coming year.
A Year of Strategic Growth
The session began with a look at how firms are planning for a strong finish in 2024 and an even stronger start to 2025. Tony Young, Executive Director at Chambliss Law in Chattanooga, highlighted his firm’s aggressive approach to rate increases in 2024, which paid off with a 15% increase in attorneys and a solid revenue boost. “We were aggressive with our rate increase at the beginning of the year after seeing what the marketplace was doing, and so we were fairly aggressive and it stuck,” he said, noting that the firm is now focused on a more selective approach to rate hikes in the coming year.
For Jenner & Block, Director of Partner Recruiting and Career Strategy, Eden Mandrell, emphasized careful, strategic hiring in key practice areas. “We want to make sure that we continue the focus on bringing in the right people with the right relationships,” she said, underscoring the importance of integrating new hires smoothly into the firm’s culture. This sentiment was echoed by Jackie Bragga, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Morse, who stressed the significance of measured growth, particularly in corporate transactional practices. “We’ve had such a phenomenal year as a firm this year, and we are excited about our trajectory for next year.”
Technology for Profitability and Efficiency
Several panelists also discussed how leveraging technology, specifically KPI dashboards and profitability modules, helps firms track key metrics and stay ahead of their financial goals. Tony Young revealed how Chambliss uses the LMS system’s profitability module to monitor data on attorneys, billing, and receivables. “Effective rate lends itself towards profitability, so that’s a big one that we use,” he said, adding that the profitability model helps ensure that rates are being upheld and that time is being used efficiently.
For Morse, CRM solutions like ContactEase have become indispensable in tracking business development efforts, including transactional data for corporate clients. Bragga noted that the firm uses ContactEase to manage client interactions, event invitations, and even alumni relations. “It gives me that kind of more holistic picture at the end of the year,” she said, highlighting the ability to identify which clients are most engaged and which are not contributing enough business.
Emphasizing Employee Engagement and Retention
Employee retention was another recurring theme, as all three firms acknowledged that their success is deeply tied to the well-being and engagement of their staff. Tony Young spoke about Chambliss’ commitment to retaining talent by investing in an expansive new office space designed to foster collaboration and engagement. “We took an aggressive approach to our renovation. We feel like it’s the best way for our associates to learn how to be great lawyers,” he said, describing how the new facilities have already had a positive impact on firm culture and client relationships.
Jackie Bragga shared her experience with holiday card initiatives, which have evolved from traditional paper cards to creative, interactive e-cards. “It’s really humbling to see all the good feedback that comes in from it,” she said, noting how the effort helps maintain strong relationships with clients and prospects.
Eden Mandrell also discussed the firm’s alumni relations program, which helps maintain strong connections with former associates who may return to the firm or refer business. “We want to make sure that we have solid relationships with our alums because a lot of times they’ll either go in-house or to the government,” she explained, stressing the importance of staying connected with those who leave.
Preparing for 2025
Looking ahead, all panelists agreed that 2025 promises to be a busy and profitable year. Tony Young forecasted steady, organic growth for Chambliss, attributing much of this to the firm’s strategic investments in both human resources and technology. “We see a pretty substantial increase in our revenue keeping our operations flat, which will increase obviously the bottom line profitability,” he said, confident that their efforts to improve efficiency and productivity will pay off in the new year.
Eden Mandrell echoed this optimism, focusing on business development as a key theme for Jenner & Block in 2025. “We’re certainly going to be working closely with newer attorneys, helping them develop their business development skills,” she said, while also emphasizing that the firm would remain careful in its hiring decisions to ensure that each new lateral hire has a solid business case behind it.
Similarly, Jackie Bragga expressed excitement about using new CRM tools to better understand client needs and improve business development efforts. “I think it’s going to be a busy year overall,” she said, looking forward to integrating new systems and focusing on data-driven growth.
Conclusion: A Year of Optimism and Strategy
As firms across the legal landscape plan for the coming year, the emphasis remains on careful, strategic growth, the use of technology to improve profitability and efficiency, and maintaining strong, engaged workforces. The message from this webinar was clear: firms that embrace strategic planning, measured growth, and data-driven decision-making will be well-positioned for success in 2025.
With 2024 wrapping up strong, it’s clear that many firms are setting themselves up for a profitable new year—one where the right balance of innovation, people, and culture will continue to drive success.
To view the full webinar, click here.
