LATERAL PARTNER INTEGRATION

Lateral partners often are left to sink or swim without adequate assistance transplanting and growing practices at new firms. You have to navigate existing relationships, build new communities, and find your professional and personal identity in a new environment.

At McGuireWoods, we walk beside you.

McGuireWoods’ Lateral Partner Integration Committee (LPIC), led by partner Amber Walsh, offers an innovative, robust integration program dedicated to onboarding, nurturing and tracking the progress of lateral partners.

After years of research and planning, McGuireWoods’ LPIC creatively reworked its program and established a unique position — director of partner integration and business development coaching. The LPIC consults with the director to identify and implement best practices, establish an effective onboarding and introduction process, and perform coaching and data collection to better integrate lateral partners and ensure their success.

The program focuses on four key elements of integration: culture, client service, business development and brand. Lateral partners benefit from:

  • regular check-ins with a peer sponsor — a partner who serves as a champion and advocate, looking for opportunities to introduce you to lawyers and clients around the firm;
  • weekly 1-on-1 sessions with the director of partner integration, a seasoned business development professional who serves as a real-time guide, connector and coach;
  • support from the LPIC, partners who serve as integration ambassadors around the firm; and
  • introductions to tools, systems and key resources at the right time in your integration journey.

Here’s what a few of our lateral partners are saying:

“The LPIC provides lateral partners with a real, tangible resource in its integration director. Thanks to this program, I don’t feel alone and know that the firm cares about my success.”

complex commercial litigation partner Chelsea Hilliard

“The partner integration process has been excellent. It helped me think intentionally about how to weave myself into the fabric of the firm as a partner, and think broadly about how I can provide value. The welcome I received from partners across the firm’s offices has been tremendous.”

regulatory and compliance partner Brian Franklin

“Upon my arrival, targeted meetings taught me about the firm’s capabilities in key areas for my existing clients’ needs. That enabled me to identify the right lawyers for my clients and we’ve hit the ground running. The lateral integration program was a significant factor in my successful transition.” 

environmental and mass tort litigation partner Shannon Kasley