Forward plan to avoid playing the villain in the 'end-of-CPD-year' pantomime

Clients take it for granted that their lawyers maintain their professional competence, as does the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) with its continuous professional development (CPD) requirement for UK lawyers. Regrettably, the lack of rigour applied to the SRA’s CPD scheme means that CPD often becomes about collecting points in the same way that reward points such as air miles are collected by consumers.

The scheme doesn’t appear to foster the need for sufficient thought to be applied to a lawyer’s true development needs. This may not be the case in principle but, in practice, the focus tends to be on meeting the required number of points. I’m not aware of a law firm which doesn’t engage in the annual October CPD pantomime of chasing lawyers to make sure their CPD records show the magic number 16 (or pro rated number) rather than actually looking to see if the content of the development undertaken has truly contributed to the professional practice of the lawyer concerned.

I would estimate that a firm which has 60 lawyers who need to meet their CPD requirements with two months remaining of the CPD year – whether that is 0.5 points or all 16 points – will spend approximately 100 hours managing this annual activity. This is an additional and largely avoidable operational cost to a firm.

Development plans

Rather than investing time and effort in the ‘end-of-CPD year’ pantomime, firms would be better and more profitably served by investing in a robust development planning approach, linking personal goals and objectives to the firm’s strategic goals and operational objectives. Doing such a review would surely bring the issue of value, impact and evaluation of learning and development to the fore.

Formal development plans using the tried-and-tested learning cycle of ‘review – plan – do – review’ are not difficult to generate. The conversation, typically during appraisal discussions, only needs to address the following questions:

• “what am I doing?”

• “what do I need to be doing?”

• “how do I make it happen?”

• “how will I know I’ve been successful in achieving the agreed goals
  or objectives?”

Plans that link the targets and goals for individuals and their departments with clients’ needs and expectations will be more meaningful. Such development plans are also more likely to be carried out or achieved, as well as be more beneficial to the individuals and the firm than an approach to learning and development which is left to a particular interest in a topic and to chance.

Plans can be made easily enough.
A plan requires understanding, ownership and motivation and the necessary resources in order for it to be delivered
as initially designed and intended. The ability to amend the plan is also an
absolute criterion should circumstances
or priorities change.

This suggests therefore that a development plan needs to be monitored and managed. Time and attention needs to be paid to it in order that the activities undertaken are fit for purpose and are appropriate to help the partner or employee to achieve the desired outcome to the required timescale, cost parameters and quality or standard.

Improving engagement

Encouraging people to regularly (not just annually) discuss their aspirations, capability and potential is hugely
positive in terms of improving their engagement with the business. Partners and managers in law firms do not
always make sufficient time to keep
tabs on the development of those they
are responsible for.

We get caught up in the daily whirlpools and white-water rush of demands and rarely experience calm, smooth running waters which is when we typically lift our heads to address factors which have been left unattended such as development and sometimes practice management. If we never lift our heads to attend either to our own development or the development of others, we soon find ourselves playing our part in the ‘end-of-CPD-year’ pantomime.

So unless you want to forever play the part of the panto villain, or you’re more than happy for people in your teams to leave their development and contribution
to the firm’s success to chance or to personal interest rather than business goals, think about your personal development plan (PDP) in good time. Help others to manage their own plans, revisit plans during the year, make things happen and use your PDP as a means of support for your continued professional and business success.

Sue Beavil is the senior learning and development manager at international law firm Mayer Brown (www.mayerbrown.com)