Half of UK law firms are looking at ways to reduce time spent working remotely and encouraging more time spent in the office.
Fifty per cent of firms surveyed for the Advanced Legal Trends Report 2023/24 said that they were actively looking at ways to increase the amount of time employees spend in the office, with a third (27%) saying that managing hybrid working is one of their biggest challenges.
Firms are also struggling with talent attraction and retention, with 33% ranking this as their number one business challenge and 43% saying that tackling this is a core priority for 2024.
Doug Hargrove, Senior Vice President, Legal & Professional Services at Advanced, said: “There are very well documented issues around talent attraction in the legal field so it seems at odds that the legal profession is driving a trend back towards office-based working as the predominant pattern. Most of the senior professionals we spoke to from fields outside of the legal profession were investing more in hybrid working in a bid to attract the top talent yet within law firms, there appears to be an even split regarding remote working. Half of firms want to reduce this, and half do not. Those seeking greater time spent in the office will need to be very clear on their employee proposition if they are to secure the best people.”
The survey found that law firm employees work an average of 3.2 days a week in the office with the rest of their time working remotely; either from home, court, a client’s offices or even while travelling.
Hargrove added: “The high cost of recruitment and onboarding new people makes it crucial to hold onto talent, and these days retention is arguably even more important than attraction. Almost half (45%) of the legal professionals we spoke to said that it takes, on average, three to six months to replace a fee-earner, and 29% say it takes between six and 12 months. That’s a lot of time for lost revenue and more workload pressure piled onto remaining colleagues, so it’s understandable that employee retention is such a top priority for firms.
“The desire for many to return to the office could be driven by a number of factors, including cultural norms of ‘putting in the hours’ for ambitious lawyers,” added Hargrove. “It could also be linked to quality control - on average firms have experienced a 29.7% increase in complaints since last year and a quarter say improving the client experience is a top challenge – so partners may be keen to bring everyone back into the office where they can keep an eye on them.”
The Advanced Legal Trends Report 2023/24 also looked at issues surrounding AI, cybersecurity and digital infrastructure. Its key findings included:
- 55% of firms say they plan to upgrade their digital systems
- More than a third (34%) said data security was their biggest day-to-day challenge
- Over a quarter (27%) are already using AI in the workplace, but 34% say they are concerned about the risks posed by this new technology.
Download the report: Annual Trends Report 2023/24 | Advanced (oneadvanced.com)