In ‘Business Model Shift,’ Drinker Biddle Appoints Chief Value Officer
In what may be a BigLaw first, Drinker Biddle & Reath has appointed a “chief value officer” who will keep clients in mind as the law firm offers more alternative pricing.
Kristin Sudholz, the firm’s former director of practice development, will take on the new role, the Legal Intelligencer reports. She will be part of the firm’s strategic planning committee to ensure a voice on “value” is at the table, and will oversee client value and pursuit teams, the story says.
“While not new to other professional service firms, the CVO role is a new concept to law firms and follows the goals of the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Value Challenge initiative,” the story says. “The challenge is a push away from the typical billable hour method in which firms make money through working more hours on a project to one that focuses on efficiency, alternative fee arrangements and leaner staffing. The end goal is to offer more value and predictability to clients while maintaining or even increasing profitability for law firms.”
Altman Weil consultant Pamela Woldow told the Legal Intelligencer that many law firms are embracing “value,” but Drinker Biddle is the only one she knows of that has created a chief value officer. “It’s a real cultural shift, and for a law firm, it’s a business model shift,” Woldow said.
