right.com, Young lawyers want Ted Lasso as their leader, not Bobby Knight. Will they get them?:
Law firm leaders who fail to adapt their communication styles (particularly by moving away from top-down “tough guy” talk) to a changing workforce risk alienating workers and suffering an unwanted backlash .
What people want in their leaders and how they want leaders to communicate have been changing and accelerated by the pandemic and generational differences, legal consultants said.
If firms want to avoid negative publicity, they must understand the changing dynamics of the workplace and the motivations of new lawyers.
Paul Hastings is the loudest recent example of the communication failure of law firms. An internal presentation created by a senior associate and delivered to more junior transactional associates said a variety of things that would seem more at home in 1983 than in 2023. …
[E]Despite studies and research showing that Ted Lasso’s (the American football coach from the popular Apple TV series who exhibits empathy, vulnerability and optimism) approach to communication is more effective (in most industries) , is not yet widespread. …
The whole “nice guys finish last” fable is just that, a fable. And certainly, more recently than in the past, aggressiveness, bullying, and reprimanding to motivate can have consequences for those who choose that style.
Bobby Knight was a successful NCAA men’s basketball coach at Indiana, but was fired after a series of behavioral controversies crossed the line.
But while it’s easy to criticize a harsh and relentlessly demanding management style today, there was a time when it was considered effective. And that’s where it gets complicated. …
Given the emphasis on attributes like vulnerability, adaptability, and emotional intelligence, does that mean that people crave a leadership style more like Ted Lasso than Bobby Knight?
TaxProf Blog Coverage:
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2023/05/young-lawyers-want-ted-lasso-as-their-leader-not-bobby-knight.html