Case Study: Withers & Rogers

Client Overview
Withers & Rogers LLP, a leading UK and European firm of patent and trademark attorneys, was established in 1884. The firm operates across Europe, with offices in the UK, Paris, and Munich, offering commercially focused intellectual property advice. Their global reach includes a network of trusted foreign IP law firms and direct clients.

The Challenge
As Withers & Rogers grows, its proactive senior leadership team looks to invest in its emerging leaders. They aimed to transition fee earners from focusing solely on chargeable work to understanding their value through management responsibilities. Embedding the firm’s strong values in their leadership styles was critical, given the sometimes-transactional nature of the legal industry. They needed their leaders to inspire teams based on trust, strong relationships, and the firm’s purpose.

Another significant challenge was managing workloads, people, and time efficiently. The legal industry’s reactive nature often led to difficulties in these areas, particularly for those now responsible for leading teams of varying sizes.

Our Solution
West Peak prescribed their bespoke Summit Leadership Programme™, including their tailored K2 dynamic performance event, which draws inspiration from leadership decisions on a fateful day on the K2 Mountain. This exclusive event aimed to instil teamwork, creativity, and a unified approach to success, fostering a renewed sense of camaraderie among participants.

Following this, we delivered four face-to-face workshops focusing on areas including:

• Creating High-Performing Teams
• Personal Effectiveness
• Empowering Individuals
• Strategies for fostering a culture of empowerment
• Effective communication, constructive feedback, and celebrating achievements
• Optimising workflows and resource allocation
• Aligning processes with organisational goals

The workshops culminated in group presentations, critical to embedding learning and facilitating change, where participants shared:

• What they learned about themselves
• Key takeaways from the programme
• Implementation of learned strategies to improve performance and engagement
• Impact of their attendance on the Summit Leadership Programme™

Results

Enhanced Collaboration: The K2 event strengthened collaboration among the emerging leadership team, fostering a unified vision for success and providing a benchmark for future learning.

Improved Relationships: Delegates gained a better understanding of the importance of trust in building relationships and leading teams. This led to improved relationships within their teams and among the delegates themselves, creating a stronger support network.

Improved Personal Effectiveness: Emerging leaders learned to manage their tasks and time more effectively, leading to more productive teams and a renewed sense of energy. Leaders were less consumed by daily firefighting and more focused on strategic issues.

Impactful Feedback Culture: The programme instilled a renewed feedback culture within the business. Leaders adopted constructive feedback practices, empowering team members to perform at their best.

Participant Feedback

Fiona McBride (Owner & Partner)  and Paul Foot (Partner), who attended the presentations, shared their insights:

Fiona: “What struck me was the overriding confidence, growth, and self-awareness from the people who attended. You can tell they have connected with people who would not ordinarily be part of their team, and drawing from this collaborative spirit, I hope their motivation and momentum to be inspiring leaders within the firm continues. A great success, a great achievement, and huge thanks to all who committed their time and energy into the programme. Well done everyone!”

Paul: “It was fantastic to see the engagement, commitment, and professionalism which was displayed in the presentations and Q&A sessions. I am reassured that the future of W&R is in good hands.”

Next Steps
With the investment in its emerging leaders and the reinforcement of its organizational culture, Withers & Rogers is poised for sustained advancement and growth in the legal domain. West Peak looks forward to its ongoing collaboration, leveraging the insights derived from this transformative journey to assist Withers & Rogers in achieving their future milestones.

Click here to find out more about Withers and Rogers