It’s been a week since I returned home from the LMA’s Annual Conference, and I’m still digesting everything that went on there – it was a non-stop whirlwind of networking, meetups with social media friends and ILN marketers, face-time with new attendees, and conference sessions (as well as a LOT of food). LMA served its purpose once again though, and I’ve returned to the office with new vigor, feeling more inspired than when I left! Even better for this Social Media Special Interest Group Co-Leader? Not only did I get to see my friends and make new connections face to face, but #LMA13 was trending on Twitter! (Pictured are fellow co-leaders Gail Lamarche of Henderson Franklin and Nancy Myrland, Myrland Marketing with me. Not pictured are Lance Godard of JD Supra, who was unable to join us, and Laura Toledo, Tenrec, who was ill). 

There will be several recap posts to come, but while I’m still ruminating on those, I thought I’d share with you my three favorite sessions, as well as what’s on my reading list now that I’ve returned home. Keep an eye out for the recaps on these sessions! 

 

  1. My absolute favorite session of the conference was hands-down "Delivering Happiness:" Fresh Ideas for Service-Driven Brands Deploying Social Media Tactics, Seeking ROI. Why? First, because the presenters were incredibly engaging and led the session in a casual, interactive format that really benefited the audience members. Second, because although we got the legal perspective from moderator, Jayne Navarre, of Law Gravity LLC, we also got an outside perspective from Graham Kahr, Social Scientist with Zappos.com.  Zappos may be a consumer brand, but since they’re all about service and the customer/client experience (and so are we), it was great to hear some fresh ideas and be challenged to think about how we can adopt them within the legal field. 
     
  2. Wednesday’s General Counsel Panel: Separate from the Pack: Best Practices in Building and Maintaining Your Law Firm’s Relationship with In-House Counsel. If you’ve been following along with me, you know that I LOVE me a good GC panel – there’s no better way for me to deliver value to my attorney clients than to be able to tell them exactly what a sampling of their clients in the industry are thinking about and looking for in their outside counsel relationships.  While we’re still hearing a lot of the same things from GCs (once again, making me wonder what firms are really listening), we also learned more about their thoughts on new media and how that impacts their outside counsel selection process. 
     
  3. GC Focus: Project Management. Position Your Firm in Alignment with the Unique Challenges Faced by In-House Counsel. We were treated to not one, but TWO in-house counsel sessions this conference, with this one being a breakout on the first day.  We heard from the managing attorney at GlaxoSmithKline, as well as their procurement guy (a new perspective at LMA Annual from the in-house side), and Wicker Park Group’s Nat Slavin, who shared his years of experience doing client interviews. This was a much more nuts and bolts type of session, which was again hugely beneficial and gave us all food for thought. 

You’ll be seeing recap posts on these sessions, and maybe a few others, in the coming days.

During Graham’s session, someone asked him for reading recommendations for the in-house marketer, and with my information all saved at Amazon, I was able to order the books on the spot.  He recommended: 

These are all sitting just next to my monitor, and I hope to be able to dive into them soon!

Thanks to LMA for another great and inspiring conference – I’m already excited for 2014! 

 

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Photo of Lindsay Griffiths Lindsay Griffiths

Lindsay Griffiths is the International Lawyers Network’s Executive Director. She is a dynamic, influential international executive and marketing thought leader with a passion for relationship development and authoring impactful content. Griffiths is a driven, strategic leader who implements creative initiatives to achieve the…

Lindsay Griffiths is the International Lawyers Network’s Executive Director. She is a dynamic, influential international executive and marketing thought leader with a passion for relationship development and authoring impactful content. Griffiths is a driven, strategic leader who implements creative initiatives to achieve the goals of a global professional services network. She manages all major aspects of the Network, including recruitment, member retention, and providing exceptional client service to an international membership base.

In her role as Executive Director, Griffiths manages a mix of international programs, engages a diverse global community, and develops an international membership base. She leads the development and successful implementation of major organizational initiatives, manages interpersonal relationships, and possesses executive presence with audiences of internal and external stakeholders. Griffiths excels at project management, organization, and planning, writes and speaks with influence and authority, and works independently while demonstrating flexibility in thinking, especially in challenging situations. She also adapts to diverse and dynamic environments with constant assessment and recalibration.

JD Supra Readers Choice Top Author 2019

In 2021, the ILN was honored as Global Law Firm Network of the Year by The Lawyer European Awards, and in 2016, 2017, and 2022, they were shortlisted as Global Law Firm Network of the Year. Since 2011, the Network has been listed as a Chambers & Partners Leading Law Firm Network, recently increasing this ranking to be included in the top two percent of law firm networks globally, as well as adding two regional rankings. She was awarded “Thought Leader of the Year” by the Legal Marketing Association’s New York chapter in 2014 for her substantive contributions to the industry and was included in Clio’s list of “34 People in Legal You Should Follow on Twitter.” She was also chosen for the American Bar Association Journal’s inaugural Web 100‘s Best Law Blogs, where judge Ivy Grey said “This blog is outstanding, thoughtful, and useful.” Ms. Griffiths was chosen as a Top Author by JD Supra in their 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards, for the level of engagement and visibility she attained with readers on the topic of marketing & business development. She has been the author of Zen & the Art of Legal Networking since February 2009.