NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper has been named a finalist in the “Best Business Team” category of the 2023 American Lawyer Industry Awards, which recognize the most exceptional lawyers, law firms, legal departments, and organizations in the country. This recognition marks the second consecutive year that the firm’s Client Experience team has been honored as a finalist in this category.
The “Best Business Team” award celebrates teams that have been allowed to, and have had, an identifiable impact on their organization, from how it is run to the client work it has brought in and anything in between. Troutman Pepper made the shortlist based on the work of its Client Experience team and its unique approach to client service and value.
“Troutman Pepper’s Client Experience team understands the importance of client service and has been instrumental in developing value-added solutions for our clients,” said Dan Pulka, the firm’s chief business development and marketing officer. “This recognition reflects the firm’s unwavering commitment to creating meaningful, long-lasting partnerships with our clients and our dedication to innovation and continuous improvement.”
Since its inception, the Client Experience team has revolutionized the way law firms approach client service. By adopting a client-centric approach and focusing on understanding and addressing client needs, Troutman Pepper has set a new standard for client experience in the legal industry. This innovative approach closely aligns with the customer experience strategies of major consumer brands.
The “Best Business Team” nomination recognizes the Client Experience team’s recent projects to enhance service with clients, attorneys, and business professionals. One notable achievement is the launch of Troutman Pepper Plus, the firm’s standard-setting client value program that aims to connect clients with additional resources, create innovative solutions, and provide key insights to deliver efficiency and build stronger relationships. The honor also recognizes the Client Experience team’s role in the firm’s Client Development and Executive Leadership Program — an intensive partner training program focused on building and strengthening client relationships, developing teams, and establishing a leadership profile — as well as the team’s work to establish internal service standards for our business professional departments.
Winners of the 2023 American Lawyer’s Industry Awards will be announced on November 15 at an awards reception in New York City.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,200 attorneys strategically located in 23 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from start-ups to multinational enterprises. Troutman Pepper provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper has been recognized in Fast Company’s fifth annual list of the 100 Best Workplaces for Innovators, earning a spot in the top 50 for its investment in cultivating a culture of innovation. The list honors organizations and businesses that demonstrate an inspiring commitment to encourage and develop innovation at all levels.
Developed in collaboration with Accenture, the 2023 Best Workplaces for Innovators ranks 100 winners from a variety of industries, including entertainment, biotech, consumer packaged goods, marketing, education, healthcare, and many more. Fast Company editors and Accenture researchers collaborated together to score nearly 1,000 submissions, and a panel of eight distinguished judges reviewed and endorsed the top 100 companies. The 2023 awards feature workplaces from around the world.
“We are incredibly proud to be included on this list of leading innovative companies,” said Troutman Pepper Managing Partner Tom Cole. “At Troutman Pepper, we believe in doing things differently. We are dedicated to building a culture of innovation that is driven to meet our clients’ increasingly complex challenges now and in the future.”
Troutman Pepper is focused on executing innovative solutions that help attorneys work more efficiently and better serve clients. The firm’s Innovation Team built Mobile One, an exclusively internal app, to simplify the communication challenges in a hybrid work environment. The platform helps streamline communications, increases efficiency, works to build a strong culture, and increases the visibility of people working within the firm’s offices.
“Our investment in innovation is transforming the way we work,” said William Gaus, Troutman Pepper’s Chief Innovation Officer. “It facilitates creative thinking across the firm, empowering everyone firmwide with a framework to systematically discover new sources of growth. It’s central to helping our attorneys and professional staff work better and more efficiently and enhances all aspects of the client experience at Troutman Pepper.”
Fast Company’s Best Workplaces for Innovators issue (Summer 2023) is available online now, and the print issue will be on newsstands beginning July 18. Honorees will be recognized during Fast Company’s Innovation Festival on September 21. Fast Company is a registered trademark of Mansueto Ventures LLC.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,200 attorneys strategically located in 23 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from start-ups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
This article originally appeared in the Summer 2023 issue of Middle Market Executive.
For many private equity firms, the recent bank failures served as a wake-up call to review their portfolio companies’ corporate documents, the legal status of their entities, and credit and banking arrangements to ensure everything is in order.
If firms don’t act now, they may open themselves up to costly yet entirely avoidable pitfalls. Portfolio companies should stand ready to quickly engage in any type of refinancing, fundraising, or sale transaction.
National law firms like Troutman Pepper can help portfolio companies stay up to date on key documents and obligations and to strategize in navigating this uncertain market.
Troutman Pepper has developed a unique approach to client service. Troutman Pepper Plus, the firm’s client feedback and value program, provides clients with a suite of tools to help them keep track of contracts and other critical documents.
“We are advising our clients to conduct an inventory of their books and records and make sure they have a good handle on their credit and banking arrangements and contractual obligations,” says Thao Le, a Troutman Pepper partner who specializes in private equity and M&A issues. “We ask our clients, ‘Do you have a good sense of your contractual obligations and rights relative to your investors, financing sources, and key commercial parties? Do you have a central repository of your material documents?'”
What to Track
Le says portfolio firms should focus on three key areas: legal status of their entities, credit and banking arrangements, and contractual obligations to their investors and key commercial parties.
For legal entities, portfolio companies should ensure all the entities in their organization are in good standing at the state level and current on their franchise taxes. They should also ensure their stock ledgers and capitalization tables are up to date to accurately account for all outstanding equity issuances. Companies should have an appreciation of their equity and debt constituents and of their obligations to notify such constituents of material developments.
They should also understand all the accounts through which they have access to funds. Some of those funds may be deposited in restricted accounts—whether for security deposits and/or escrows for M&A transactions. Funds in restricted accounts should not be included as a source of liquidity for companies or within the purview of collateral packages for secured lenders.
Le has advised portfolio companies to review their loan agreements and banking arrangements and understand the terms and conditions, particularly how interest is calculated on their loans and how much can be withdrawn daily.
Furthermore, businesses should review their key contractual arrangements, including leases, to understand their default and change of control provisions. In this market, portfolio companies may be required to quickly participate in a debt or equity financing or potential sale. A company’s understanding of these arrangements goes a long way to planning for this uncertain market, Le says.
What Portfolio Firms Can Do Now
To ensure that all legal and financial arrangements are in good order and they have a good understanding of those arrangements, portfolio companies should work closely with their legal counsel, both internally and externally, Le says.
By offering technology tools and platforms such as Troutman Pepper Plus, Troutman Pepper makes it easy for clients to manage their legal affairs. Troutman Pepper’s technology offerings include a portal for storing documents and tracking progress, as well as reminders to help clients manage their projects more effectively.
“We recognize some portfolio firms and clients have limited resources,” Le says. “They can leverage a law firm such as Troutman Pepper to stay on top of this type of corporate maintenance.”
Troutman Pepper was honored for its innovation in creating Troutman Pepper Plus. In an interview with The Daily Report, Linda Sanders, the firm’s director of client experience, discusses some highlights of 2022 in which the firm was innovative and ways the firm and Troutman Pepper Plus is innovative.
Led by the firm’s client experience department, Troutman Pepper Plus engages with clients through feedback and listening, then partners with clients to develop resources and tools that meet their individual needs.
Read the full interview on The Legal Intelligencer.
This week, Taylor Swift is bringing the Eras Tour to Troutman Pepper‘s home turf in Atlanta. And among the crowd of thousands of Swifties, there will likely be quite a few lawyers who are using their firm tickets and suites to entertain clients at the hottest event in town.
It’s a great opportunity to engage in some high-profile business development, but how can you make sure your efforts don’t become a case of “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve”? Here are my tips for attorneys taking their clients to the Taylor Swift show (or any concert or big game):
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Be a “Mastermind.” As Taylor (and Ben Franklin) say, “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Before the concert, make sure you know which clients are attending, what their roles are at the company, who they are bringing as guests, and how you’ll engage with each one. Also think through all the logistics of the concert — where to park, whether there will be food — and make sure clients have all the info they need to make the experience seamless.
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Know when to “Speak Now.” Bringing a client to a concert is a great way to show they are important to you, but it’s not the best venue for a substantive conversation about legal or business needs. Resist your urge to interrupt that slow song with questions about your client’s new lawsuit, and use the time to enjoy a shared experience.
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Remind clients that “You Belong With Me.” While you might not want to have an in-depth conversation about work, you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to remind your clients how much you appreciate them. Consider kicking off the concert by telling your client how you’re thrilled you can make this investment in growing an important relationship.
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Fill the post-concert “Blank Space.” After the glitter has settled, make a plan to follow up with your client. Thank them for attending and set a calendar appointment to have that substantive conversation you skipped at the concert. (And be sure to save some of your meeting time to debate which costume change was your favorite.)
ATLANTA – Troutman Pepper was recognized with two 2023 Southeastern Legal Awards from the Daily Report, earning accolades in the Most Innovative Law Firms and On the Rise categories for its Troutman Pepper Plus client value program and Partner Anna Altizer Dix’s excellence, respectively.
The Southeastern Legal Awards, known previously as the Georgia Legal Awards before expanding to include several nearby states, celebrate law firms and attorneys “who have left an indelible mark on the legal community in the southeast and beyond through their unwavering dedication to the profession.”
Most Innovative Law Firm – Troutman Pepper Plus
Troutman Pepper earned the Most Innovative Law Firm award for its standard-setting client value and listening program, Troutman Pepper Plus. The program harnesses the expertise and talents of business professionals across the firm to connect clients with additional resources, create innovative solutions, and provide key insights to deliver efficiency and build stronger relationships. Clients have benefited from bespoke solutions in areas like innovation, diversity, pricing, legal project management, pro bono, and more.
On the Rise – Anna Altizer Dix
Dix, a partner in Troutman Pepper’s nationally recognized Real Estate Practice Group, received the On the Rise award, which recognizes “the southeast’s most promising lawyers under the age of 40.” Dix has a wealth of experience advising on sophisticated and substantial real estate acquisitions and dispositions, financing matters, leasing matters, and development transactions. With a primary focus on student housing developments, she also is highly experienced in representing national quick service restaurants and industrial developers.
The 2023 Southeastern Legal Award winners will be recognized at a June 22 gala at Flourish Atlanta and featured in a June special section of the Daily Report.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,200 attorneys strategically located in 23 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from start-ups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
PHILADELPHIA – Troutman Pepper and Senior Counsel Nina Gussack have been recognized among the 2023 Professional Excellence Award winners by The Legal Intelligencer. The awards highlight the great work and achievements across the full breadth of the Pennsylvania legal community.
Troutman Pepper is named among the publication’s 2023 Law Firm Innovators for the creation of Troutman Pepper Plus, the firm’s client value program, and Gussack is recognized among the Best Law Firm Mentors for her leadership of the firm’s Client Development and Executive Leadership Program.
Law Firm Innovators – Troutman Pepper Plus
Troutman Pepper Plus aims to connect clients with additional resources, create innovative solutions, and provide key insights to deliver efficiency and build stronger relationships. The client value program combines the services of attorneys and skilled professionals across the firm to provide clients of all sizes with tailored solutions in areas like client experience, innovation, diversity, pricing, legal project management, pro bono, and more.
Best Law Firm Mentors – Nina Gussack
As a nationally recognized leader of the pharmaceutical and medical device defense bar, Gussack is sought after for her ability to find effective strategies to resolve the hardest and most complex of cases. In 2019, she created Troutman Pepper’s Client Development and Executive Leadership Program, which brings together a diverse group of partners and counsel for in-depth training on strengthening client relationships, growing new business, developing effective teams and attorneys, and developing leadership skills.
The Legal Intelligencer Professional Excellence Awards will recognize honorees in special editorial sections and during an awards event on June 14 in Philadelphia. The full list of honorees can be viewed here.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,200 attorneys strategically located in 23 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
This article was originally published in Bloomberg Law. Reproduced with permission. Published April 17, 2023. Copyright © 2023 The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
Troutman Pepper’s Shana Beldick and Daniel Pulka provide tips on how to foster an internal service culture by moving past a scattered approach for collecting feedback and applying best practices for a firm’s non-lawyer business professionals.
Law firms are increasingly implementing formal processes to gather feedback on the client experience. But when it comes to the internal client experience—the service that attorneys and employees receive from a firm’s business professionals—feedback is often ad hoc and focused more on problems than best practices.
Firms looking for a better approach, however, can use their external efforts to build a model for internal service. That’s what we did at Troutman Pepper after our 2020 merger.
Here’s how our first administrative department feedback survey led to establishing internal service standards, along with tips for other firms looking to launch similar initiatives.
Step One: Determine Your Approach
When Troutman Pepper merged, we didn’t just bring together 1,100 attorneys across 23 cities. We also combined our business professional teams, technology systems, and processes for everything from writing a client alert to opening a new matter.
We knew that a combination of this size would have some speed bumps, and last year, we wanted to better understand what was working and what wasn’t.
Although we had never sought internal feedback on a large scale, we had done so externally with our firmwide electronic client feedback surveys. We decided to take a similar approach here.
Our client experience and human resources teams partnered with consultants at the Wicker Park Group, who help us with client feedback, to design a survey that would gather quantitative and qualitative feedback on our administrative functions.
Tip: Use your client feedback surveys and interviews as a model for your internal feedback efforts. Identify key themes from client feedback, such as responsiveness and ability to problem solve. Ask questions to see how your internal teams measure up against these key performance indicators.
This will allow you to determine firmwide service strengths and to see if internal service affects interactions with clients.
Step Two: Seek Feedback From a Broad Group
In designing our survey, we needed to determine our audience. We considered different constituencies, from partners to attorneys to all timekeepers, before eventually settling on sending the survey firmwide.
We found this was the right decision. Having all our people participate in the survey drove engagement and created buy-in for our post-survey actions. More importantly, however, the broad participation gave us more robust and actionable feedback, especially given that we found different groups within the firm had different needs and expectations when it came to internal service.
Tip: Consider making your survey anonymous to encourage respondents to be as candid as possible. For Troutman Pepper’s survey, we asked for employee ID numbers for the sole purpose of breaking down the results by demographics, such as attorney versus staff or office by office.
Only the team at the Wicker Park Group saw the full results—no one at the firm could view an individual’s survey. At the end of the survey, we allowed respondents to self-identify if they required follow-up, allowing us to close the feedback loop on individual issues.
Step Three: Share Results and Make Them Actionable
After conducting a client feedback interview, Troutman Pepper’s client experience team always prepares a report with next steps and encourages attorneys to share the feedback with the full client team. Empowering all team members with practical, actionable ways to address the feedback makes progress much more likely.
For our internal survey, our partners at the Wicker Park Group helped us compile firmwide trends that we shared with all attorneys and staff. More importantly, they also provided summary reports to each chief officer.
These documents mirrored our client feedback reports and included trends seen in the survey responses as well as suggested follow-up actions. Our chief officers then worked with their teams to develop a response plan to the feedback.
Tip: In addition to summarizing trends from the feedback, consider sharing all narrative comments from the survey with appropriate stakeholders. While the quantitative data provides important information about areas for improvement, the qualitative data offers important context about the individual experience.
Step Four: Reinforce Best Practices
The purpose of feedback isn’t just to identify problems. We also use feedback to uncover and institutionalize best practices. This is what we did with our internal administrative department survey.
Following the survey, we launched the firm’s first set of business professional service standards. These standards reinforced comments from the survey about what good service looks like within Troutman Pepper.
For example, one common theme in the survey was how much people valued colleagues who took ownership of a request. These colleagues prioritized thoughtful, timely responses from start to finish and who used their subject matter expertise to understand what may be behind a request.
Tip: Give your internal feedback efforts staying power by continuing to recognize good service after the survey is complete. Plan an internal campaign that reinforces the findings of the survey and shares new instances of exceptional service.
For example, we launched a quarterly staff recognition program that honors those business professionals who exhibit our standards. Our first honorees included the 100+ business professionals called out by name in the survey.
Focusing on the employee experience is a prerequisite to delivering exceptional client service. By leveraging their external client feedback efforts, law firms can begin to take a more disciplined and productive approach to improving their internal client service, too.
NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper has been recognized for exceptional client service performance, ranking No. 41, according to the BTI Client Service A-Team 2023 report released today. The recognition comes from an independent survey of corporate counsel. The firm improved from No. 48 last year.
Last Fall, Troutman Pepper launched a bespoke client value program, Troutman Pepper Plus, that aims to connect clients with additional resources, create innovative solutions, and provide key insights to deliver efficiency and build stronger relationships.
“The program, coupled with the firm’s commitment to innovation and collaboration, helped to move the needle in meaningful ways for clients,” said Chief Business Development and Marketing Officer Dan Pulka. “We are honored to be recognized by the in-house counsel surveyed by BTI and proud of the work we’re doing together with our clients.”
BTI is a leading provider of strategic research to the legal community and bases its Client Service A-Team rankings on more than 350 in-depth telephone interviews with the highest-ranking legal decisions makers at companies across more than 15 industry segments. The report is a data-driven ranking that is sponsored solely by BTI. No law firm or attorney influences the results, submits nominations, or provides client names to BTI.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,200 attorneys strategically located in 23 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from start-ups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.