I recently delivered a course on being commercially astute as an in-house lawyer, which I have delivered a number of times. Being commercially astute is about getting to know the business and the people that operate the business and then using that to tailor your advice in the way that you deliver your advice,
It is easier said than done. It is difficult because you have so many different factors that impact whether or not you can be effectively commercial. For example, how do you get to know the business and the people if the business and the people are playing ball with you. For example, they’re not inviting you to meetings or they’re not giving you the information that you need to be able to take your advice, or the people that you’re dealing with make it difficult to get to know them. When you’re looking at commerciality and trying to develop your skills we do have to take into account these factors.
As lawyers we try so hard to be the best we can be and we try so hard to get the information we need to be the greatest but ultimately there are circumstances and factors and beyond our control that can prevent this.
Don’t be too disheartened. What I've found is that we're all dealing with the same thing and we all have to be proactive and find additional ways of getting to the end goal.
We must be proactive and use our initiative by learning ways in which we can overcome these challenges.
I find speaking to other in-house lawyers is really helpful because it provides the reassurance we need that we are doing a great job at the same time as giving us tips on how to deal with these things. No matter how fabulous we are, everyone needs reassurance!
I also think books like 'How to win friend and influence' by Dale Carnege can be really useful to tap into some of those useful non-legal skills that might assist with these non-legal challenges.
Ultimately, we must not let the slow progress get us down. Where there are obstacles, there are always solutions so it is about how you react and deal with the circumstances which governs whether or not you will achieve your goal of being commercially astute.
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