In conversation with Nipun Bhatia who is presently Vice-President, Strategic Management & Process Redesigning at Legal League Consulting, A Lawyer, Chartered Accountant, Management Consultant to Legal Industry, IP Enthusiast and a Fashion Blogger –, the person donning several hats!
Here’s candid conversation about his Journey and different professional roles:
What was your first choice – pursuing Chartered Accountancy or Law?
I’m sure you would’ve heard the famous saying, “What you seek is seeking you”! I believe I’ve been lucky in the sense that things have fallen into place like missing pieces of a jig-saw puzzle. I signed up for law half-way through my CA course, under the fear that I may never be able to pass the final stages (given the average number of students that qualify every year!). To be honest, I didn’t want to end up without a professional degree and hence started pursuing law. However, what actually started as a fall-back plan, actually became my mainstream choice. Regular classes in college helped fostering my interest in law more than chartered accountancy; and while I cleared both the exams, I knew my interest was more towards law. I also pursued a short-term specialization course in IP Laws which drew me closer to the field of Intellectual Property. It also helped me to better understand the nuances of IP laws, which came as a great help later as a large number of firms who seek my assistance as management consultant are IP Boutique firms. The domain knowledge of IP Laws, coupled with my learnings while pursuing CA, well-equipped me towards various inter-linked aspects like commercial laws, taxation, valuation, creation of IP assets, finance, equity structuring, goodwill, brand usage at the time of restructuring or mergers, etc.
What prompted you to choose the field of management consulting to legal industry after qualifying as a Chartered Accountant and a Lawyer?
My experience of working as a Finance Manager with a renowned IP Law Firm actually paved way for me to venture into different areas of business support like human resource management, operations management, administration, IP investigations and enforcement actions. When I met Ms. Bithika Anand, Founder & CEO of Legal League Consulting, I was deeply moved by her vision to transform the Indian legal industry. Her commitment to bring operational efficiencies to legal organizations and to equip them with global best practices motivated me to a great extent. Her vision and confidence motivated me to join Legal League Consulting and be a part of an organization that strived to achieve something extraordinary, niche and unheard of.
The recent times have witnessed strong emergence of business support functions in law firms. Do you think becoming a management consultant can be a full-time career option for lawyers?
Absolutely! Law firms are increasingly looking to recruit lawyers who are willing to try their hand at innovative roles like Brand Development & Corporate Communication, Practice Development, Knowledge Management, Research & Content Development, Legal IT & Automation, to name a few. Lawyers opting to be a part of business support functions have an upper edge as they not only understand the lives of the lawyer better, they are also able to better comprehend the legal language and understand aspects related to environment lawyers operate in (say, restriction on advertising, soliciting and cold-calling). In last five years, firms have also progressed towards professionalization of business support. There are dedicated Managers and Heads for functional areas and the trend to hire lawyers as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Operating Officer (COO), Chief Systems Officer (CSO), Chief Information Officer (CIO), Business Development Managers, etc. is on the rise. Not only are there lawyers making a switch to these fields after certain years of practice, but there are also young lawyers joining the functional support areas, who are clear that they’re not inclined towards traditional lawyering. Several fresh law graduates are joining as research and knowledge trainees, helping firms with newsletters, knowledge dissemination, conference participation, industry sector researches, jurisdiction-specific researches, policy updates, case analysis, templatization, document management, etc. The field is expanding and there is absolutely no dearth of opportunities for those who want go the unconventional way.
Internship opportunities are available to lawyers who want to practice legal consultancy or work in a law firm. What about opportunities for those who aspire to pursue a career in law firm management?
It is about getting the approach correct. Those who are desirous of making a career in this field need to approach law firms with specific requests to let them intern with teams/heads handling the operational areas. Wherever possible, they can be specific to the extent of requesting for a functional area, say, Corporate Communication, Operations, Talent Management, etc. In case they are interning with law firms that do not have such sophisticated bifurcation of business support departments/specialized teams, they can always interact with the operations team or business support members during their legal internships; and gather knowledge on areas that interest them. It would be worthwhile for students who intend to enter this field, to follow international writers/bloggers who write on law firm management, as the concept is far more popular and accepted abroad. Legal League Consulting also offers internships to law students where they get to work with the core team members and get trained on areas like Compensation Benchmarking & Structuring, Practice Development, Brand Enhancement, Human Resource Planning and Synergies & Alliances amongst law firms.
You are handling brand creation for a sizeable number of law firms. Given the restrictions on lawyers towards advertising and solicitation, what goes into creating a brand strategy for lawyers?
When I talk of ‘brand creation’, I always resonate it with ‘creating your worth as a trusted advisor’. If you are not the ‘go to’ person for a client in the hour of need, you’re yet to create your brand. Therefore, contrary to what people think, brand creation is less about the extent of your web/online presence and more about the relationships you develop and your perception as an ‘authority’ or ‘thought leader’ in your area of practice. The brand strategy for lawyers is actually their macro-level plan in terms of their presence and contribution at various relevant events and forums, the fervour with which young lawyers look up to them, their involvement in the policy making or regulatory environment for their practice area, and most importantly, the dedication with which they want to make the lives of their clients, colleagues and prospective client contacts easy. Of course, ranking by leading international publications also make a difference to the brand perception, as it culminates from a thorough research process and is largely reflective of the work done by the organization in last 12 months. Collate and articulate the key work done in different practice areas and make submissions to ranking publications, which will increase the chances of your firm being ranked or included as notable/upcoming lawyers.
Being a management consultant to law firms entails you dealing with high-end and time consuming initiatives like strategy planning, equity structuring and mergers between law firms. How did fashion blogging happen?
Fashion blogging commenced as a result of encouragement (and some criticism!) by a few friends. Amidst comparisons with Ranveer Singh’s quirky sense of style, there were some who were always supportive and some who were simply amused (for the lack of a better word!). Let’s just say I’m experimental with my looks and I have an eye for clothes that have an edge or are slightly different in terms of their style. I chose the name @notjustacompulsiveshopper for my Instagram and Facebook profiles to let the world know that while my friends and family consider me to be a compulsive shopper, the truth is that I enjoy being experimental and having a huge wardrobe to choose from is always a plus! I’m usually ahead of times in terms of adorning a trend and am as comfortable with street shopping as I am with branded stores and online shopping sites.
Amidst leading a busy lifestyle and multi-tasking with heavy duty deliverables, how do you find time for pursuing fashion blogging?
I am a firm believer in training the brain to toggle between switch off and switch modes. Thus, after a long day at work, writing about fashion or clothes or new trends is just a way to connect with people who share similar interests and who are as passionate about grooming and fashion trends as I am. I wouldn’t call myself a blogger in true sense of the word as I’m not able to keep up with the commitment it requires. But yes, I would say I enjoy writing about looks that are unconventional, clothes that are unique or have an edge; and how to create a unique ensemble look with different clothing items, colour combinations and accessories. It is a complete stress-buster. My advice to all the lawyers out there would be to develop a hobby amidst leading a fast-paced and stressful lifestyle. Doing what you love both on and off-work will help you channelize your creative energies better.
