Redefining the premier global law firm
Ahead of the curve
Baker & McKenzie can credibly claim to have invented the idea of a global law firm. Founded in 1949 by two ambitious and farsighted Chicago lawyers they grew rapidly, establishing 68 offices in 40 countries with more than 1300 partners. However by 2007 plenty of other US and UK firms had also established their own strong international networks, leaving Baker & McKenzie’s international reach no longer sufficiently differentiating by itself. Saffron was engaged to help the firm redefine what it meant to be a truly global firm in the 21st Century.
Fluency
Saffron helped identify what makes Baker & McKenzie special. We called it ‘fluency’ in the way they think, work and behave. The firm has an instinctively global perspective that comes from being a truly multi-national firm of lawyers at ease in many business cultures – something that the more ‘colonial’ US and UK firms can’t yet match. It’s their fluency that enables them to navigate legal complexity across practices and borders with ease and it’s their fluency that allows them to bring the very best of Baker & McKenzie’s global expertise to each of their clients regardless of geography.
Having defined the core idea and introduced it to their entire global partnership we worked with the leadership team to develop a 12 month internal engagement programme to embed fluency across the firm so that every aspect of what they do from client service, talent and culture to communication is aligned with their core brand idea and clearly projects their difference to the market.
First among equals
Today Baker & McKenzie has confidently reasserted its position as the premier global firm in the post crisis era of globalisation. In both developed and developing economies around the world the firm is increasingly recognised by clients and recruits as a different kind of premium international firm – more in tune with their complex legal needs and better able to deliver across borders and business cultures.
Saffron deliverables:
Idea, brand strategy, positioning and key messages
Client service principles
Internal engagement programme, brand book and workshops
Client service, talent and culture workshops
External communications
