Survey Says: Lawyers Don’t Get Business

by Doug Park December 11, 2009

My last post asked whether greater value add would accompany higher hourly rates in 2010. It appears lawyers were not listening.
Today’s TexParte Blog summarized the results of a LexisNexis survey. And the results do not instill confidence that lawyers fully grasp the problems with their business model.
The following findings suggest a problem for law firm [...]

Read the full article →

Law Firms And Higher Hourly Rates: Where Is The Value Add?

by Doug Park December 3, 2009

An article in today’s American Lawyer outlines a tug of war between law firms and legal departments over higher hourly rates in 2010.  While law firms want to increase their hourly rates, corporate legal departments are pushing back. They want discounts up to 15% from 2009 rates, which were discounted from 2008 rates by about [...]

Read the full article →

Berkeley Stanford Smart Grid Conference Post Mortem

by Doug Park November 22, 2009

The recent Berkeley Stanford CleanTech Conference on the Smart Grid made clear that the smart grid is in its infancy. Energy providers must solve the challenges of new energy sources, regulatory organization, and the energy needs of electric vehicles.
The Key Challenge For The Smart Grid
Keynote speaker Andrew Tang of PG&E framed the primary challenge of [...]

Read the full article →

Introducing New Contributor To The Strategy x Law Blog, Soyeun Choi

by Doug Park October 21, 2009

I am excited to introduce Soyeun D. Choi, a new contributor to the Strategy x Law Blog. She will write primarily on leadership, business and intellectual property law. After conversations with Soyeun about business and law, I am confident that she will provide thoughtful insights on issues at the intersection of strategy and law.
Soyeun advises [...]

Read the full article →

Themes Ahead, Starting with Leadership

by Soyeun Choi October 14, 2009

Serving as President of the Palo Alto Area Bar Association involves all sorts of varied and persistent responsibilities.  Every aspect of the organization is under my review: every event, member, operational detail, meeting, administrative requirement, planning logistic, certification and reporting requirement etc., all issues outward facing and inward, cross my desk.
This is just an illustration of [...]

Read the full article →

How To Make High Tech Mergers Work

by Doug Park October 4, 2009

Mergers are difficult to make work.  Many large mergers have failed to meet expectations for a variety of reasons. What can companies do to make high tech mergers work?
Jon Schwarz, a member of the Executive Board of SAP with extensive merger and acquisition experience, addressed this question at a recent Wharton Club of Northern California event.
The [...]

Read the full article →

Companies Competing To Be Green

by Doug Park September 27, 2009

Companies are increasingly competing to be green. The news is full of corporate initiatives concerning sustainability and environmental impact. What metrics are companies using to measure greenness, and do they make sense?
Newsweek’s Green Rankings

Newsweek just released its first Green Rankings of the Standard & Poor’s 500. The following factors were used to rank the companies:

an [...]

Read the full article →

Creating Markets For Patents

by Doug Park September 22, 2009

The New York Times recently reported on the emerging patent marketplace. The idea is that a market where patents can be bought and sold would reduce the costs of patent litigation and promote innovation. What are the prospects for success of a patent marketplace?
Patents As Commodities?
For a patent marketplace to operate efficiently, it would certainly [...]

Read the full article →

How Directors Can Link Risk Oversight To Corporate Strategy

by Doug Park September 17, 2009

In 2008, the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) published a white paper recommending that boards pay close attention to the connection between risk oversight and corporate strategy. What is the relationship between risk oversight and corporate strategy, and why does it matter?
Recommendation 1: Mitigate The Risks Of Strategy Implementation
NACD contends that the overarching goal [...]

Read the full article →

Does Diversity On Boards Of Directors Improve Corporate Performance?

by Doug Park September 14, 2009

Panelists at a recent Stanford Law School conference made a case for diversity on corporate boards, citing data, anecdotal evidence, and principle based arguments in support. That raises the ultimate question: Does board diversity affect corporate performance?
The Case For Diversity On Corporate Boards
The Rock Center for Corporate Governance, CalPERS and CalSTRS co-sponsored this event. Since [...]

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →