The below is intended as a guide for decision makers as well as anyone within our profession harbouring a secret or not-so-secret idea for their professional development.
During the course of my various “non-standard” roles over the years, I have been fortunate to learn, by doing, about a range of dos and don’ts. I have summarised below twelve key points for successfully creating and integrating a new role in your IP practice.
These key points also aim to provide a healthy work environment for new joiners and help existing staff to accommodate them and feel positive about the changes ahead. In other words, they reduce the risk of anxieties around how existing roles and positions might be affected by the new addition and are therefore key to avoiding potential frictions.
They are also useful to keep focussed and in addition can greatly contribute to establishing, a more diverse and inclusive environment, which in many IP firms is still largely lip service rather than lived reality.
I don’t claim of course that this list is complete and it goes without saying that it always has to be seen in the specific context of your situation. However, all of the points raised are important to keep in mind to some degree or other to set up both the new role and the new candidate for success and provide the basis for healthy cooperation with existing staff as well as a valuable contribution to the business.
1. Initial steps and questions
It helps if you start carving out the new role by treating it like the premise of a project:
- What’s the mandate for this role?
- What is the business need that needs to be addressed?
- Which strategic goal or direction might this role support?
There are a range of further questions to address at this stage:
- Which skills, background and qualifications are required? Are they already available within the organisation?
- Does this role warrant a permanent full-time role or is the business need best addressed by creating a temporary role with specific skill set(s)? If the latter is the case and you do not wish to add to the workload of your existing staff, have you considered freelance support?
- Could this also be a good opportunity to attract candidates with diverse backgrounds and experiences? It is my experience that this is always beneficial and can also serve as a welcome opportunity to review existing diversity and inclusion approaches.
2. Management
Is there backing from all decision makers for this role?
3. Definition of role
Even though this is a new role, you should still have a clear enough definition to start with. Define it not just in terms of what you want it to cover but also – very importantly – what it will not cover. In other words, its scope and responsibilities should be clearly delineated. These may change as the role evolves (in fact, they most likely will), and it is important to keep track of these changes and review them against the original premise and definition for the role. Such review should also include a discussion with the candidate to see whether they’re happy with the changes. See item 12 below.
4. Recruit a recruiter
You may wish to consult with a trusted recruiter when first thinking about creating the role, ie long before you get to the actual recruitment stage. They may well be able to provide you with insight and even a useful approach, based on their experience and overview of the market.
5. Advertise internally first
Once you do get to recruitment stage, show your existing staff the appreciation they deserve and advertise internally first. There might well be someone in your ranks that has been waiting for the right development opportunity. It really rubs your staff up the wrong way and can lead to a high degree of job dissatisfaction and to a loss of valuable staff if something they might have expressed an interest in, and/or might already have the background or qualifications for, isn’t made accessible to them.
6. Training
Is training required for the future candidate? If so, which training? Prepare for this beforehand. Your candidate, whether internal or external, should not have to enquire, nudge or sort this out themselves.
7. Organisational context
Where within the organisational structure will this role sit, eg is this a “stand-alone” role or should it be subsumed into an existing department? Where within the salary structure will it sit?
8. Reporting structure
Who will this person report to? Does the line manager know what managing this person will involve? Are they equipped to handle it? Might they benefit from training as well?
9. Interaction with all stakeholders involved
Which other roles/stakeholders will interact with this new role? How/where will they intersect with it? Might there be an overlap in scope and responsibilities that needs to be addressed? Might there be further, less obvious intersections?
10. Announcement to all staff
Announce the role and candidate in good time before the start date. Make sure all stakeholders and staff are aware of the candidate as well as the new role and its purpose, its overall fit within the organisational structure, and last but not least their own (potential) interaction with it. Also share the reporting structure.
11. Consent for the role
Are there any stakeholders that have raised concerns or objections? If so: have they been assessed and, where necessary, addressed? Can you think of any other potential obstacles? If so, can they be addressed beforehand? If not, is there clarity on how they will be addressed later on? To the extent it will help them in their role, please also fill in the potential candidate of any issues; do not sit back, predict the car crash and watch them get in the car.
12. Regular reviews
Do conduct regular reviews, especially in the early stages. Again, this is similar to a project management approach. Do not just release the duckling into the water and then watch it sink or swim!
Questions to be addressed could include:
- Does the role meet the original premise and fulfil the original expectations?
- If no: how can/should it be adjusted?
- Is additional training or support required?
- Or has the role, contrary to expectations, become obsolete? Let’s hope this is unlikely!
It should go without saying but I have often had very different experiences: these reviews should of course always involve the person holding the role. Apart from simply being good manners and common sense, don’t let their valuable expertise go to waste.
I do hope the above gives you some useful pointers and a bit more clarity as to how to approach welcoming new additions to your firms and teams.
Sabine Rehaber