CLE Leadership & Management
Ideas, Resources, and Techniques for CLE Professionals
A periodic e-newsletter

By Chuck Bingaman

<Email chuck@chuckbingaman.com; Twitter @chuckbingaman>

#44 March 2010

Leadership   "Clever people are the ones who create disproportionate amounts of value from the resources their organizations make available to them" according to Rob Goffee, Professor of Organizational Behavior at the London School of Business. He's also the coauthor of Clever: Leading Your Smartest, Most Creative People (Harvard Business School Publishing 2009). ALI-ABA and ACLEA have appointed a 17-member Summit Initiatives Committee to push for implementation of last fall’s Critical Issues Summit Recommendations. The committee consists of 7 CLE leaders, 4 law school deans and faculty members, 2 each from MCLE regulators, professional development people, practitioners, and 1 bar examiner and bar executive. (Several members wear more than one hat.) Carole Wagan of Suffolk Law School is the chair. See www.equippingourlawyers.org/docs/Summit%20Initiatives%20Committee.pdf for the full committee roster.

Management  The print materials prepared for the Critical Issues Summit contain a treasure trove of stimulating, enlightening, valuable articles that are an up-to-the-minute education in cutting edge legal education matters. They are all online at www.equippingourlawyers.org/docs/Critical%20Issues%20Summit%20Background%20Materials.pdf, I particularly recommend “Five Provocations: The Real Challenges for CLE in the 21st Century” by Corinne Cooper, Professor Emerita of Law, and “Will the Law Society of Alberta Celebrate Its Bicentennial” by Harry W. Arthurs, University Professor Emeritus and President Emeritus, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Toronto. Each presents challenging views of CLE, now and in the future, and they cite many other valuable sources CLE leaders need to be familiar with. You might consider sharing these articles with members of your governing board or committee—one at a time!—as important background for helping them see the broad picture of contemporary CLE issues. Borrowing a page from 52 Rules of Thumb cited in the January CLE L&M, try making two lists: those things that keep you awake at night AND those things that get you up in the morning. Getting those sleep deprivers on paper will often defuse their power over you. Specifically identifying those aspects of your work that give you energy and inspiration will enhance your enjoyment of them. Review your sleep deprivers early in your day to remind you to face them and make progress. Review your energizers midday and at the end of the day for a splash of positivism when you need it and when you are tying up loose ends. Let me know how it works for you!  Lifelong learning guru Elliott Masie recently announced that he is launching a series of conversations on legal issues surrounding the creating and delivering of continuing education content and of taking advantage of digital connections, social networks and collaborative approaches, all of which have been raising concerns in legal departments. Masie has invited us to take part in various ways if we wish. You may indicate your interest by emailing him at emasie@masie.com.  Have you tried using www.SKYPE.com for communicating with telecommuters, governing board officers, course chairs and others? It’s simple and free and opens an important new dimension in effective communications. If you want to test it outside the office, Skype me at bing390.

Resources   New York Law School Dean Richard Matasar put me onto www.bestpracticeslegaled.albanylawblogs.org, the blog edited by Prof. Mary Lynch of Albany Law School, as a very good source for news on what’s happening in law school education around the country. Opened my eyes to several developments I knew nothing about! Check it out!   See “Common Traits of Successful Law Firms” by Nancy Byerly Jones at www.lawyersusaonline.com/blog/2008/07/28/common-traits-of-8216successful8217-firms. The link is provided by www.LawyersUSAonline.com also an interesting resource, especially its top quality—and free—white papers. Ms. Jones is a highly respected legal management consultant, and her article might form the spine of a worthwhile CLE program or part thereof!

Meeting Your Organization's Renewal Needs

Following 20 years as Executive Director of a major American CLE organization, I now consult on strategic planning, marketing, communication and management challenges with CLE organizations, bar associations, and law firms. Last fall I served as the Reporter for the ALI-ABA/ACLEA Critical Issues Summit. I welcome your inquiries on consulting projects designed to enhance your organization’s effectiveness. You can contact me at 603-756-9268, at chuck@chuckbingaman.com, or at P.O. Box 390, Walpole, NH, USA 03068. Past issues of this newsletter are archived at www.chuckbingaman.com.