Law firms face many hurdles in trying to run a successful business. One of the most significant challenges is finding highly skilled executive assistants (EAs). According to the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA), half of all legal assistants are at least 45 years old, and 38% of law firms are expected to lose 20-40% of their support staff in the next five years due to retirement. This attrition makes it even more urgent for legal organizations to be able to find experienced EAs. Fewer new graduates are entering this field, making the competition among companies fierce.
A professional legal assistant recruiter can help companies hire and retain top legal support talent with today’s in-demand skills without taking time and energy away from their core responsibilities. Keep reading to learn the value of paralegals, the most common recruiting challenges for law firms, and why legal assistant recruitment agencies are so beneficial.
Why Executive Assistants Are So Valuable to Law Firms
EAs help lawyers stay organized and focus on providing exceptional legal services for clients. Legal assistants can manage client communication, keep information flowing, organize case files, and coordinate invoicing. This allows legal professionals to spend more time on case strategy, research, higher-level client discussions, and courtroom advocacy. An executive assistant discovers problems early and finds quick solutions.
Common Recruiting Issues for Law Firms
Finding an ace EA with a legal background isn’t easy, and lawyers have much to manage for their clients. Many legal professionals partner with a recruitment firm because of their time constraints and the complexity of finding a highly qualified, fully-vetted legal assistants or paralegals.
The most frequent hiring challenges for law firms are:
- Time: After writing and posting a job description to a jobs board or your company’s career page, what happens when the resumes start pouring in? Who will review them, research the candidates for the necessary skills and specializations, conduct background checks, and schedule interviews?
- Skills: Law offices often need help finding candidates with the proper credentials and skills. Active job seekers may see your job posting, but what about passive candidates? These candidates are those already working in the field who aren’t looking but may be open to a new opportunity.
- Specialization: Does your firm specialize in corporate law, employment law, family law, probate, immigration law, or other areas? Targeting a job posting to a specific type of EA or weeding through a pile of resumes to seek out this specialization may be challenging.
- Salary: Salary negotiations can be tricky for a legal firm that needs someone to start immediately. How can you determine the right compensation package and negotiate without slowing hiring?
- Retention: Once you’ve hired an excellent legal assistant, how do you keep them motivated and satisfied in their position? A smaller law office may not have a human resource professional, but employee retention is vital for long-term success.
What’s the best way to hire a legal assistant? You can post listings on legal industry job boards, attend networking events, or hire someone as a freelancer. However, these methods involve a lot of time and effort. Working with a staffing agency increases your access to top candidates.
Why Recruiting Agencies Are So Beneficial
Should I use a legal recruiter? Legal assistant recruitment agencies are highly beneficial to law firms in several ways:
- Experienced in legal industry hiring
- Extensive network of pre-vetted talent
- Experts in search technology
- No wasted time filtering through resumes
- Access to both active and passive candidates
- Ability to rigorously assesses candidates’ skills, experience, and education
- Interview scheduling
- Advise clients on job requirements, interviewing, hiring, and retention
Recruiting firms work directly with upper management at law firms and find qualified candidates quickly and efficiently.
Hire Your Next Legal Assistant With C-Suite Assistants
At C-Suite Assistants, we work with legal clients to find the best EAs with the necessary skills and expertise to match their unique needs. We’ll find the perfect fit for your company culture, saving you considerable time. We have over 20 years of experience in the recruitment business and a deep commitment to our clients. Our extensive network of active and passive candidates is a significant advantage during legal assistant shortages.
When seeking an executive assistant for your law firm, working with C-Suite Assistants offers expertise, strategy, and a vast network to find the best candidate for your needs. Contact us today for more information on how we can assist you.
