Collas Day’s training team, from the left: Jason Romer, Jo Cottell and Mat Desforges. (Picture by Adrian Miller, 0538043)
COLLAS DAY was thrilled to reach the final three of this year’s Awards for Achievement excellence in training award. The law firm came joint runner-up with hedge-fund experts Financial Risk Management and behind Specsavers Training Academy.
Human resources manager Jo Cottell said: ‘We entered the awards last year and, while we were shortlisted, we didn’t make the final three,’ she said. ‘There were just so many new strategies that we’d implemented during the last 12 months, we felt we deserved some recognition.’
‘Training is absolutely vital to us and we like to think that it is something that’s sets us apart. We are particularly proud of the fact that we are licensed by the Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority to train up English solicitors and currently have four going through that process at the moment.’
A major training initiative at Collas Day is the management development programme.
It aims to equip lawyers with the skills they need when they become partners within the firm.
Partner Jason Romer said lawyers tended to be just lawyers and did not traditionally focus on other work issues.
‘A lot of law firms are seen as quite stuffy, but we wanted a much more progressive approach,’ he said.
‘There used to be a time when as a trainee you would sit at your desk, have a file dumped on it and be told to get on with it.
‘Here we are moving towards an approach where people get the skills they need as they move up the ladder, so that when they become partners they know how to manage people effectively.
‘It means there has been more communication between departments, which in turn has helped as well.’
Collas Day also sends its trainee lawyers on secondments at big City law firms to gain experience of the industry in large-scale, fast-paced environments.
‘It’s important for us to have people with experience in big City law firms who then come back here, because a lot of our clients are those big players and the lawyers will be familiar with the type of work and pressure they are under,’ he said.
‘Collas Day’s customers receive an enhanced service because of that experience.’
Article posted on 5th March, 2008 - 2.30pm
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