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our year ... 2013/14
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our year...2013/14
Committed to the Plain English Campaign
Our year 2013/14 | Contents page | 3
Contents
We’ve been busy 4
Our journey so far
Our stats
Exceptional client service
Contributing to our local communities
The future’s bright
People matter
8
11
14
20
28
24
• increased revenue by almost two-thirds• movedourheadofficeinNottingham,openedin
Manchester and acquired a personal injury team and anofficeinExeter
• increased overall headcount by more than 50% since 2009
• successfully re-tendered to many of our biggest clients
• won strategically important clients for our core sectorsincludingMorrisons,TheIndependentParliamentaryStandardsAssociation,NHSEngland,and The Crown Commercial Service
• put a dedicated academies team in place to support schools through the conversion process and beyond
• became a founding member of an international networkoffirms
• gainedLexcelandISO27001accreditation• achieved a 3-star exceptional rating for our
clientserviceundertheInvestorinCustomersaccreditation
• achieved the Plain English standard for our terms and conditions
• enrolled 194 people into our pension scheme on the stagingdateforauto-enrolment,withonly20peoplethen opting out
• recorded/released168trainingvideos,webinarsandtalkingheads-generatingover2,500hoursofviewing time by our clients and contacts
• set up our internal risk and compliance department.
We’ve been busy...The past five years proved to be a fantastic period for us. We have...
Our year 2013/14 | We’ve been busy... page | 4
Derek Bambury addressing delegates at the Pangea Net AGM 2013, hosted by Browne Jacobson
increased headcountincreased revenue
Havingsetourselvesatargettobea£50mfirmwith‘fivedotsonthemap’atourlaststrategicreviewin2010/11,itwaspleasingtoreachthatgoalinthepastfinancialyear,withoutmerger,andforallofoursectorsand teams to have contributed to that. Our sector focus and expertise has driven our growth of 11.5% in 2013/14; withinthat,ourhealth team grew by more than 25% and our insurance and corporate sectors also generated double digit growth.
The performance of our public sector practice in 2013/14 was impacted by the slow down of work in the academy conversion market in anticipation of the 2015 election;whilewehavegrownourmarketshare,thenumberofconversionsisfallingnationally.However,ourwider public sector offer continues to go from strength to strength through our long standing relationships with clients and our appointment (or re-appointment) to several key public sector panels.
page | 5Our year 2013/14 | We’ve been busy...
page | 6Our year 2013/14 | We’ve been busy...
Over the past year, we have received numerous awards and re-accreditations:
Investors in People (IiP) and IiP health and wellbeing re-accreditation
Legal 500 ‘real estate firm of the year’ (regional)
Lexcel re-accreditation
We are only the second law firm to hold the Plain English Campaign’s website Crystal Mark and we also achieved the Plain English standard for our terms and conditions
Legal Advisors of the Year, Education Investor Awards 2013 – this is the second time we have won this award and follows our success in 2011 (and short-listing in 2012)
MPF ‘best thought leadership campaign’ (education report on ‘driving success through autonomy’)
page |7Our year 2013/14 | We’ve been busy...
“I’m proud to have worked with some fantastic people over recent years who have helped us achieve our strategic objectives. I have no doubt that the next few years will be equally as challenging as those that have gone before, but the firm is in an extremely strong position and will continue to grow and thrive thanks to both our own people and our clients.”
Iain BlatherwickManaging Partner [email protected]
With this increase in size comes greater responsibility forthepeoplewhorelyonthefirmforaliving;attheendofApril2014wehadover750inourteam.Anover-supplyoflawyers,alongsidegreatercompetitionin the legal market from new entrants following the introductionoftheLegalServicesAct,hasmeantweneed to constantly improve what we offer to our clients. Withthatinmind,wesetupanewboardstructureinearly2013,puttinginplaceanoperationalboardtoworkalongside our strategy board.
Our strategic review at the back end of 2013 highlighted anumberofkeyprojectsforthefirm,whichwillleadtomore change than the business has seen for many years.
Work has started in earnest on many of those including selection of a new practice management system; a review of our ways of working - which will include the introductionofe-workflowprocessesaswellasflexibleand mobile working - and plans to further enhance our ‘exceptional’ levels of client service following our recent accreditationfromInvestorinCustomers.
Nottingham office Manchester office Exeter office
Recent office developments...
Our journey so far...
Our year 2013/14 | Our journey so far... page | 8
April 2004 - April 2014
Turnover
£55m
£50m
£45m
£40m
£35m
£30m
£25m
£20m
£15m
£10m
£5m
0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
£27m
£30m
£32m
£35m
NewBirminghamoffice
Votedno.47inTheSunday Times
Top 100 Companies to Work For
Moved London officetotheCity
People numbers break 500
Birminghamnumbersreach 100
Converted to LLP
page | 9
We’ve been on quite a journey since the firm started in 1832, when we were known as Browne & Son. Some of the highlights from the last 10 years are set out below.
Our year 2013/14 | Our journey so far...
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
£31m
£33m
£35m
£41m
£45m
£50m
Gained Lexcel accreditation
StrategyBoardstarted
NewManchesterofficeopened
5officesand£50mturnoverstrategy agreed
Moved to MowbrayHouse
Acquired Veitch Penny personalinjury team and opened in Exeter
OpsBoardstarted
NewManagingPartner
People numbers break700
3-star exceptional client service ratingfromIIC
“One of the best firms in Nottingham, Browne Jacobson LLP is chosen by clients in preference to many of the national players.”
Legal 500, 2013
2013/14 proved to be another great year for the firm, with revenue breaking the £50m barrier for the first time. In real terms, we have increased revenue by £19.4m since April 2009, which represents growth of 63% over a five year period, in a very difficult economic market. Our growth has largely been generated organically through a focused approach to developing our key sectors and strong client relationships.
Ourstats...
11.5% growth in 2013/14
63% growth from April 2009 to April 2014
Our year 2013/14 | Our stats... page | 11
year
reve
nue
£55m
£50m
£45m
£40m
£35m
£30m
2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14
50.2m
45.0m
41.3m
35.1m
33.1m
30.8m
"They have the ability to understand what their clients need. In this day and age you need to adapt your view to the desires of your client. They are able to do that, and work effectively with other firms."
Chambers & Partners, 2014
Last year, we:
Our year 2013/14 | Our stats... page | 12
Allofourpeoplebenefitfromthisgrowth.Forthefourthconsecutiveyeareveryonewhowaseligiblewasawardedabonus based on the revenues we have achieved – equating to 2% of salary for 2013/14.
ProfitsintheyeartoApril2013were£11.8m,thisisalmostdoublethelevelwewereachievingin2008/09andcomesatatimewhenwearecontinuingtomakesignificantinvestmentstoensurethatwebuildasustainablebusinesstofacethecurrentchallengesinthelegalmarket.Thecomingyearwillbenoexception,withsomemajorprojects in the pipeline requiring further investment.
2013/14 saw the introduction of our working capital project and revenue manager pilot. This has proved successful andwearenowimplementingtherevenuemanagerroleacrossthefirm.Lockupdaysreducedby12intheyear,almostreachingourtarget,butthereisstillmorewecandoandthiswillcontinuetobeafocusinthecomingmonths.
Duetoplannedandsignificantinvestments,debthadincreasedsubstantiallyintheprioryear,enablingourgrowth.Our current treasury policy is to fund investments primarily out of cash and we were able to achieve that in 2013/14 whilstreducingoveralldebtlevelsby£2.9m.
DirectoriesOurlegaldirectoryrankingscontinuetogofromstrengthtostrength–weachievednewrankingsinfiveareasandimproved our rankings in eight other areas in the Legal 500 2013 and had two new rankings and three improved ratingsinChambers&Partners2014.Wenowhave13toptierrankingsinChambers&Partners–andinsixofthose,wearetheonlyfirmtoholdthatstatusinourchosenmarket.Wealsonowhave57namedindividualsas‘leadersintheirfield’inChambers-anall-timehighforthefirm.
donated £12,500 from the Browne Jacobson Charitable Trust to local causes
raised £28,000 for our chosen charities
£2.9m
21
29
1
57
debt reduction in 2013/14
increase in headcount in the year
top tier rankings in Legal 500 2013
only firm ranked as a ‘regional heavyweight’ in the East Midlands in Legal 500 2013
leading individuals listed in Chambers & Partners 2014
“Our business has grown significantly in recent years and that has provided us with a terrific platform to build on. This will enable us to continue to invest in our people and our infrastructure to secure the firm’s future.”
Sarah Walker-SmithChief Operating [email protected]
Our vital statistics this year...
page | 13Our year 2013/14 | Our stats...
It’s no accident that many of our clients have stayed with us for upwards of 20 years - continuity of service, a commitment to the very highest standards of client care and straightforward advice offered in plain English are just some of the reasons why.
Exceptional client service...
Our focus on exceptional client service means we can attract new clients too – in the past year we have been appointedtothelikesofMorrisons,PZCussonsBeautyLLP(ownerofbrandssuchasStTropez),TheLondonTaxiCompany,Barnardo’s,CentreforProcessInnovation,NHSEngland,JointNatureConservationCommitteeandThe Environment Agency. These appointments are across arangeofsectorsandlegalspecialismsandreflectthediverse nature of our business – which continues to be one of our great strengths.
Ofcourse,exceptionalclientservicedoesn’thappenbyaccident; we are constantly seeking feedback from our clients so we can identify where we need to improve and then we take action to make sure it happens.
page | 14Our year 2013/14 | Exceptional client service...
Four pillars of exceptional client service
We have been carrying out independent reviews with ourclientsformanyyearsbut,in2014,wehavebecomethefirstlawfirmtoundergoassessmentbyaleadingindependentbody,InvestorinCustomers(IIC)andtobeawarded their ‘exceptional’ 3-star rating for our client serviceundertheir‘InvestorinClients’mark.
This is only achieved by 16% of companies in their firstassessmentandourteamsachievedthisratingconsistently,regardlessofwhichdepartment,sectororofficetheyworkedin,withanoverallscoreof8.32outof10acrossthefirm.
We have also adopted the net promoter methodology and our current rating indicates that two thirds of our clients would actively recommend our services and the majorityofourownteamwouldrecommendthefirmasa good place to work.
While we are delighted to have achieved a 3-star rating fromtheIIC,thehardworkstartshere.Wewillbeanalysing the results carefully and working on detailed plans with our teams to raise our game even higher; quality will become our absolute watchword when it comestoourclients-qualityofourpeople,qualityofour work and quality of our service.
page | 15Our year 2013/14 | Exceptional client service...
“They are fully deserving of our top award as they consistently demonstrate the highest levels of client experience and achieved high scores against all the criteria we measure.”
Neil Craig, Managing Director, Investor in Customers
Understand client needs
Meet client needs
Delight clients
Engender loyalty
We believe in developing long term mutually beneficial relationships with our clients. In practice that means we commit to delivering those things that you should expect from your law firm. IIC have provided independent verification that we do exactly what we say we will – their assessment has enabled them to confirm that we have met every one of the promises listed on our client charter - which are set out below.
Our client charter promises...
what you should expect from your law firm...
Quality legal advicethat is straightforward and in plain language
Clarity on our intended approach to a job
Updates on all work we do for you and hitting deadlines
Dealing with your letters, emails and phone calls promptly
Agreeing transparent pricing structures that reflect the value of our work
High standards of honesty and integrity
Informing you of any conflicts of interest immediately
Ensuring that we provide you with the right people for the job
Offering an opinion, rather than just legal arguments
Taking a commercial, common sense approach, based on a thorough understanding of your objectives
Being innovative
Continually improving our ways of working and ensuring that our systems are streamlined and efficient
Being a part of your team
we will add value to your business by:
page | 16Our year 2013/14 | Exceptional client service...
page |17Our year 2013/14 | Exceptional client service...
To be strategically important advisors to our
clients by understanding and anticipating their
needs, delivering a service which exceeds their
expectations and makes their life easier.
BrowneJacobs
onLLP
Our mission...
What our clients say...
“They are regarded by the health community as simply the best legal firm we deal with. They are very focused on developing long term relationships, understanding the business environment of the client and adding value. Their people are technically excellent, pride themselves on doing a great job for the client and are a joy to work with.”NHS England
“Great service and lovely people. Never made to feel that I should know something when I don’t!”Baxi Group
“Your overall contribution has been crucial to the success of the project, and your expert legal and commercial advice has been invaluable in helping the Council achieve a deal that will improve our public offer at the National Water Sports Centre, whilst at the same time significantly reducing our costs.”Nottinghamshire County Council
“Browne Jacobson has been helping us deliver our acquisition programme since our early days. Ten years on and they feel like part of our in-house team. They never take our relationship for granted.”Vets4Pets (pre-sale)
page | 18Our year 2013/14 | Exceptional client service...
WehavebeenimpressedandpleasedbyBrowneJacobson’seffortstomatchmanyofthecorequalities we expect of our own claims underwriters ‘in-house’,namely:pro-activity,responsiveness,technicalabilityandcommercialnous,allthewhilemaintaining the exceptional service requirements demandedbytheHiscoxbrand.”Hiscox UK Retail
“I have dealt with BJ’s for over 10 years and they have always gone the extra mile and tell me, in plain English, where we stand on decisions for our cases.”London Borough of Lambeth
64% of clients would actively recommend our services to others
3We’ve worked with all of our top three clients for more than 10 years
8+Seven of our top 10 clients who have been with us for at least eight years
Successfullyreappointed,throughcompetitivetender,tomorethan10ofourmajorclientslastyearincludingtheNHSLitigationAuthority,EMLawShare,NHSPropertyServices,TheHomes&CommunitiesAgencyandHiscox
10+
64%
“Our success has been built on delivering exceptional client service to all our clients. It underpins everything we do and is instinctive to how our people work, as evidenced by our IIC accreditation, which confirmed we are meeting all of our client charter promises.”
Jackie CarterHead of Client [email protected]
page | 19Our year 2013/14 | Exceptional client service...
7=
People matter...We have long recognised the importance of people to our business and pride ourselves on being a great place to work. Our teams operate from modern, open-plan offices, supported by mobile technology, which helps us to continue to attract and retain the very best talent to work with our clients.
Ourrevenuegrowthinthepastfiveyearshasledtosubstantialgrowthinourpeoplenumbers–attheendofApril2014wehad752peopleonboard–comparedto484attheendofApril2009,anincreaseof55.4%.
125 of our people have been with the firm more than 10 years
*Each icon represents an increase of 10 people
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
Oncetheyjoinus,ourpeopletendtostaywithus;125ofourteamhavebeenwithusforover10yearsandafurther106ofourpeoplehavebeenwiththefirmbetweenfiveand10years.Itisthiscontinuitythathelpsusdelivertheverybestclientservice.Ourpeopleareencouragedtostaybecauseofhowtheyaretreated,supportedand developed.
Our year 2013/14 | People matter... page | 20
Flexbenefitsareavailabletoeveryoneintheorganisation – enabling people to select an overall reward package to suit their requirements. The options available include standard items such as private medical anddentalcover,lifeassurance,criticalillnessandchildcare vouchers as well as additional items such as travelinsurance,ourRide2Workschemeanddiscountedshoppingvouchersforholidays,insuranceandmusicetc.Thefirmalsooperatesaschemewherebypeoplecanbuyadditional holiday or sell days they do not require.
Weholdannualhealthandwell-beingfairsinourofficesand,earlierintheyear,welaunchedour‘workplacechallenge’ to encourage more people to cycle or walk towork.Weoffereveryoneconfidentialaccesstoouremployeeassistanceprogramme,whichisavailable24hoursaday,365daysayear;wehaveprovidedmassageand pilates sessions on site and we also have regular visits from the local workplace chaplain.
As a signatory to the Law Society’s Charter of Equality andDiversity,andhavingbothLexcelandInvestorsinPeopleaccreditations,wetakeourequalityanddiversityresponsibilities very seriously. We take a transparent approach,publishingourannualdiversitystatisticsandbenchmarkingacrossthelegalindustry,whereourequalpayanddiversityaudithasbeeninplacesince2002.Intermsofnumbers,28ofourpartnerteamarefemale(28.6%)and5ofourseniorequitypartners(27.8%)arefemale.
Our commitments to equality and diversity go beyond the basic requirements and general duty of compliance incorporated into our policies and procedures. Some of theexamplesoftheschemesweareinvolvedin,andthesupportweoffertoourteams,aresetoutbelow:
• a positive commitment to disabled people – we are ‘Two Ticks’ scheme accredited
• supporting working mums-to-be through the Tommy’s pregnancy accreditation scheme
• providing occupational health support• working with local schools to promote legal careers
for those from underprivileged backgrounds.
Our year 2013/14 | People matter... page | 21
the BJ wayme, less ordinary
Learning and development is key to us continuing to provide the highest quality of service to our clients and in retaining our people and thisyear,aswellasreviewingourprofessionalcompetenceframeworks,welaunchedanewsuiteoftraining.Badged‘TheBJWay’,theprogramme offers development in personal effectiveness,managementandleadership,business effectiveness and technical effectiveness. Inthepastyear,ourL&Dteamhaverun44BJWayworkshops,attendedby288ofourpeople.
As well as offering the traditional trainee route to partnership,wealsoprovidesupportforthosewhowishtopursueotherqualificationssuchastheCharteredInstituteofLegalExecutives,CharteredInstituteofMarketing,theCharteredInstituteofManagementAccountants,CharteredInstituteofPersonnelDevelopmentanddiplomasinvariousareasoflaw,including local government and intellectual property.
We also continue to ‘grow our own’ – our successful apprenticeship scheme launched in 2012 and we now have 12 apprentices who have completed level 2 and we have recently agreed to fund their development via the level 3 (legal services) apprenticeship route. This will put them on a career path towards a paralegal or legalexecutiverole.Oneofthatteam,GeorgeDenton,recently won a prestigious award which celebrated the hard work and achivements of the top performing apprenticesinNottinghamshire.
Itdoesn’tstopthere-in2013/14ourtraineeretentionrate was 91%; we promoted 13 of our team to associate and 11 to partner; we created ‘head of’ roles within our centralteamsand,from1May2014,weappointedourfirstchiefoperatingofficer,SarahWalker-Smith,whohasherselfbeenwiththefirmformorethan10years.
page | 22Our year 2013/14 | People matter...
“Our people are at the heart of our business - and retaining so many of our team for over five years is a major factor in why our clients have stayed with us so long.”
Eileen HenryDirector of [email protected]
“The people that I work with can always spare time to lend a hand and help people like myself who are just starting out in our careers. I feel that Browne Jacobson is a real team, a family in fact, and this provides a platform for a very happy working environment.”
George Denton, Apprentice
Our year 2013/14 | People matter...
“It’s great to see how much Browne Jacobson has grown whilst retaining its values and its people at the heart of everything that it does. I can
honestly say that I would not have the career I have today without the support I’ve received throughout the firm, through good and bad, and I feel proud to walk through the front doors every morning.”
page | 23
“The firm empowers junior lawyers and recognises their successes; they are given client facing roles at a relatively junior level, and are provided with opportunities to get involved in projects and initiatives which would fall squarely within the domain of partners at other firms. I have played a central role in developing the firm’s international practice through coordinating its involvement in the Pangea Net international network.”
Ryan Harrison, Associate
“The inclusive nature of the firm is really refreshing and I particularly like the way that information is shared across the firm, making you feel like an important cog in the wheel.
It allows you to see the bigger picture and how you can assist in taking things forward in the future.”
Andrea Ward, National Facilities Manager
Richard Morley, Head of Marketing
“I recently joined the firm having taken the view that it had a genuine intention to provide the very best legal representation and client service, and I’m delighted that all of the opportunities that I discussed as part of my recruitment have materialised into a working reality now that I am here.”
Nigel Lyons, Partner
“It feels like a very inclusive firm which values people at all levels of experience. Putting the legal work aside there is plenty to get involved in; the community action committee and the social committee for instance – and we throw really good parties!”
Sarah Macdonld, Trainee Solicitor
We are committed to providing support to the communities we live and work in, which is demonstrated through a wide range of memberships, sponsorships and pro-bono activities.
Many of our people hold roles within the community – we have over 30 school governors in schools from Exeter andCornwalltoCheshire,NottinghamandBirmingham;charitytrusteesfororganisationsasdiverseastheNottinghamshireWildlifeTrustandtheAssociationofNHSCharitiesthroughtotheAmyWinehouseFoundation;magistrates and justice of the peace; committee members and coaches for sports organisations; referees for rugby andothersports;andalsopeopleinvolvedinthelocalmusic,theatreandoperasocieties.
Allofourofficeteamsnominatea‘charityoftheyear’andundertakefundraisingactivitiesincludingbookandCDsales,cakebaking,raffles,sponsoredactivitiesanddonationsinlieuofChristmascards.In2013,ournominatedcharitiesandtheamountsraisedwere:
Contributing to our local communities...
HaywardHouse£9,489
Solihull Life Opportunities
£4,548
RoaldDahl’sMarvellous
Children’s Charity £2,000
StJoseph’sHospice£1,245
Children’s Hospice
South West £1,354
“We are so grateful to you all for your kindness and support; it would be difficult for us to continue to provide the level of care we strive to achieve for our patients without the help of people like yourselves.”
Julie Jones, Hayward House Cancer Care Trust
Our year 2013/14 | Contributing to our local communities... page | 24
Eachyear,weundertakeone‘big’fundraisingactivityforourchosencharityinNottinghamand,in2013,thisinvolved our trainees taking on a ‘challenge’ to cycle theentireroutebetweenourfiveofficenetwork.Thedistances covered ranged from 65 to 220 miles and the traineescycledinteamsofthreeorfivetocompleteit.Thiseventaloneraisedover£3,800forHaywardHouseand also encouraged more of our people to take up our Ride2Workscheme.
Our people also show their generosity in other ways throughout the year; at Christmas they donated 48 gift boxes for Operation Christmas Child; we collected 242 Easter Eggs and 130 selection boxes for the patients at HaywardHouseandtheirchildrenandotherrelatives;we have also had collections for clothes and food for homelesscharities.Finally,agroupofknitterswerebusyinJanuaryandFebruary,creating‘blooddrops’fortheNationalBloodServicecampaign.
Our trainees had a busy year as they also participated intheYoungLawyersEnterpriseAward,anationalchallenge to raise funds for leukaemia and lymphoma research.Theyweregiven£100asaseedcornfund,witha brief to turn it into as much money as they possibly could in six months. They had to develop a business plan for the judges to sign off and then they really got cracking on raising funds – via a band night at the local pubinNottingham,quiznightsatlocaluniversities,shakingbucketsinsupermarkets,asponsoredrun,acakestalland,theirbigevent,amidsummernightdinnerandauction.Theyraisedafantastic£8,793andcame second in the challenge!
page | 25Our year 2013/14 | Contributing to our local communities...
OurNorthWestSchoolsArtcompetitionisnowinitssecondyearandisruninconjunctionwithRoaldDahl’sMarvellousChildren’sCharity.Itisopentoallschoolsintheregion,withdifferentagegroupsforentriesandadifferentthemeeachyear.In2013,29schoolstookpartandwehad962differentpiecesofartworkforthecompetition.Ourjudgingcommitteethenselectashortlistforeachcategoryand,ultimately,thewinners.Allshortlisted entries are put on display in a local gallery or museum and the children and their families are invited to areceptiontoseetheirworkandreceivetheirprizes.Theshortlistedentriesarethendisplayedinourofficeforthefollowing year.
Our year 2013/14 | Contributing to our local communities... page | 26
Students at the North West Schools Art competition
Wework,onapro-bonobasis,withanumberoforganisationsincludingtheNationalAutisticSociety,NottinghamshirePro-HelpandVictimSupport.We’realso provide mentoring services under the Prince’s Trust and to law students at local universities and to a local academyinNottinghamtoencouragepupilstopursueacareer in law.
Ourpeopleareactivevolunteers,eitheronapersonalbasisfororganisationssuchasOxfam,RamptonHospital,helpingatwomen’srefugesinandaroundNottingham,runningtennisandrugbycoaching,presentingshowsonlocalradiostationsandvaluingrarebooks,orthroughactivities organised by our community action committee. Thecommitteerunfirmwideprojectswhichteamsgetinvolvedin,usuallyinvolvinggardening,paintingandreading in schools.
In2013,wehelpedtocreateamemorialareaataprimaryschoolforapupilwhohaddiedfollowingafiveyear battle with leukaemia and we also helped develop agrowingspaceandmeetingplaceinBulwellForestinNottingham.Thisispartofawiderproject,whichisaimingtoencouragelocalresidents,communitygroupsandschoolstoworktogetheronacommunitygarden,topromote healthy eating and to provide a programme of outdoor activities for them.
Barbara Bates, Chair, Bulwell Forest Garden
“As you know, we only opened to the public last June and are still developing a strong volunteer bank, which is why having your team on board for a day is so valuable. We have achieved so much together!”
Craig Sharples
Community Action Committee
Anna CliffordCommunity Action Committee
page |27
“Contributing to the communities we work in is important to Browne Jacobson and the generosity of our people never ceases to amaze us. From giving up their time to bake and run, to donating money or gifts that really make a difference, they always support our efforts, ensuring the continued success of our activities.”
Our year 2013/14 | Contributing to our local communities...
Community Action Committee working on the Bulwell Community Garden project in 2013
The future’s bright...
Our year 2013/14 | The future’s bright... page | 28
Havingbrokenthroughthe£50mrevenuebarrier,weare again aiming for double digit growth in 2014/15 – althoughthiswillbeasaconsequenceofourstrategy,rather than being the main aim – building a sustainable business is at the heart of what we are about. There are numerous projects in the pipeline that will generate efficienciesandbetterworkingenvironmentsforourpeopleand,asaresult,anevenhigherstandardofservice for our clients.
HavingmovedofficesinNottinghamin2012andopenedinExeterandManchesterinthesameyear,itisnowtimetoturnourattentiontoourofficesinLondonandBirmingham.Duetoourgrowth,spacecontinuestobeat a premium in both locations as we continue to recruit newpeopletotheteams.InBirmingham,wewillbeundertakingasubstantialrefittoupgradeourworkingenvironment,providingallofourteamwithdualscreenstoworkfrom,moremoderndesksandfurnitureandmore break out areas. We will also be trialling mobile andflexibleworkingpracticesinthisofficewithaviewtorollingtheseoutacrossthefirm.
We will be moving to a new location in London in December 2014. While we will be remaining within ourcurrentpostcodeclosetotheheartofthecity,theofficewillbemuchlarger,enablingustoprovideabetter client experience as well as a fantastic working environmentforourteam.Thenewofficewillalsobeinstrumental in embedding and driving the delivery of our strategy in the coming years.
We never stand still at Browne Jacobson and it won’t surprise you to know that we aren’t intending to rest on our laurels in the coming year!
Birmingham office
Our brand new London office
3-star rating
client experiencestrategy
our journey
page | 29
Tohelpuscontinuetodeliveragreatclientexperience,we also need to upgrade and modernise some of our systems – which are creaking a bit following our recentgrowth.Inparticular,wearehardatworkonanintegratedsuiteofITwhichwillencompassanewpractice management system and e-working tools. This willmakeourprocessesmoreefficientinternallyandwill give clients the ability to see ‘live’ information abouttheirmatters.Implementingthesenewsystemswillrepresentamajorchangeprogrammeforthefirmand we are very excited by the opportunities this will bringtoenhanceouroffertoclients.Onasimilarvein,we are also updating and improving our website so that clientsandcontactscanfindtheinformationtheyneedmuch more easily.
Havingspentmuchofthepast12monthsreviewingourstrategy,wearenowworkingonembeddingitthroughthe projects outlined above. The review has led to us having a better understanding of our business and the legal sector as a whole; we have engaged more of our people than ever before and have come out the other sidewithstrongerbusinessplans,acommonphilosophyandaquietconfidenceacrossthefirmastowhatthefuture holds.
Derek BamburySenior [email protected]
“We started this review with ‘our journey so far’ and, in drawing it to a close, we can assure you that the journey has, in fact, only just begun. We are incredibly proud of everything that Browne Jacobson has achieved during the firm’s long history and we are determined to build a long term, sustainable future for our clients and everyone who works at the firm. We look forward to sharing our continued journey with you.”
Our year 2013/14 | The future’s bright...
“For the sheer scope of their expertise and the exceedingly high quality of staff, they seem to me to be the market leader.”
Chambers & Partners, 2014
©BrowneJacobsonLLP2014–TheinformationcontainedwithinthisreportisandshallremainthepropertyofBrowneJacobson.ThisdocumentmaynotbereproducedwithoutthepriorconsentofBrowneJacobson.
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