Promoting Legal Excellence!
The legal industry is characterized by its constant pursuit of justice and the rule of law. Lawyers play a crucial role in handling complex legal systems, advocating for their clients, and upholding the integrity of legal processes.
The profession demands a blend of analytical integrity, compelling advocacy, and ethical commitment, shaping intellectually strong practitioners dedicated to public service. The legal field is not just about understanding statutes and precedents; it is about interpreting them to advocate effectively for clients, ensure fair outcomes, and contribute to societal order.
Iris Jones, the Chief Marketing & Client Development Officer, embodies this blend of legal expertise and client-centric dedication. Her journey began with a childhood dream inspired by the Perry Mason television show, which instilled in her a passion for law and justice. Another real life inspiration for Iris came many years later in a magazine article. The late Congresswoman, Barbara Jordan, during her younger years, was appointed Governor of Texas for a day on June 10, 1972, under Governor Dolph Briscoe. This historic event made Ms. Jordan the first African American and the first woman to hold the office of Governor of Texas. From that point on, Barbara Jordan, and her incredible life story inspired Iris to pursssue her legal education with determination despite skepticism from others.
Her career is marked by significant achievements, including serving as an Assistant Attorney General of Texas, where she participated in landmark cases such as the Vietnamese Fisherman’s Case against the KKK. Her experiences have shaped her into a leader who values justice, integrity, and client service.
Currently, Iris employs her extensive experience at Akerman LLP, where she leads marketing and client development initiatives. Her role is pivotal in shaping the firm’s market presence, attracting new clients and enhancing brand recognition. By leading a team of skilled professionals, Iris ensures the alignment of marketing strategies with the firm’s goals, nurturing a culture of empowerment and innovation.
Her efforts are central to Akerman’s growth, reflecting her lifelong commitment to excellence in the legal field and her ability to inspire and guide her team towards achieving remarkable outcomes.
Let’s explore Iris’s innovative leadership journey in the legal sector:
Journey from a Dream to the Courtroom
Iris’s journey towards becoming an attorney started after discovering the Perry Mason television show in fifth grade. She loved how the main character argued for justice and truth. Each episode she watched cemented her desire to become a lawyer, despite disbelieving teachers and fellow students. Nevertheless, she continued with her pursuit without hesitation.
One of her fondest childhood memories was in sixth grade, when she received a response letter from Harvard answering her questions surrounding a law degree. Even as a 12-year-old, she wanted to make sure she took the proper classes in school, so the package Harvard sent meant the world. They even included a coursework catalog and someone took the time to answer specific questions about which subjects to study.
She was just a kid, one of nine children, from Ohio, craving information, enlightenment, and encouragement. The person who prepared and sent that package to her will never know the impact it had on her life. Remembering this story reminds her of the meaning behind an encouraging word and the gift of your time.
After earning her law degree, she was incredibly fortunate to serve as an Assistant Attorney General (AG) of Texas for eight years. The job was a dream come true because it allowed her to practice law, defend the state, and defend cases in state and federal courts.
In 1982, she represented the AG’s office in the Vietnamese Fisherman’s case against the KKK. Alongside Morris Dees and David Berg, she took the depositions of 12 Klansmen in Houston’s US Federal Courthouse. It was one of those career-defining experiences that taught her about what it is to be a good attorney. This meant she had to set aside personal feelings, fears, and resentments to serve one’s clients honorably and nobly.
After the AG’s office, she was appointed the City Attorney for the City of Austin. She was both the first female and the first African American to hold this position. She has many monumental memories of that position, but representing the city of Austin in Federal Court and arguing on its behalf in the Voting Rights Act case before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals was a dream come true.
Later in her career, she entered private practice and served as a partner and shareholder in two Austin firms. She loved and learned from each place she worked because each experience made her the person she is today.
Her daughter, Amanda, was born in 1979. A gift from God and the best dream to come true for her. She mentions this because she believes, “As we strive to make a difference, to achieve, excel, and make a living, the best gifts are our families.” Not at or near the end of our careers, but throughout. She has always prioritized her life as follows: 1. God; 2. Family. 3. Career! It always works itself out!
She learned many lessons along the way, but the most important is the “Platinum Rule” by Tony Alessandra, Ph.D., and Michael J. O’Connor, Ph.D., which emphasizes the importance of treating others the way “they want to be treated.” How do we know that? We need to ask, listen, and learn.
Empowering Teams for Success
As Chief Marketing and Client Development Officer at Akerman LLP, Iris’s primary responsibilities are to lead a team of highly trained professionals, develop and implement marketing strategies to promote Akerman’s services, attract new clients, and enhance the firm’s brand recognition. She works closely with firm leadership, partners, and associates to identify target markets, create marketing campaigns, and measure the effectiveness of these marketing efforts.
Additionally, she and her team are involved in client relationship management, conducting competitive intelligence research, and competitive analysis. Ultimately, in her role of supporting the firm’s strategy, her team and she serve to support the firm’s growth and success through strategic marketing, client service, and business development initiatives. She is deeply dedicated to her amazing team.
While she is there to support this talented group of individuals so they can perform their jobs best, she shares her experiences to provide guidance to them. If she can impart a bit of wisdom, success stories, and the challenges that some perceive as failures, she has done her job. There are so many undertakings they want to achieve for their internal clients here at Akerman.
They strive to do their best, give their all, and improve every day. The team’s focus is always Akerman. She believes that “when you empower and trust your team to do their best work, they rise to the occasion every time.”
Their primary responsibilities are to help their attorneys help their clients. They keep the good news about their services out front and market their message of dedication to client support. They facilitate connections between Akerman and their clients.
Pursuing New Business Opportunities
Iris and her team have been instrumental in creating new initiatives for their attorneys. They conduct training and offer training to the MCD team to keep their team skills sharp, which is a top priority. They offer support to their attorneys to pursue new or expanded business opportunities.
They offer ideas, “Weekly Insights and Tips,” to their attorneys on the intranet. They established a monthly training calendar on a variety of compelling topics to refresh and remind the attorneys that they can support them!
They have enhanced their social media platforms to help circulate the Akerman news about what they do best! And they follow and support their clients!
Developing Independent Thought and Creativity
So many thoughts come to Iris’s mind, yet she has three areas she focuses on to inspire her team. First, she gives her professionals the tools and training to excel, along with the comfort of knowing she has their back.
Next, she encourages and celebrates independent thought and creative solutions within the team. She wants them to feel free to disagree without embarrassment or fear of retribution and to be forward-thinking in carrying out their responsibilities.
Third, she shares some of her leadership responsibilities to inspire, motivate, and develop future leaders while still maintaining oversight. Giving guidance, as needed, and leadership responsibilities (or stretch assignments) is a great way to solidify her trust in the team.
They are an amazing group of professionals who are ready, willing, and able to perform. Their consistent support for Akerman and each other is an inspiration to her.
She adheres to the principle, “There’s no limit to the good one can do if you don’t care who gets the credit.” General George C. Marshall
Prioritizing Spending and Allocation
“Being prudent, meaning spending only what you need to spend, is a good trait” that Iris values. With so many new marketing tools, legal software, and other innovations being developed, it’s important for her to understand the issue her team seeks to address before choosing one to purchase.
Before submitting their annual budget requests, they ask themselves if they need and/or are ready for this product. In some instances, they already have the in-house talent to perform the task. For example, what can their MCD brainpower do with help from each other and perhaps from other internal departments and firm resources?
They examine the possibilities and look from within first. Finally, they ask what they can expect to achieve with this budgetary expenditure. Is it an NTD (nice to do) or an essential item that will take the firm to another level?
Client-Centric Approach
The best advice and recommendations Iris gives revert to the “Platinum Rule.” She emphasizes the importance of LISTENING TO YOUR CLIENTS. Her team has the responsibility and privilege of serving as “Attorneys” and “Counselors” at law.
The term “Counselors” suggests giving advice and counsel, which suggests that the attorney does much of the talking and advising. However, clients are sophisticated, knowledgeable experts in their business.
Her team recommends their attorney counselors ask their clients questions and become better listeners to understand their needs. Asking and not telling is a strength here, not a failure. Care and concern should be sincere. A deep understanding of the client allows the attorney to perform at their highest level of service.
Cultivating a High-Trust Culture
Business plans, especially for individuals, must be tied directly to Akerman LLP’s strategy as well as the plans of the practice group and industry teams. Iris believes that this connectivity fosters a culture of high trust and mutual respect.
Commitment to Accountability
Iris and her team are deeply committed to ensuring their accountability to the Akerman leaders. To deliver proactive support that leads to the best possible outcomes, they have semi-monthly meetings with the Chairman and COO. Furthermore, they submit their MCD Year-End Highlight Report with ROI and meaningful, measurable key performance indicators that they track throughout the year.
The Spirit of Service
Even in her early years as an attorney, Iris sought to find connection and meaning in every case she prepared for trial. Internalizing cases helped put her whole mind and soul into the level of preparation each client deserves.
Her passion for the law and her incredible position at Akerman afford her the opportunity to pass along her spirit of service to her team and to their attorneys today. There are several attorneys on the MCD team at Akerman who also use the experience of law school and their respective practices to raise the bar of service.
Challenges and Solutions in Client Retention
Iris has a strategic plan to address the significant challenges and opportunities that law firms face in terms of business development and marketing. Her approach is as follows:
Relevance: According to her, staying relevant is crucial to the success of both marketing teams and law firms. She states, “Just because you are relevant today doesn’t guarantee relevance tomorrow. The pace of technological advances is staggering. Artificial Intelligence alone has opened the door to newer and faster ways to achieve outcomes in just the past two years. Alternative Legal Services Providers are earning well over $20 billion from what was customarily earned by law firms.”
Iris emphasizes that “we must constantly adapt to this dynamic landscape to surpass the success we’ve enjoyed in the past.”
She believes lawyers must continually work to improve their performance and look for ways to better serve their deserving clients. Proactively finding ways to go above and beyond what is asked will keep clients happy. If they don’t make haste to respond and genuinely care about their interests, clients will find another firm that will.
Challenges to achieving all of that are: In her view, the challenge lies in accomplishing this when so many feel the grass is greener on the other side. The revolving door is in constant motion. Iris stresses the importance of ensuring clients always feel valued, seen, and cared about by the highest levels of leadership.
A culture of caring is vital to sustaining the level of professionalism at the firm. People come and go for so many reasons, which they are entitled to do. People want to know that they are making a difference.
In Iris’ opinion, the solution lies in listening and caring. Knowing that one is seen. Iris affirms that they have all of that at Akerman. She has all of that at Akerman, and that is why she is there and will remain there. Another dream came true for her.
Read More : Click here
