Legal Village

Lion or gazelle, you'd better start running

Posted 5/09/2007 by Andrew Holroyd

What is there to do on a rainy day in Cleveland, Ohio, whilst on holiday?

Well, you can visit the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which is well worth seeing for its documentation of the West Coast sound of the 1960s and 70s alone. Instead, I found myself reading Thomas L Friedman’s book The World is Flat - an enlightening read providing a US perspective on the effects of globalisation.

As I read, I reflected on the world I inhabited in the early 70s and how different it is from today. When I was out in Indonesia on VSO, the lack of a communications network meant I was unable to speak to my parents for over two years.

Thirty years on and a million US tax returns are completed in India each year and outsourcing from our profession keeps thousands busy around the world. And this is only the start. Friedman quotes an African proverb: "Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle or it will starve. It doesn’t mater whether you are a gazelle or a lion, when the sun comes up you had better start running."

Both China and India have the potential to become leading players on the global stage as technology and instant communication level out the world. The message that we had better keep running and stay competitive is one we need to hear.

One of the ways to stay competitive is through business excellence. The Law Society is here to promote the excellence of solicitors to national and global audiences alike. Hence the Law Society Excellence Awards to be held at the Honourable Artillery Company on 25 October. The awards will be a celebration of all that is good about the profession: business innovation; excellence in practice standards; social responsibility; and equality and diversity. There will also be awards for both Solicitor and New Solicitor of the Year.

I intend to make sure everyone who is a winner is not only held up as an example of excellence but promoted to the whole profession and beyond. The deadline for entries is 21 September, so there is still plenty of time to enter.

Details of which can be found at www.lawsociety.org.uk.