The path to partnership is more of a marathon than a sprint. To become a partner, it is important to be highly organized, love discipline, develop, follow trends and take small steps in this direction 24/7/365. This is the only way to build your own value and trust,
says Anna Monakhova, who has recently become a Business Partner at VB Partners. In an interview with Yurydychna Praktyka, she told what the law firm benefits from having a non-lawyer partner in the team, which trends are currently affecting the development of the Ukrainian legal services market and the firm’s plans.
– Anna, what does becoming a partner mean to you?
Work at VB Partners is very dynamic. Any achievement is the result of hard work on yourself and your tasks. Becoming a partner is not just another promotion. It is a recognition of one’s own managerial peaks and a huge responsibility to the team.
Working in one company for a long time allows you to know its inner workings and understand the product perfectly. I can quickly solve problems, influence the business and initiate changes.
In my new status as a Business Partner, I plan to further develop the VB brand. The focus remains on the professional and personal growth of each of my colleagues. An individualised approach is the key to the high standard of our client service. In addition, the active development of the firm’s key practices requires well-established business processes. This task is always a priority.
– Have you ever had a partnership track?
Changing or moving to another field of activity is something everyone sometimes consider. I was lucky: the firm grew continuously over the years, launching new areas and scaling up projects. The rapid dynamics opened up new career opportunities for specialists, both vertical and horizontal. I was no exception.
I joined the firm in 2014 as a PR and marketing manager. Two and a half years later, I became the head of the firm’s BD department. This required me to move to a new level – managing several areas and subordinates. My previous working experience at a leading international law firm, as well as my work in an audit firm in sales and client care, helped me a lot.
I am grateful to my colleagues for their consistant support in this difficult journey and for their significant contribution to my professional growth. Thanks to the mentorship of the founding partners, I have gained unique business knowledge and skills.
The path to partnership is more of a marathon than a sprint. This status requires systematic preparation.To become a partner, it is important to behighly organized, love discipline, develop, follow trends and take small steps in this direction 24/7/365. This is the only way to build your own value and trust.
– You’ve been leading VB Partners’ BD area for almost 10 years. What areas are you responsible for now? What is the scope of your control?
My field of control has expanded. As before, the BD area takes up a large amount of work. In particular, I manage all marketing activities, promote the firm’s products and control the client care standard.
An important focus is talent management. Our HR strategy is aimed at developing each team member. The company works with top clients, projects and cases. This requires appropriate training and qualifications.
My passion lies in working with talented individuals, taking responsibility for the quality of their knowledge, getting feedback, and admiring the success of students and young lawyers who begin their careers with us. I am also driven by the opportunities the company offers to everyone: educational, career, social and other. The most important thing is to have a desire to move forward and take initiative, and VB will definitely support you in this.
I’m uncertain if you can force someone to do something against their will.
My belief is that creating conditions for people to be interested in what they do is crucial.
Our goal is to give our team members as much room as possible to grow, make decisions, and take responsibility.
Powers, responsibility and transparent financial incentives shall always be aligned.
– What are the benefits for the law firm from having a non-lawyer partners in the team?
Joining a partnership with a specialist in human capital management and development is an innovative trend among the leaders of the global legal world.
In addition to a high level of expertise and professionalism, law firms also need new approaches to doing business. The classic team of lawyers no longer fully meets the needs of the market. It is important to form the right team, set up business processes and introduce innovations in promoting practices.
Most lawyers want to focus on the law, so these areas of responsibility are more efficiently, quickly and productively supervised by a non-lawyer partner. Such a partner, like an in-house business consultant, helps the firm to solve different problems and improve its professional performance.
The partnership has the potential to improve the business model, increase teamwork efficiency, identify competitive advantages, and increase the value of legal services. This ensures high quality of services and their compliance with business standards.
A deep understanding of business is necessary to be successful in this position, including organizational structure, management, planning, budgeting, and strategy. Excellent interpersonal skills are also important, as the partner works with lawyers, PR, marketing and other team members. I am pretty sure that such a partnership role will become more and more important in the legal market.
– How do you assess the situation on the Ukrainian legal services market in general? What are your plans for VBpartners?
The legal services market has adapted to the realities of wartime: it has changed its management approaches, has streamlined its business processes, become more flexible. It appears that the focus is on profitable areas, including dispute resolution, criminal and compensation practices. The defining trend is a sharp and excessive increase in government pressure on entrepreneurs.
Speaking about our key practices, two years of full-scale war have provoked a significant number of high-profile cases. The information realm is full of high-profile disclosures and investigations. The number of cases is increasing, and the level of fees is growing proportionally. Thanks to such incentives, WCC’s practice is developing rapidly.
The full-scale invasion triggered international cooperation by Ukrainian law enforcement agencies. We anticipate that this dynamic will persist in the upcoming years.
Our sanctions law practice is being more and more in demand by our foreign colleagues.
We celebrated our 18th anniversary with significant achievements and a balanced professional team. This significant period of time already makes it possible to say that we have chosen the right development path. We steadily remain leaders in our niche and have gained the deep trust of our clients.
In 2024, we will continue To increase the number of WCC specialists. Our goal is a large-scale comprehensive leadership. Accordingly, the main goal of everyone at VB is to continue to lead the market in White-Collar Crime and to develop new areas, for example, now it is Sanctions Law and Cross-border Investigations.
Also in 2024, the focus is on systematic team development, structured support for colleagues at the frontline and those with family members involved in national defence.
VB continues its policy of investing in the team. People are our main value. We actively implement internal corporate initiatives to support and develop our employees. In addition, we are interested in fostering a new generation of lawyers. That is why we promote youth development, support student initiatives and introduce paid internship programs.
