Cole Silver, Esq.

Chief Client Officer at Blank Rome LLP

 

Philadelphia, PA

 

Interview Transcript

 

Pamela: My name is Pamela DeNeuve and welcome to Lawyer of the Week. This week, I am so pleased and honored to have Cole Silver as our Lawyer of the Week. Let me tell you a little bit about Cole. Cole Silver serves as a Chief Client Officer for Blank Rome, an AM 100 global law firm. In this role, Cole provides consultative client relationship support to the firm and its clients, helping to identify and implement strategies and tactics to improve client satisfaction, expand into new areas of service, and ensure an outstanding client experience.

Cole’s legal career spans over three decades, with 20-plus years serving as general counsel to several high-growth companies. Prior to going in house, Cole owned and operated his own multi-state law firm. Cole brings an insider’s view of clients’ key legal concerns in what they want and expect from their outside counsel. He has authored books and trained numerous professionals in the areas of client development and service. Cole is known as the client ambassador for his passion for client service and helping organizations deliver a memorable client experience.

Welcome, Cole. We’re so glad to have you.

 

Cole: Well, thank you. Thank you for having me, Pamela.

 

Pamela: We’re so happy that you’re the Lawyer of the Week and we’re just going to go ahead and ask you the Lawyer of the Week questions. So, the first question is: when and what made you decide to become a lawyer?

 

Cole: I wanted to be a veterinarian, but I developed allergies to cats, so that killed that. Then I wanted to be a basketball player, but I stopped growing at 13. No, I always was interested in how people resolve problems, and I decided that, you know, I wanted to help people solve problems- and big problems- so, I went to law school because, um- I wanted to work for the state department, resolving treaties between countries. And that really was primarily the only reason. It was either after college, going to, you know, do something in the Foreign Service, or go to law school. And I chose law school because there were more options for me than just the Foreign Service.

 

Pamela: Oh, interesting, interesting. So, what I’m hearing is that you somehow, even as a young man, had an eye to the global issues that were going on?

 

Cole: Absolutely. Plus, just being a problem solver and a peacemaker. Even playing basketball on the streets of Philly, if the guys were, you know, fighting over a foul, I would step in and try to resolve the problem. So, that is my sort of nature- to solve problems.

 

Pamela: Did your family notice that you were the one who was going to probably be the lawyer in the family?

 

Cole: I’m not only the first person to go to college, but also the first one to graduate law school. So yes, they knew early on that I was going to try to become a lawyer because of my interest in politics, world affairs, and settlement problems. Yep.

 

Pamela: So, I imagine they became very proud of you with all your accomplishments?

 

Cole: Eh, they like me. They’ll keep me.

 

Pamela: They said, “Well, he’s a keeper.” Okay. Well, tell us about your biggest challenges and your biggest wins, because I know you’ve had several iterations of your
law career. So, maybe you can say with one that was maybe one of your biggest challenges.

 

Cole: Well, so in the long time that I’ve been involved in the legal industry- even before I became- I went to law school, I was working on Capitol Hill. So, I’ve done just about almost everything, in terms of whether it was criminal, civil, government, academia, and in-house or private practice. And I think that the interesting thing about law is that you can keep moving until you find your niche. There’s so much to do. I can only say that- at the end of the day, if I were to look back, Pamela, it was that I eventually, you know, at some point in my career, decided that it really is all about service. It’s a service business, and who you want to serve. And if you can figure that out, then you will have a rewarding career. But I will have to tell you there were a lot of bumps along the road. You know, a lot of times when I was unhappy with my career. You know, if I was representing someone who I thought was guilty, or fighting over an issue that I thought was completely irrelevant, but it’s all emotional. Then I would say, “Why am I doing this? Is this really why I became a lawyer?” Or worrying about keeping hours, or trying to go get business. So, it is a very, very stressful career but if you find who you want to serve, and you help that person or that group of people, I find then you hit your groove.

 

Pamela: So, can you think of an example of when you were not serving the people that you felt you were meant to serve?

 

Cole: Well, so I had my own firm for a while, and I even had to do divorce and, you know, personal injury matters, and other sorts of disputes where, you know, I just really could care less about people fighting over furniture, or kids or something, because again- I’m a peacemaker. I’m a businessman. And this didn’t make sense to me, and I really didn’t want to do it. So, I kept moving and at the ripe old age of 30, I was going to leave the practice of law and I went to one of my clients, who was a CEO, and I said, “I’m leaving.” And he said to me, “Well, before you leave, come on inside and work as our counsel inside, and see if you like the business world.” And I loved it! So, 25 years later, right- I work for the greatest company as their GC- but 25 years later, I learned that I really like working with business people and like how the business world works. And now I’m trying to bring that type of analytics, and discipline, and client service to Blank Rome and to other lawyers.

 

Pamela: Okay, so tell us about- what is your ideal situation as far as being of service, say, to your firm with Blank Rome today?

 

Cole: So, in my opinion, you know, people only pay for two things: one is to solve your problem or two: to make you feel good. So, you know, solving a problem is obviously is what lawyers do. I mean, people don’t line up outside lawyers’ offices because they’re going to feel good. People don’t get up in the morning and say, “I’m gonna call my lawyer so I feel good.” So, if you can solve your client’s problem in an efficient way that’s practical, cost effective, and you know, as I said, efficient, and make the client feel good about dealing with you, then you’ve really won because those are the two issues that clients pay for. And since I was the client for so long, Pamela, I would always scratch my head when lawyers would drop the ball on client service. But as you know, it’s not just lawyers. How often do you go out there and do any kind of business in the world and say to yourself, “Wow! That was outstanding service?” You know, unless you’re at the Four Seasons or Nordstrom’s, or Disney. So, I’m trying to bring that level of attention, of experience, to the law field.

 

Pamela: Okay, that’s a really good goal. And, just generally over your span of your career, what do you think, like, with the law schools and so forth- what attention do you think that they’re training lawyers initially forced client service?

 

Cole: So, I think, Pamela, that mostly law schools are missing the boat. You know, they teach us how to be really good lawyers and tacticians, but they don’t really teach us anything about the business of law, about getting clients, about managing other lawyers, or about taking care of clients in a service-oriented way. I even, actually, approached the Dean of the law school once to teach a class on marketing and business development for the law school, and they said, “Well, we can’t get accreditation through the ABA, so we can’t do it.”

I’ve given presentations to law students and I would say to your law student audience, find out who you want to serve, as I said, learn about the things that are going on in the market, whether learning how to read a financial statement, or learning about codes- technology software codes, object codes, and also, figure out that you are going to have to deliver value- to somebody. If you’re in private practice, you’re going to have to get a book. Because when you have a book, you have security, you have wealth, you have freedom, you can pick and choose the clients that you work with, and if you don’t have a book, what happens is, Pamela, you wind up and you’re 50 years old, you have kids in college, you have a big mortgage, you’re caring for elder parents, and you’re at risk. So, the world is different today than when I started. You need a book today.

 

Pamela: Absolutely, absolutely.

 

Cole: That is the- should be- the golden rule today because without a book of business- In-house counsel, as well. You know, a lot of us- when we moved in-house, we thought, “Well, you know, we don’t have to market, or brand ourselves, or network anymore.” But that’s not true, because I know a lot of lawyers who- where the company is sold, they’re out of a job, or they- God forbid, the company goes out of business…stuff happens. And we all have to figure out what our value proposition is to the market, and brand ourselves, and continuously be out there, be visible, provide value, and take clear care of your client.

 

Pamela: Okay, very good.

 

Cole: And get Pamela as your coach.

 

Pamela: Yes, thank you, thank you. Yeah, because it is important to build that book of business. So now, what is it that you tell your lawyers in your law firm, as far as finding time in their busy schedules to do these things: client service, building a book of business, meeting new potential clients, networking- how do you approach this with your lawyers there?

 

Cole: Yeah. So, you know, with billable hours, the work that you have to get done, the emergency motions, let alone your family and your private life, time is a major issue. You’re absolutely right. What I tell lawyers is that, in general, you can find just 15-20 minutes a day where you- this is all you’ll do, even if you’ll just call a client or someone you haven’t spoken to in a while, say, “How you doing? How’s the family? How’s business?” And let them talk. You have to find the time, Pamela. You have to. And that time should be very concentrated, because if you don’t, as I said, life moves very fast and you wake up one day and you say, “Where did it all go?” You’ve got to figure out what- you know, 15 minutes, 20 minutes a day that you can either have lunch with somebody, call somebody, write an article, connect with Pamela on LinkedIn, something. You’ve got to find the time.

 

Pamela: Yeah, I try to have my clients spend three hours a week and, if at all possible, to find an uninterrupted time to do that. But Cole, I think the main thing, also, is that they want to have records- it has to be in a place where they can access it. You know, it has to be in a notebook, or somewhere on their desktop where they have the names, where they can readily access that when they’re getting ready to do it, instead of scrambling around trying to see who they should call or contact. It has to be organized.

 

Cole: Oh, I absolutely agree. I’ll just make two quick points: one, along with what you’re saying, is you have to have a marketing system because if you don’t have a system, you don’t know what to do next, and as you said, you’re sort of scrambling and there are lots of systems out there. Find one, find a coach, find a book, get a system. And I think the second thing is: is that if you’re really way too busy, or you just hate marketing, then get help. You can ask. You can ask your assistant to do it. You can hire a virtual assistant to, you know, set up meetings. Get other people to help you, because look, if you- I know this one person left a big law firm and opened up his own practice, he did not hire a paralegal, he did not hire a secretary, he hired two marketing people and they did all the work. They did speeches for him. You know, wrote some speeches, got him connected to people. They did all the marketing. He is very successful. He practices law and does what he’s good at, and these ladies do marketing- what they’re good at, and it works very well.

 

Pamela: Oh boy, that’s really great! That’s a great success story. Thanks for sharing that, Cole. So now, what legacy would you like to leave in your law practice?

 

Cole: You mean other than being Attorney of the Week on your website?

 

Pamela: Yeah.

 

Cole: So, I wanted to be an ambassador for other countries. Instead, I’m now the client ambassador, and so in a way, it all wraps around whatever legacy that I want to leave. And that is, I’m just about helping people succeed. That’s my juice. Whether it’s my lawyers, whether it’s my clients, or whether it’s other people who come to me for advice, it’s always been about their success.

 

Pamela: That’s great, that’s great. And, you know, I had an opportunity to meet your son. What would you want your son to see in his dad? Which he sees, but what do you- what is it that you want for your son to see?

 

Cole: So, I think that we live in unusual times, where people in government and people in authority have very little integrity, in character. And that upsets me. And so, what I want my son and my other son to see is someone who is honest, has integrity, does what he says, and has the wherewithal to do what’s right. Not just what’s expedient, not what’s in my favor, but to do what’s right.

 

Pamela: Integrity. Thank you, thank you. That’s beautiful. So, our final question that we ask every lawyer is: what do you do to manage your stress levels?

 

Cole: So, you know, I think I usually just go in my car and scream really loud. I tried all different things. You know, like meditation and yoga. And, you know, everyone’s different. Everyone has got to find their own space. Me- for me- being alone, gathering myself, and walking around nature is really what’s going to do it for me. You know, I have been in the business a long time, so I’ve seen those people that, you know, have gone the wrong side, like doing drugs or alcohol, or having other problems. And I would say to those people, you know, call you- call Pamela, call people that can help you because that’s- that’s not where you want to be, and that’s certainly not going to really handle the stress effectively. Find your place, find your soulful place, and mindfulness, and you can manage the stress. And also, lastly, you gotta laugh at yourself, right? You can’t take yourself too seriously.

 

Pamela: Absolutely. Yeah, I just wanted to ask you- because I know that you know that there’s a lot going on about how the legal profession is at risk, and the statistics for alcoholism, anxiety, drug usage, and depression. What is your viewpoint on all this new research that’s come out?

 

Cole: Well obviously, you know, I feel very sad about it and every time I meet someone who needs help, I try to help them. I don’t know what the- the overall perception or answer is, Pamela, other than to seek out professional help or get a new career. I mean, the beautiful thing about law is that you can do so many different things. So, if in your current situation, it is stressing you out to the point of hurting your health, there are other options for you. And I would just say, you know, be aggressive and innovative with your career and your life. Life is very short. You know, I know guys that have died at their desk and we don’t want to do that. Whether it’s being overworked, or whether it’s because of alcoholism or something else, get help, change- you know, change your game. You know, and really, really take the bull by the horn, for you and your family.

 

Pamela: Great. Thank you, Cole. Umm- is there- what would you say- what is something about you that probably no one knows? A trick question.

 

Cole: That wasn’t on the sheet, Pamela. Let’s see. Well, I want- I wanted to be Secretary of State, and it didn’t work out. How’s that?

 

Pamela: Okay, that’s great. That’s a good one, that’s a good one.

 

Cole: We’ll leave the really personal stuff off, okay?

 

Pamela: Yeah, we’ll leave the really personal stuff off. But I- you know, it just seems like you- from a young person, age, you had a- you had a drive and a passion towards Capitol Hill.

 

Cole: Yeah well, you know, I’m not so sure, because otherwise I might have run, you know, for office. But what I think the bigger passion for me- and this is really what is so great about being a lawyer, and this is why I respect lawyers- the law profession is a way of solving problems in a non-violent, hopefully fair and efficient manner, and lawyers can serve a huge purpose in keeping, you know, our human tendency towards war at bay. And so, I would say to all the lawyers, you know, who are listening to your show: keep the good fight going. They need us more than ever now, with the attacks on the judiciary, and with the attacks on civil rights. I highly respect lawyers and what they do.

 

Pamela: Thank you. Well, Cole, thank you so much for being our Lawyer of the Week. And to our audience, I hope to see you again next week.

 

Cole: Thank you.

 

Cole’s Links:

LinkedIn

Blank Rome LLP