London—Dentons plans to embed 'O Shaped' principles into the management of key client relationships as part of its UK, Ireland and Middle East (UKIME) strategy. 

Founded in 2019 by a former Network Rail General Counsel Dan Kayne as a movement for change in the legal profession, O Shaped combines leadership development expertise with general counsel experience. It's Leadership Development Faculty, led by Carrie Fletcher, Research Fellow at London Business School's Leadership Institute and an Affiliate Instructor at Harvard Law School Exec Ed, will lead a series of workshops that will bring Dentons and clients together to explore how the 'Five Os Mindset' and '12 O Shaped Attributes' can help to set mutual expectations, identify areas of improvement and develop a sustainable, long term relationship approach that creates value for the business. 

'The O Shaped movement is about engaging with business colleagues in a more human and empathetic way – being people first, then lawyers', said Dan Kayne. 'Dentons is the first global law firm to embed these principles into its key client relationships. We're creating an environment where Dentons lawyers can put themselves into the shoes of clients so they can truly understand what matters to them and how their external legal advisers can support them in achieving their objectives. The goal is for all participants to move forward together to deliver the best possible outcomes for the business.'

UKIME Clients and Markets Partners James Batham and Sarah Beeby, and Director of Clients & Markets Damian Taylor, will lead this initiative. Workshops will explore issues such as what a great customer experience looks like, how to build trust as a cornerstone to developing sustainable relationships, and the extent to which risk aversion holds relationships back. The process will culminate in an account plan that incorporates agreed 'value creation' initiatives. 

'Emotional intelligence, trust and identifying opportunities are all attributes that we know our clients value and that we have been training our lawyers to develop for some years now,' said UKIME CEO Paul Jarvis. 'The partnership with O Shaped reflects our goal of bringing our teams together with in house colleagues. This is a logical step for us to take as part of our strategy to invest in valued client relationships, including the individuals and teams on all sides, so that we can improve our entire approach to the delivery of work and how we support our clients.'

About Dentons

Across over 80 countries, Dentons helps you grow, protect, operate and finance your organization by providing uniquely global and deeply local legal solutions. Polycentric, purpose-driven and committed to inclusion, diversity, equity and sustainability, we focus on what matters most to you. www.dentons.com