community leader program

what will be covered in this blog post: 

  • goals of the community leader program
  • why you?
  • what’s the benefit?
  • how will it work?

looking for the helpers

Community leaders and role models are in every industry. They are the ones who stand out, the ‘go-to’ experts, the leaders who you can rely on for honest, timely information that is relevant to their reader/ client.

What would it mean to let leaders lead; distributing ownership between those on the forefront of the community blueprint. Alongside community leaders, LexBlog – equipping and empowering lawyers at a larger reach. We’re looking for quality, genuine, impactful lawyers that are speaking up often, looking for ways to help, expanding legal access to all, and passionately engaged in their jurisdiction.

“It’s time to rebuild companies not from the top down or even the bottom up but from the middle out—through groups of middle managers who bond together and drive key changes in their organization.” – Henry Mintzbeerg
The community leaders we’re looking for are the ones currently driving change and advancements in their practice areas. We’re simply recognizing them and utilizing them to pull others up, too.

these will be our guiding pillars for outlining the leaders we reach out to in these efforts.

1. Community leaders see themselves as being in the center, reaching out rather than down. They facilitate change, recognizing that much of it must be driven by others.

2. Community leaders are personally engaged in order to engage others, so that anyone and everyone can exercise initiative.

3. Community leaders benefit and get benefitted, too. Commitment becomes contagious when people realize its immense benefits not only to the organization but to themselves. healthy organizations take corporate social responsibility seriously and gain significant benefits in return.

We’re looking for the leaders who take the corporate social responsibility seriously – those who contagiously infect others to do the same because they recognize the value in the results.

goals of the community leader program: what we’re looking to accomplish

  • identify the model bloggers in each practice area in key metro cities in each state
  • empower, equip, and partner with leaders in key industries who are covering niche areas of the law and blogging/ providing publications online
  • shine the spotlight on bloggers in each jurisdiction in each state who are publishing good content, often
  • shine the spotlight on bloggers who are passionate and motivated to see growth in the legal blogging community in each state, and to identify the areas of the law in each state that are lacking open, accessible information.
  • identify the lawyers who are creating meaningful relationships on the internet and cementing their reputation through word of mouth connections via their blog and see more mentorship from these lawyers
  • shine the spotlight on the lawyers who care about their clients in a real and authentic way, and who are already helping to expand legal access services to those who need it
  • partner with thought leaders who are creating already offering resources and other relevant legal/social commentary for their clients and other lawyers in the industry
  • through partnership and mentorship, we will push recruitment efforts of law students at top law schools to syndicate their content onto LexBlog’s platform
  • foster conversation and engagement

 

who we’re going after: those we think are doing a really good job.

The heart behind the community leader program, in a nutshell, is to shine the light on people who are doing good work for others. Our goal is to build a community that functions sustainably and grows consistently. First, we must lay the foundation with sturdy, trusted pillars –this is where community leaders come in.

Our approach to helping legal bloggers in each industry thrive: identify the model leaders in each practice area, state, and bar association. Once we’ve identified the top industry leaders and bloggers, it will be our responsibility to elevate the work of said key leaders, give them ownership of online engagement with their community, and bridge the gap between connections.

In return, it will be the community leaders responsibility to be the trusted source of guidance for which other lawyers can measure excellence and success. It will be their responsibility to elevate the standards of a strong online presence, timely and insightful reporting on a niche area of the law, and to create real, authentic relationships with other lawyers and clients.

By partnering with leading lawyers, we will continue the mission of teaching our communities how to also become the go-to lawyers in their practice area. Together, we will be empowering the voices of our communities and generating the most timely legal information on the internet.

This community will be passionate about the pursuit to expand legal services for good. We will be dedicated to measuring success through relationship building and advancing digital publications of the law, accessible for all. Our goal is to equip and empower a global network built around LexBlog’s mission to provide real-time news and insights powered by the legal community.

what will this look like?

What we’re hoping to accomplish, through mediums such as state-based-portals, slack channels and open forum discussion, is building authentic relationships. What we’re hoping to see come from those relationships is business success, advancement of the law, and a sense of belonging in a community bigger than yourself.

Via syndication portals of each state, searchable databases of information by jurisdiction will become a searchable database in one centralized hub. Portals (like Illinois, Texas, Arizona, Wisconsin, New York, and more) will aggregate all legal blog content into a quasi digital magazine featuring the best and most relevant blog posts on a constant basis. Each portal includes profiles of the contributing lawyers, their blog, and their firm.

In each portal, channels will break down facets of the law that the firms in each state (with legal blogs) are covering.

LexBlog admin would partner with the community leader to keep their community up to date with timely news and information, keeping portals up-to-date each day, inviting in other firms or lawyers in the state with legal blogs, and create open forum discussions via slack to generate real conversation.

Through slack channels broken down by state. The community leaders of key areas of the law in each state, alongside myself (the community manager of lexblog), will help facilitate connections between other lawyers in the industry, provoke thoughtful conversation and dialogue, and share resources with the community.

Since we believe everyone should have access to the law, we are confident LexBlog has the ability to help others by providing the most timely, relevant legal news in all facets of the law, written by thought leaders like yourself.

Through communities on social platforms, as well as syndication of blogs broken down by state, the legal community will have access to information like never before. Additionally, people seeking help can find the lawyers who are experts in each area of the law.

Lawyers now, more than ever, will have a chance to help those seeking it and showcase their expertise through LexBlog’s turnkey solution and free support.

The community manager at LexBlog will be working closely with each community leader to develop content, conversation, and spaces for the community within each practice area to build lasting relationships.

 

closing note

“Getting talented people to work effectively with one another takes trust and respect, which we as managers can’t mandate; they must be earned over time. What we can do is construct an environment that nurtures trusting and respectful relationships and unleashes everyone’s creativity. If we get that right, the result is a vibrant community where talented people are loyal to one another and their collective work, everyone feels that they are part of something extraordinary, and their passion and accomplishments make the community a magnet for talented people coming out of schools or working at other places. I know what I’m describing is the antithesis of the free-agency practices that prevail in the movie industry, but that’s the point: I believe that community matters.”