By Lisa Goh
Businesses, including legal firms, will have to innovate if they are to survive the financial storm ahead.
That was the key message delivered by Mei Lum, co-founder and principal consultant of MWKA Technologies, at the League of Lawyers Inaugural Online Conference on 30 April 2020.
MahWengKwai & Associates (MWKA) hosted the three-hour conference, which saw the participation of guests and member firms from Bangladesh, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Thailand and the United Kingdom. The aim of the conference was to enable its members to learn from each other to pivot and grow during the Covid-19 pandemic.
MWKA Technologies, which is based in Singapore, is the technology research and development arm of MWKA. It serves clients in Singapore, Malaysia, China and Europe in the areas of blockchain, financial technology, digital transformation and change management.
“Hybrid-remote working will become the new normal, which includes training, upskilling and repurposing of staff,” Mei said, in her talk titled Business Continuity during Covid-19: The Show Must Go On.
Mei mapped out effective strategies for managing remote work while maintaining productivity, and shared some tools and practises that law firms could utilise. She also shared why it was crucial for businesses to build trust, and to take care of their teams and people while working online, and how it can be done through collaboration and engagement.
MWKA practice manager Stella Lau also gave a talk during the conference titled Process Demo: Business Development through Online Events, in which she mapped out the requirements for conducting a successful online event.
Henning von Zanthier, President of the League of Lawyers, said he was proud that 12 lawyers from 10 member firms (out of 16) of the League of Lawyers, and 8 lawyers from 5 guest law firms took part in the league’s first intercontinental webinar.
“I am amazed at how structured MWKA is in tackling marketing issues, as spearheaded by Mei Lum, be it by analyzing the needs or the technological reach to potential clients. The presentation itself was also very well structured in terms of substance and technology. For me, the ability to have break-out rooms was particularly interesting.
“It was a very interesting session, in which we were able to discuss and exchange experience. Almost all the participants stayed until the very end, in order to get as much information as possible. Thank you for this event to the excellent and dedicated team at MWKA!” he said.
Raymond Mah, managing partner of MWKA, said the inaugural virtual conference was a very positive experience for the members of the League of Lawyers.
“The presentations by Mei Lum and her team from MWKA Technologies were very substantive and well received. The video conferencing technology was well organised and the break-out rooms facilitated more intimate discussions between members.
“It was particularly noticeable that members were able to have meaningful conversations with each other, notwithstanding that attendees were calling in from 15 different countries with up to 8 hours in time differences.”
Raymond said his biggest takeaway from the meeting was that law firms across the globe were facing similar concerns and that effective use of technology could allow their international networks and connections to continue thriving even though they could not physically meet during this period.
The League of Lawyers is a platform for law firms from various jurisdictions to exchange thoughts and coordinate efforts on business development, best practices, knowledge management and resource exchange.
League of Lawyers was formed in 2013, with it founding members are from Malaysia, Australia, Germany, India and Hong Kong with the objective of being a platform for law firms to exchange thoughts and coordinate efforts on image branding, business development, best practices, knowledge management and resource exchange. Today, it has members from 17 countries across Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, where it serves the needs of its clients who have inbound and outbound business investments.
By Lisa Goh
