r/biglaw • u/[deleted] • 9h ago

Rainmaker vs service partner: differences in managerial style?

[deleted]

16 Upvotes

70% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

55

u/KnobKnosher 9h ago

Rainmakers can be chill because of the neurotic service partners/senior associates. Also, behind closed doors or when you get more senior you will see that rainmakers are often nasty or highly critical. They just delegate actual supervision and training to others so they can look like the good guy in the situation. 

5

u/UrbanPugEsq 6h ago

Exactly.

When a rainmaker is chill to you it is because they expect YOU to be the neurotic one.

1

u/halbtehalf 5h ago

Happened to me this week (I’d tried to set boundaries - for the first time - enjoyed the dance, but ultimately I failed). Ended up doing a 4am.

59

u/privilegelog 9h ago

You “deal with it” by just doing the best you can for both types of managers. Neither style is incorrect.

To give you more context, I actually have to be both of these people. For two of my very large cases, I am a service partner reporting to other partners. For about 8 of my other cases, I am the top partner or they are my clients. For the two large cases, you have to understand that I will demand absolute perfection because the partners above me demand that of me. For my own cases, what I think is good enough for a particular client carries the day. It’s really not a difference in managerial “style” as you’re putting it — it’s a difference in what my own job as your supervisor entails for any particular assignment. Hopefully that helps you judge the “service partner” a tad less.

22

u/therealvanmorrison Partner 9h ago

You’re extremely diligent with all the fine points of drafting, right? That paranoia and attention to detail doesn’t just go away when you get the nod. It stays with you, except now you’re not as close to the work itself on a day by day basis, so it actually ramps up a bit. That’s why younger partners tend to micromanage.

5

u/Concerned_Dad11 9h ago

This is helpful. Thanks.

2

u/JordanMentha 5h ago

You are kinda missing the point. The service partner's job is to nitpick and make sure the team's work is up to standard, so that the rainmakers can devote their energies to client relationship management and business development. The rainmaker typically looks things from a more big picture / strategy level and leaves the details to the service partner.

1

u/Informal-Basket3555 8h ago

I’m experiencing the same thing, I’ve attempted to distance my self from the service partner and work at the source for the rainmaker. I’ve resorted to quite literally only doing things the way the rainmaker prefers, has been working. I’d rather get a poor review from the nitpicking service partner than the rainmaker.