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Bond, Schoeneck & King combination with Buffalo firm will complete a long-held goal
SYRACUSE — Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC — Central New York’s largest law firm, ranked by number of area attorneys — first entered the Buffalo legal market in 1997. It was a labor and employment law boutique and “that was fine. It’s a strong practice area for us,” Richard Hole, chairman of Bond’s management […]
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SYRACUSE — Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC — Central New York’s largest law firm, ranked by number of area attorneys — first entered the Buffalo legal market in 1997.
It was a labor and employment law boutique and “that was fine. It’s a strong practice area for us,” Richard Hole, chairman of Bond’s management committee, tells CNYBJ in an Oct. 5 interview.
But around 2005, the law firm’s management at the time decided to start working on becoming a full-service office in Buffalo, upstate New York’s largest metro area. Bond added practice areas including litigation, employee benefits, and intellectual property.
Flash forward to February of this year: Hole called Joseph Kubarek, managing partner of Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel, LLP in Buffalo, to gauge his interest in a possible combination of their respective law firms.
“We’ve known each other for a long time,” says Hole, who has been practicing law for 40 years. In fact, Kubarek, who has been a lawyer for more than 30 years, worked as an associate in Bond’s Syracuse office earlier in his career. And Kubarek and Hole are both natives of Auburn.
The discussion went well. “It was fortuitous timing” that Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel had also made the decision to pursue a combination, says Hole. “We met constantly and we kept at it. It took until September, and knew we had something.”
On Sept. 30, Bond, Schoeneck & King announced it would be combining with Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel, effective Jan. 1. Actually, the first business day will be Jan. 4, Hole says.
“This opportunity presented itself and instantly makes us a full-service office. That really was the strategy from our standpoint. From their standpoint, they saw the need to add depth and experience in areas they had plus add new areas: health care, public finance, creditor’s rights,” Hole explains.
The combined law firm will use the Bond, Schoeneck & King name and a have a 51-lawyer office in Buffalo (36 from the Jaeckle firm and 15 from Bond), likely making it the fourth largest law firm in Western New York.
Buffalo would also become the second largest office for Bond, after its Syracuse headquarters. The firm has nine locations in New York state and 11 overall. It will have 265 attorneys total, following the link up. It has 230 now.
The combination with the Jaeckle firm is Bond’s biggest deal in its history, says Hole. Its past deals have mostly involved adding law practices with single-digit numbers of attorneys.
So, the firms have a lot of integration work to do before the New Year.
“We have to get our practice groups talking to each other developing plans. There is a whole bunch of training that has to go on. And technology integration that has to be done. All of the files… just a tremendous amount of behind the scenes work,” Hole says. “We’ll be in there and up and running on the first business day.”
Hole says the firms are still figuring out the staffing levels of their combined Buffalo office.
Bond’s Buffalo office will be located in Jaeckle’s office space in the Avant building — a mixed-use tower that spans one city block and includes offices, a hotel, and condos. Jaeckle has extra room in its office to accommodate the Bond attorneys and staff coming over and does not need to lease extra space, Hole notes. He
couldn’t specify the square footage.
Bond’s current Buffalo office is in an 11,700-square-foot space at Fountain Plaza.
Once Bond, Schoeneck & King completes this combination, Hole says he expects his firm “will continue to look for opportunities” around New York state. But he’s satisfied his firm is accomplishing a major objective in Western New York.
“Buffalo was high on our radar because we wanted to become a full-service firm there.”
Valicenti Advisory Services announces new location for Tax and Business Services Department
ELMIRA — Valicenti Advisory Services, Inc. announced that its Tax and Business Services Department, formerly located at 350 West Church St., and Valicenti Insurance Services, Inc., formerly situated at 400 E. Water St., have moved to 447 E. Water St. in Elmira. “With the continued growth of the Tax and Business Services Department and
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ELMIRA — Valicenti Advisory Services, Inc. announced that its Tax and Business Services Department, formerly located at 350 West Church St., and Valicenti Insurance Services, Inc., formerly situated at 400 E. Water St., have moved to 447 E. Water St. in Elmira.
“With the continued growth of the Tax and Business Services Department and our affiliate, Valicenti Insurance Services…, and with more and more of our clients utilizing our multiple services, we felt it necessary to have our new location conveniently located to our main office at 400 E. Water St.,” Joseph M. Valicenti, president and CEO, said in a news release.
The firm has another office located at 24 W. Market St. in Corning.
Valicenti Advisory Services is an investment advisory firm with 24 professionals, according to its website. It began offering tax services in 2001. Since then, it has continued to see this part of its business grow, and has expanded its services to all areas of tax planning, tax preparation, and accounting services.
The firm provides corporate, personal and estate tax planning, tax-advantaged investment evaluation, tax examinations and appeals, estate and gift tax returns, trust tax returns, business-succession planning, accounting-systems design, and enhancement. The Tax and Business Services Department staff is comprised of two CPAs, one enrolled agent, and five tax preparers, according to the site.
I will never forget my first promotion, moving from sales representative to team leader, supporting a team of three inside-sales representatives. It was an exciting time, and I couldn’t wait to dive right in. After the first week in my new role, my excitement was replaced with doubt and my dive-right-in attitude turned into hesitation.
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I will never forget my first promotion, moving from sales representative to team leader, supporting a team of three inside-sales representatives. It was an exciting time, and I couldn’t wait to dive right in.
After the first week in my new role, my excitement was replaced with doubt and my dive-right-in attitude turned into hesitation. Did I make the right decision? Am I ready for these new responsibilities? What was I thinking?
The transition from individual contributor to supervisor is one of the most challenging transitions of your professional career. It can also be very rewarding. It’s perfectly natural to have questions such as: “Where do I start?” “What should I do and not do?” “Do I really have the experience and qualifications to lead others?”
Leadership experts, including John Maxwell, Stephen Covey, and Warren Bennis, provide great wisdom around improving our ability to lead teams and organizations. I’ve even learned some important lessons about leadership from fictional characters, ranging from Severus Snape in “Harry Potter” to James T. Kirk in “Star Trek.”
Let’s start with what not to do. New supervisors make three common mistakes that, if avoided, would make the leadership role transition a much more rewarding experience.
Common mistake 1: The “2-for-1” syndrome
Here is a typical scenario: Mary has been a star performer in the accounting department for five years. She is a team player, and has a strong track record in producing quality work and being committed to the organization’s mission. She’s promoted to accounting manager, responsible for supervising a team of seven people. One month into her new role, she’s feeling overwhelmed, stressed out, and frustrated. The quality of her accounting work is suffering and her team isn’t performing. Why?
The reason is simple. She’s continued to maintain all of the same responsibilities from her previous role, as well as taking on the added responsibilities of leading the team. I call this the “2-for-1” syndrome. Old job, plus new job, bigger paycheck (maybe), added stress, and disillusionment. While in some cases this might work out fine, what usually happens is that after a short time, the new manager feels like a failure and steps down from the leading role — or even worse, leaves the organization.
When moving from one role to a new role, old tasks must be shifted to make room for new responsibilities. Have a clear and specific transition plan. It’s okay to make a few adjustments to the plan along the way, but be sure to focus on what’s most important: leadership of the team.
Common mistake 2: Maintaining an expert style of leadership
It’s common for organizations to promote their smartest and highest achievers to leadership roles. These individuals tend to have what “Leadership Agility” author Bill Joiner calls a strong “expert style” of leadership. What often gets missed in the transition from individual contributor to leader of others is the importance of developing what Joiner calls a “catalyst style” of leadership.
According to Joiner, the expert style leader is more tactical and problem-solving; a catalyst leader is visionary and facilitative-oriented. An expert tends to strongly assert opinions or completely hold back to accommodate others; a catalyst is adept at balancing assertive and accommodative styles. An expert avoids giving or requesting feedback; a catalyst is proactive in seeking and offering feedback. When it comes to leading teams, an expert gets caught up in the details of the work. A catalyst can understand varying views and ideas and will empower direct reports to make decisions. While both styles are needed, the catalyst is agile in moving easily between the different styles, based upon the situation. Be an agile leader.
Common mistake 3: Placing too much emphasis on being liked
While likability is certainly a factor in developing rapport with others, focusing on being liked by your team can be misinterpreted by others as trying too hard, being disingenuous or fake, and lacking leadership ability. Instead of focusing on likability, focus on areas such as being a good listener, being empathetic, being fair, being open to new or different ideas, and being interested in the aspirations of those you’re leading. Ultimately, that’s what your team really likes.
There are three key areas to focus on as you begin your new leadership role. First, start by building trust with your team. Trust is the foundation of any great performing team and organization. Get to know the individuals on your team and allow them to get to know you. What fuels them to come to work each day? What are their aspirations? Their challenges? How can you best support them? This is an important first step in truly creating a high-performing team.
Next, strengthen your emotional intelligence. The value of emotional intelligence in leaders is frequently overlooked, and yet research shows it’s the differentiator between one who manages people and one who leads teams and organizations. Author Warren Bennis, an organizational consultant, recognized as a pioneer of leadership studies, said, “Emotional intelligence, more than any other factor — more than I.Q. or expertise — accounts for 85 percent to 90 percent of success at work. I.Q. is a threshold competence. You need it, but it doesn’t make you a star. Emotional intelligence can.”
Take the time to improve competencies such as empathy, self-awareness, inspirational leadership, and emotional self-control. Leading with just your I.Q. limits your potential to be a great leader. Get smart with E.Q.
Lastly, get a mentor. Find one you can trust to be supportive and who will provide honest and direct feedback. Unfortunately, you can’t always count on your supervisor to provide the feedback that will allow you to be the best you can be. Your mentor is someone you respect, has a proven leadership track record, and whom you’d be proud to emulate. It could be someone inside or outside the organization, and not necessarily from the same industry or profession. Look for someone who will push you to get outside of your comfort zone to perform at your highest potential.
The transition from individual contributor to supervisor and leader of others can be one of the most challenging transitions of your career. It can also be the most meaningful and rewarding. Make, and take, the time to focus on what’s most important during the move from one role to another: develop a catalyst leadership style; focus on something other than being liked; build trust with your team; get smart with E.Q.; and find a mentor. Leadership author John Maxwell summed it up simply,
“To keep leading, keep learning.”
Leadership development is an ongoing journey no matter where you are in your career. Enjoy the ride.
Cindy Masingill is a partner with Productivity Leadership Systems (PLS), a provider of executive coaching and leadership training, based in Baldwinsville. Contact her at Cindy@DiscoverPLS.com
NY Green Bank awards $4 million to a downstate firm with projects in CNY
The NY Green Bank has awarded a Brooklyn–based company $4 million in revolving construction loans for wind-energy projects throughout Central and Western New York. The
UTICA, N.Y. — The man who served as COO of St. Elizabeth Medical Center (SEMC) in Utica now holds the same role for the Mohawk
Syracuse University’s Burton Blatt Institute gets $2.5 million for research project
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse University’s (SU) Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) will use a $2.5 million federal grant for a five-year project focusing on people with
M&T Bank declares quarterly dividend of 70 cents a share
BUFFALO, N.Y — M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE: MTB), Central New York’s largest bank ranked by deposit market share, has declared a quarterly cash dividend of
Upstate Medical, area SUNY schools share $18M grant to create job-training consortium
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Five area SUNY schools will share an $18 million state grant to provide students and businesses access to labs and simulation centers.
Schneiderman fines Binghamton auto-parts shop for illegal sales of salvaged car air bags
BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Don’s Automotive Mall Inc. of Binghamton has agreed to pay the state a fine of $12,500 for selling salvaged automobile air bags
CountryMax to open in DeWitt Town Center, which is now at full occupancy
DeWITT, N.Y. — CountryMax, a Rochester–area, family-owned retailer of farm and garden products, in November plans to move its current Manlius store to a new
Stay up-to-date on the companies, people and issues that impact businesses in Syracuse, Central New York and beyond.