Building Long-Term Strategic Value by Addressing Barriers to Future-Oriented Legal Thinking

Abstract

Managerial employees come to legal training programs with unique attitudinal viewpoints stemming from dissimilar goals, opinions, biases, expectations, and preconceived notions about the value they will derive from the training sessions. As participants’ attitudinal viewpoints toward training affect the overall effectiveness of training programs, any training initiatives must incorporate measures designed to promote training receptivity among participants. The reduction of anxieties relative to participation in the training process represents a critical measure for enhancing training receptivity among managerial participants. A critical aspect of promoting training receptivity among participants involves building relationships between the trainers and the trainees. Trust is central to the cultivation of relationships between trainers and trainees within the learning environment. The purpose of this article is to identify team building, reflection, and other rapport building exercises organizations may use to support training programs designed to encourage managerial embrace of proactive, future-oriented legal thinking.

Keywords: legal strategy