The City firm, which already has the role of ‘senior associate’ for five year-qualified assistants, will now be able to offer its fee earners a newly-created ‘associate’ position at three years' post-qualification experience.
The move follows a firmwide consultation that lasted around a year. A promotion to the associate role will include a pay increase, although the exact sum will not be decided until the firm’s July pay reviews.
Head of human resources Margaret Brooks told Legal Week: “For people who have just qualified it looks like a long route between them and senior associate and it gives them something to aim for.”
In order to achieve promotion at both stages assistants have to hit certain targets including showing business and client development skills.
Dentons has also introduced a managing associate role, which will be an alternative to partnership.
Unlike many firms, which have introduced the role as a retention tool in light of diminishing partner prospects, it is anticipated that there will only be 15 managing associates at any one time. It is envisaged that the role will reward fee-earners who, at that time in their career are not interested in partnership, but may still change their mind.
Chief executive Howard Morris told Legal Week: “It is an alternative to partnership but admitting the possibility that people’s aspirations may change.”
It is expected that the majority of assistants at the firm will be promoted to the associate rank and the firm denied that either the new associate or senior associate role is a way of ‘sieving’ for partnership.