Pannone LLP (Manchester)
Our view....
With a total of more than 700 staff Pannone is the certainly no small fry. Whilst it clearly hasn't got the clout or cash of say Addleshaws, things are going well enough for it to be content to sit tight and grow organically. A growth strategy which saw the Manchester-based firm make its first foray into London in 2010.
It’s not been the easiest of times for Pannone recently. None too surprising given its exposure to commercial and real estate work. The firm entered a pretty extensive redundancy programme in 2010, which saw it lay off 40 staff members. Total head count slumped by 7% compared with 2009 and the partnership was reduced by 13% over the same period. Turnover has also suffered, falling by 6% in 2009/2010 to 49.1m and then in the 2010/11 period dipping by a further 3%, to £49.5m.
Still it’s not exactly on the breadline and it’s still managing to rake in more cash than rival Cobbetts. The firm is growing its healthy private client department, which contributes significantly to its coffers, alongside the PI and clinical negligence work for which the firm is consistently ranked as top drawer. Plus a Homes and Community Agency panel place will no doubt help the firm bolster its public sector practice.
Pannone will also turn its hand to pretty much anything - it acted for five men released from a Saudi jail after being convicted of a series of bombings. And whilst the jury's still out on whether the firm can compete with the big boys on corporate work, it's investing a lot of effort in trying to ramp up its reputation here. The firm's commercial departments now deal with 50% of Pannones' business.
A big play was made out of the Pannone's high placing in the Sunday Times Best Company to Work for Survey. Rather magnificently the firm – albeit not without a
certain amount of controversy - managed to scoop the best law firm slot for seven years on the trot. Although clearly tired of its winning streak, the firm failed to even enter the running in 2011, confessing it “
couldn’t be bothered”.
Whilst Pannone’s long reign at the top of this survey may be a little perplexing, the firm does seem to be a genuinely civilised place at which to work. Insiders praise the “
relaxed atmosphere” and the “
real sense of pulling together during the downturn”. Evenings and weekends are generally your own, there's a clear route to partnership and defined promotion criteria. Several assistants work four day weeks and there are various career paths including to marketing and PSL roles. Plus it boasts a female Managing Partner and an impressive 40% female partnership. Complaints are relatively few and far between. The major gripes seemed to be “
poor pay and bonus structure” and meeting room biscuits which, apparently, “
could involve more chocolate”.
The firm tries very hard to make sure that everyone knows what a jolly friendly place it is to work. Traditionally slightly too hard, in fact. It recently opted for an expensive – and perhaps questionable - re-branding campaign. This saw it introduce the excitingly-titled “Pannonevision”, which mainly seems to consist of advertising on taxis, a very odd video and plenty of ill-advised profile pictures of its lawyers gurning as they grapple with various forms of technology (an iPad, a phone, a biro etc…). But this, at least, is an improvement on a previous incarnation of the firm's website, which offered rather more than you'd like to know about its partners. Still, if you're preparing for an interview you might want to bear in mind that HR Director Rachel Dobson likes Avocados, Star Trek and the Tweenies...