With long-term managing partner Jonathan Watmough stepping down in December last year, insurance head James Miller has taken over the reins at RPC. Legal Business caught up with him to discuss the priorities for the new leader.
What is your immediate strategy for RPC?
So far it has been business as usual. I’m very lucky to come in on the back of 11.5% turnover growth over five years. Insurance has been one of our core strengths and we will continue to invest there, but my focus now is on the whole firm. Really we try to invest in people: if we felt we were under strength we would hire, but I am quite happy with our strategic balance.
What is the plan for RPC Consulting?
RPC Consulting is something we identified as a concept in 2010, before Rory O’Brien and his team came on board in 2015. I had been drafting the insurance group strategy at the time and it became part of that. We are definitely going to continue investing as it is fully part of RPC’s plan to offer a range of professional services.
How was the election and handover process?
I had been the joint interim managing partner with Tim Anderson for a few months, which made it easier for me. There was nothing when I came in on day one that I hadn’t been discussing already with partners.
What are your plans for deploying technology effectively throughout the firm?
We have launched ReSecure, a cyber security product, to provide advice in the event of a data security breach. That was only launched recently and client take up has been exceptional, so the current plan is to keep optimising it.
What is your international plan?
Asia has really blown the lights out. Our joint venture we launched with Premier Law in Singapore has been an immediate success. To me it looked like it took barely 30 minutes to take off.
In Hong Kong we have an alliance with Smyth & Co. I recently had to qualify in Hong Kong in September alongside senior partner Rupert Boswall as part of the process towards integration. It was all very strange going back to university at the age of 52.
matthew.field@legalease.co.uk