Law firm DAC Beachcroft embraces ‘agile’ working at Victorian landmark

The £200m-turnover group has adopted “agile” working at its new premises in Leeds and plans to roll out the practice across its global office network.

DAC Beachcroft has moved into St Paul’s House, a refurbished Grade II-listed warehouse built in Venetian architectural style for the 19th century textiles tycoon and politician Sir John Barran.

Virginia Clegg, the incoming senior partner, told The Yorkshire Post: “I don’t believe you should be in a building if it sits in the liability side. It should be firmly as an asset and this is. It is just beautiful.

“We have gone into a completely different way of working. We don’t have assigned desks. We are agile. It’s a huge change for lawyers and ours is the first in the family to move into that place.”

Ms Clegg is the daughter of Tony Clegg, a leading property entrepreneur of the 1980s and the former chief executive of textiles group Mountleigh plc.

She said lawyers have access to lots of different work settings but at the end of each day must clear up all their paperwork and leave their desks empty.

Previously the firm occupied 32,000 sq ft across two offices in Leeds. It now occupies 24,000 sq ft in the city.

Ms Clegg said the firm divided itself into teams and analysed desk usage, discovering that some teams were out a lot and “desk light” while some were “desk heavy”.

By utilising down time - the average desk is empty for 40 per cent of the working day - the firm has managed to save money in spite of moving to a vastly superior office environment. It has also reduced the amount of printing.

Ms Clegg said: “I have got real estate clients, big office developers who don’t understand how we are doing it who are coming to see me and talk to me. It’s like a mystery this.”

She added: “We have brought down our property costs even though we have come two horrible old buildings to a beautiful new building. We will roll it out across the whole portfolio ultimately. We are the pioneers.”

DAC Beachcroft has offices across the UK, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and North America. It employs 2,200 people.

Ms Clegg said: “We have got to be more efficient. The legal sector is heavy user of space. It is traditional.

“We have been open plan for years, but if you talk to some in the legal sector they are still in offices. It’s just about recognising space usage.

“And surprise, surprise everybody has a desk even though we might work eight desks to 10 people. For agile working, that’s the benchmark. On the basis that on any given day, a number of people are out, off sick or on holiday.

“It’s great fun, our people absolutely love agile working. They talk to different people every day.

“They say that collaboration and productivity goes up because people talk to one another and have better spaces to chat.”

She added: “It’s not mumbo jumbo. It’s about people and how people best work and providing the best space for people to work in and we will save cost which means we can invest in things that we want to invest in - like our people.”

Ms Clegg was elected as senior partner of the global firm earlier this month.

The 50-year-old, who was born in Bradford, said: “I am very interested in our people and our culture and our clients. That’s the ticket I stood on.”

Northern cities must gather themselves

With offices across the North in Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle, the law firm DAC Beachcroft is well qualified to have a view on the Government’s concept of a Northern Powerhouse.

Virginia Clegg, head of the Leeds office, said northern cities need to gather themselves to make the most of the opportunity.

She told The Yorkshire Post: “The northern cities need to come together to actually deliver proper investment into the North and it will need the Government to help. They need to put some proper teeth behind it.

“But I do think the cities themselves need to gather themselves up and work out what it is they want from it.”

The firm is hosting a meeting with James Wharton MP, the minister for the Northern Powerhouse, this October in Newcastle.

Ms Clegg, a senior real estate partner, was elected senior partner of DAC Beachcroft earlier this month. David Pollitt will be the firm’s new managing partner.

The roles will take effect on November 1.