The Hidden Cost of Poor Employee Experience (It's More Than You Think)
Most senior partners see employee experience as a cost. Here's why that's backwards.
The Real Numbers
Replacing a lawyer costs 150-200% of their salary. For a £60k associate, that's £90-120k in recruitment, onboarding, and lost productivity.
If you're losing 5 people a year, that's £500k minimum. And that's just direct costs.
What You're Not Counting
Client relationships that walk out the door
Institutional knowledge that disappears overnight
Team morale when good people leave
The productivity dip while new hires get up to speed
Your reputation in a market where everyone talks
One City firm calculated their true turnover cost at £2.3 million annually. They were tracking none of it.
2025 BigHand Legal Talent & Resourcing Report
“Replacing a third-year associate now costs firms an estimated $1 million in lost revenue, recruitment, and training expenses. Attrition has climbed to an average of 27% across all lawyer levels in 2025, with significant disruption to client service and firm profitability as a result.”
The Flip Side
Firms that invest in employee experience see measurable returns:
25-40% reduction in turnover
17% increase in productivity
Stronger employer brand (cheaper, faster recruitment)
Higher client satisfaction scores
Where to Start
You don't need a massive budget. You need to understand where the friction is.
Talk to your people. Map their journey. Find the moments that matter—the touchpoints that make them want to stay or push them toward the door.
Then fix the biggest pain points first. Quick wins build momentum.
The Choice
You're either investing in employee experience intentionally, or you're paying for poor experience through turnover.
One costs thousands. The other costs millions.
Which would you rather spend?
Want to map your employee journey and identify where you're losing people? Our 5-Day Sprint delivers a prioritised roadmap with measurable ROI.