Available July 28 — Pre-Order Today

Be a Next Level Leader

The Four Cornerstones of Law Firm Leadership

By Debbie Foster & Stephanie Everett

Law firm leadership is unlike any other kind of leadership — and most leadership books pretend otherwise. Be a Next Level Leader is built specifically for the people who run law firms: the managing partners, practice group leaders, and legal operations directors who carry real authority and real accountability, often without a playbook.

Be a Next Level Leader — The Book

Who It’s For

Written for the people who lead law firms

Most leadership books are built for corporate environments where authority and responsibility actually line up. Law firms don’t work that way. This book was written for the people who know the difference.

Managing Partners

Responsible for firm direction and culture, often without formal management training or a clear model for leading experienced professionals who also happen to be your peers.

Practice Group Leaders

Leading colleagues who don’t report to you in the traditional sense — where influence matters more than authority and every decision carries political weight.

Legal Operations Directors

Driving change, process, and performance in organizations where lawyers set the culture and consensus is hard-won and slow to form.

The Framework

The Four Cornerstones of Law Firm Leadership

The book is organized around four areas that every law firm leader must develop — not in sequence, but in balance. Each cornerstone builds on the others.

01

Leading Self

How you show up starts with how you understand yourself — your strengths, your blind spots, and what drives your behavior under pressure. This is the foundation everything else is built on.

02

Leading People

Law firm leadership is fundamentally relational. This cornerstone covers building trust, having hard conversations, and developing people who don’t always want to be developed.

03

Leading Operations

The systems, processes, and structure that let a firm actually function at scale — and the leader’s role in building, protecting, and improving them over time.

04

Leading Forward

Strategy, change, and the ability to move a firm in a new direction — even when the pace is slow and not everyone is ready to follow.

More Than a Book

The book is the beginning

Reading about leadership is one thing. Be a Next Level Leader is designed to go further — with a companion workbook that puts the framework into practice and a virtual cohort that builds leadership alongside peers who get it.

The Workbook

Exercises and reflection tools paired with every section of the book — designed for leaders who need to do the work, not just read about it. Coming soon.

Explore the Workbook

Leadership Training Cohort

A six-week virtual program for law firm leaders — built around the same four cornerstones, with live sessions, peer accountability, and real-world application.

Join the Cohort

The Authors

Debbie Foster & Stephanie Everett

Debbie Foster

Debbie Foster is a leader at Affinity Consulting Group with decades of experience working inside law firms. She has spent her career helping firms build better systems, stronger leaders, and cultures that actually function. Be a Next Level Leader draws directly from her work with managing partners, practice groups, and legal operations teams across the country.

About Debbie →

Stephanie Everett

Stephanie Everett is a leader at Affinity Consulting Group who has worked alongside law firm leaders navigating change, growth, and the human side of running a firm. Her approach to leadership development is direct, practical, and built from real experience — not theory borrowed from other industries.

About Stephanie →

Get the Book

Pre-order now for $2.99

Available July 28. Or read Part 1 free and decide for yourself.

Be a Next Level Leader is a leadership development platform from Affinity Consulting Group.