The last Vantage Point blog post was all about helping staff develop.[i]  This month we look inward and explore how developing yourself is important, too, revisiting a topic we explored in 2018.[ii]

The world around us does not stand still. Every day we are challenged to absorb new information and adapt to changed circumstances. Courts used to be a staid environment, with only incremental change – but no more! Just think about how technology continues to revolutionize court operations. How can court administrators keep up to date in our evolving environment? One fundamental approach is to prioritize  personal and professional learning. Keeping your skills current is critical to success.

Maintaining a curious mind and seeking out learning opportunities is key. This can range from self-study to attending formal education events. We are lucky to live in a time when such learning may be in-person and virtual, greatly expanding the range of options. Examples from my own experience in the last few months illustrate this diversity:

  1. Readers of this blog know that I regularly attend the education conferences of court associations I belong to, such as the National Association for Court Management (NACM), either virtually or in person.[iii]  Last month I traveled to New Orleans for the annual conference, where the theme was “Leadership Opportunities and Challenges for our Nation’s Courts – Leading Leaders into the New Tomorrow.”  The education program was excellent (you know this when there are multiple concurrent sessions you want to attend)[iv], including:
    • “Elevate Your Game: Moving from Tactical Thinker to Strategic Leader.”  Key points included focusing on what you should do, fostering a culture of trust, and developing staff so you have more time for “bigger picture” thinking and actions. This session was recorded and is available to stream on the NACM website.
    • “Courting Quality:  Designing Court Operational Performance Measures.”  A very practical session showing how key performance indicators (KPI’s) are developed and integrated into effective management.
    • “ChatGPT at the Court.”  The Orange County, California Superior Court shared how it has developed internal and external chatbots to help staff and court users better access court information.
    • “Rule of Law Index – World Justice Project.”  This session showed how the WJP’s index is showing a concerning decline in the Rule of Law in a majority of countries around the world, including the United States. This session was recorded and is available to stream on the NACM website.
    • “NACM Artificial Intelligence Guide Release Session.”  We all know that AI is an incredibly powerful technology, and NACM’s new “Courting AI” Guide was debuted and explained.[v]
    • “The Impact of AI in the Courts.”  Panelists representing trial court administrators, technologists, state court administrators, and judges outlined their points of view about how artificial intelligence is and will be changing the legal system. This session was recorded and is available to stream on the NACM website.
    • “Captaining the Ship: Steering Court Management Through the Currents of Change.”  Key points included: keeping an “outward mindset” that stops objectifying people is essential to effective leadership; and “we don’t want to hold people accountable; we want to create accountable people.” This session was recorded and is available to stream on the NACM website.
  2. There are two court-related podcasts that I routinely follow:
    • “The Court Leaders Advantage,” available in audio and video formats (I prefer the video). Every month this podcast explores a wide range of court topics and issues. The most recent is about dealing with difficulties in hiring new staff.[vi]
    • “Tiny Chats” from the National Center for State Courts are bite-sized annotated videos that touch on specific access to justice court operations. The hosts inject humor and keeps things lively!  The most recent is about how a court in New Mexico held a virtual amnesty week event.[vii]
  3. Many court and legal organizations around the world produce webinars. I recently watched several webinars from the National Center for State Courts, the International Association for Court Administration, and NACM about leadership (part of a monthly series), fighting organized crime, and DEI.
  4. I also routinely access written information (all available online), including social media posts on LinkedIn and publications from sources like the American Bar Association (which has a new book on AI[viii]), NACM (newsletter, journal, and guides), and the European Judicial Training Network.[ix]

What have you been doing to keep your skills up to date? As you can see above, a plethora of options (especially online) make it easy to tap into wonderful resources. Make it a point to explore and take advantage of those that work for you. Keep on learning!

[i] Helping Your People Develop – Court Leader

[ii] Long-time readers may recall that we broadly explored self-development in two blog posts in 2018:  Tips for Staying Fresh (or, Don’t Get Left Behind!) — part one – Court Leader and Tips for Staying Fresh (or, Don’t Get Left Behind)! — part two – Court Leader.  These posts explored a wide range of ways to stay current in our jobs.

[iii] See, for example:  Highlights of the 2024 NACM Midyear Conference (Virtually!) – Court Leader, or IACA’s YouTube channel that has prior conference sessions – Join IACA Today! (youtube.com).

[iv] But NACM does record many streamed sessions and then makes them available online; I intend to do this for a session on coaching, for example.

[v] The NACM AI Guide is available at:  NACM Store – National Association for Court Management (nacmnet.org) – free to NACM members, $10 otherwise.

[vi] Court Leader’s Advantage – Court Leader

[vii] Tiny Chats | NCSC

[viii] ABA releases comprehensive book outlining analyses, strategies to deal with artificial intelligence (americanbar.org)

[ix] European Judicial Training Network (EJTN)

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Published by Norman Meyer

After 38 years as a trial court administrator in the state and federal courts in the U.S., Norman continues to write, teach, and otherwise participate in judicial administration activities world-wide. In particular, he is active in the International Association for Court Administration (IACA) as a past Regional Vice President and Advisory Board member, in the National Association for Court Management (NACM) as a Past President (having received NACM's Award of Merit), and as an Associate of the Justice Speakers Institute. Norman has extensive experience working on international Rule of Law projects, particularly in the Russian Federation, Serbia, Ukraine, Moldova, and Albania. Norman is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of New Mexico (Political Science and Russian Studies), and he received the Master of Science in Judicial Administration from the University of Denver College of Law.

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