Introduction

You are listening to the Tip of the Law podcast, where legal insights meet practical advice. In each episode, we bring you stories, insights and tips straight from the legal industry’s brightest minds. This week, we’re thrilled to welcome Kayla Orekomaiya. Kayla is a seasoned business development and marketing director with a passion for helping small law firms thrive. With over 15 years of experience, she specializes in crafting tailored marketing strategies, enhancing brand visibility, generating leads and building lasting client relationships. Currently serving as the client development director at Romano Law, Kayla combines her strategic expertise with a deep understanding of the business entertainment and Fine Arts industries. Before stepping into the legal field, she held leadership roles at Capezio, including US District Manager, where she honed her skills in team leadership and operations. And now, let’s dive right in with our host, Joe Giovannoli, the founder and CEO of 9Sail.

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Hi Joe. How are you doing?

Joe Giovannoli  

Great. I’m glad to have you here. Thanks for taking the time.

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, and thanks for having me. I’m really excited to chat today. 

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah, so we have a number of fun topics to talk about. I definitely have an agenda here today, which is for our audience to get to know you, because you’re fantastic, and we’ve so loved working with you at Romano. And so why don’t we start out by you just telling us a little bit about yourself and your journey that got you to Romano? 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yes, absolutely. So I am going on three and a half years at Romano, I actually was at my last position, I worked my way up– I started in Texas, got a promotion, moved to New York about 10 years ago. I worked for that company for about 10 years, and it was actually a dance brand, and I managed all the retail stores in the United States for them. So I have a huge background, not only in entertainment, I would say, but also a lot of sales management, a lot of managing teams, and a lot of helping people grow and helping businesses grow. So those individual businesses that I managed were across the country, and they all had different wants and needs and ways to get people in the door, and that’s something that I’ve always enjoyed doing, is helping businesses grow, expand, and seeing where they can go based off of marketing and really a passion for sales and customer service. So that led me to Romano Law, like I said, about three and a half years ago. Romano was in growth mode when I joined, and they were slowly growing their client development team, and that team is a team of intakers. They’re a team of people who help onboard clients to the firm, but also help existing clients, and we ensure we take care of them, we ensure that they have the best experience. You know, we’re the first people that they speak to, and we’re the faces of the firm. And when I had the opportunity to interview for this position, I said, this is exactly what I love to do. This is exactly that hands-on client service experience that I really love. And like I said, Romano was in growth mode, and I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to be a part of that journey. And that’s how I ended up at the firm. I met Domenic Romano, the managing partner, and he really has this passion and entrepreneurship that I really admired and wanted to be a part of. And that’s why I landed here. And then a year in, I was able to have the opportunity to also join the marketing team, and now I’m also heading the marketing team for the past two and a half years, and that’s been a special part of it. My background was also in marketing, and, like I said, growing businesses, so it was an easy transition to kind of put that on my plate as well, and it’s never a dull moment. It’s fun. 

Joe Giovannoli  

I was just going to say I give you a lot of credit, because I know working directly with an entrepreneur is pretty much like holding on to the wagging tail of a dog because it’s, you know, we have shiny object syndrome constantly, and the next new thing is the thing that we’re trying to chase. And so I give you a lot of credit, but yeah, it’s fun, as I, as I said, before, you know, we were working with Romano Law as a client before you joined. And then, you know, what? What a, what a, what a vast difference it’s been working directly with you. You know, you’re– just to blow you up for a second, your strategy and your insights for what you’re trying to accomplish, what you’re looking to do is fantastic. And you know, really, you are a core example as to why law firms need to have marketing leaders. Because, you know, the firm is able to, and you referenced a few times that they were in growth mode, but I would say you were in more growth mode now than you were then. 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, totally a realistic thing to say, yeah, yeah.

Joe Giovannoli  

And you’re, you’re a huge, you’re a huge part of that. 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

I appreciate that, Joe. 

Joe Giovannoli  

But what a cool, what a cool transition. So Romano Law started out really as an entertainment law firm and then business law firm, obviously, you know, has a really big entertainment side of the business. What a really cool transition that’s been, it sounds like it’s been for you. What have you found from your previous career has been able to transfer into, you know, your knowledge around the entertainment space?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, I’ll start even before I went to my last position. I grew up a dancer my whole life, from the age of three through college, I did all types of dance, so entertainment and the arts have always been a passion of mine. That’s why I worked for that dance brand, and that’s one of the other reasons why I joined Romano Law because, like you said, we started off as an entertainment and business law firm, and that side of the business that still thrives and that we still have is one of the best parts of the firm. We work with so many creative people and that, you know, it just really, I like to watch them kind of unlock that side of them, because creatives have that creative side. But coming to attorneys, they have to put on that business hat, and seeing the attorneys at the firm really just explain that side and the light bulbs start going off for them. It’s really cool to see. But what I’ve taken from my entertainment side to Romano is really just understanding creatives– like I understand how they work, I understand where they’re coming from. I understand their passions. I understand that they probably also have been training since three years old, and that this is their livelihoods and how important it is, their bodies or their art is, you know, what they want to protect. So it’s really nice to be a part of that journey and have that commonality with them as well while talking to them. So that’s, it’s, it’s really enjoyable to see. And I, I think they like talking to me about it too, because I always share that I’m a creative as well, and that always, you know, makes us have that one thing in common, and we can talk and laugh about the ups and downs of the creative world as well.

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah, that’s, that’s great. And the fact that you can relate to not only the clients that the firm is working with, but also the attorneys that have the passion and the space like, that’s great. That’s, that’s a really, that’s a good feather in your cap for sure. So Romano has always been very good in my experience at putting the newer, younger attorneys at the forefront of working with clients, which I I really appreciate, you know, and I’ve had, at the time of this recording, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Ellie on your team. And I’ve been working with Ellie, I think, since before she was a full attorney at the firm, and I’ve just, I just loved that model of, you know, being able to work with, you know, some more junior attorneys as well as, you know, senior partners. And I, as I understand it, you have quite a bit of exposure and experience working with the junior attorneys to help them to navigate being client facing, right? So what has that been like?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, yeah, um, that is a real benefit of working at Romano Law, being at a mid, you know, small to mid firm, you know, you get that opportunity. You get that one on one time, from the time that you’re an extern with us. You’re, you know, you might just start off by observing, but by the time you’re a graduate law clerk or about to become an associate attorney, you’re already comfortable being in front of clients. And that’s the kind of trajectory that we’ve always had. And it works, and it’s something that is a benefit and a perk of being on our team, and why people stay, because they know they’ll have that opportunity to really get that experience they might not get elsewhere to be with clients, and the way that we help them is they ask questions. They see my team work with clients, and they mimic what we do. We listen, we are attentive, we repeat back what they are saying. So we ensure that we really understand what they’re going through, what their passions are, and what their goals and next steps are. So it’s really being about putting ourselves in their shoes, going back to that, getting that one on one commonality with them to make them feel comfortable. So that is something that you have to learn, and that we do teach here, that listening and attentiveness is our key to ensuring that we have great customer service. 

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah, and obviously I know Domenic really well. And I have to imagine, if this is seared into my brain, it’s probably seared into everybody there, but he has the saying, and I think it might be a brand promise, if not a core value: “follow up with them before they follow up with you. Follow up with them before they follow up with you.” Repeat it twice. So. So yeah, and I know that that’s so I know that that’s, like, really baked into the culture there. And I think again, the training at such a young phase of a lawyer’s career, it’s essential, because I think that that’s a lost art. I, you know, I find, I have found, over the years, having dealt with other attorneys and worked with attorneys like the follow up usually sucks. And the attorneys at Romano, like, it’s just like day one, this is like, seared into the brain. It’s like, you will follow up with them before they follow up with you. 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, exactly. Responsiveness is at the core of what we do here. And I’m, I’m very happy to hear that that’s your experience as well. But yeah, we can ask for better young attorneys that are also really just hungry to be better and do better and be client facing, but also starting their brands at a younger age as well. So I think that helps them as well, like it pulls up that confidence in them to start becoming their own attorney. 

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah, awesome. That’s again, I just can’t begin to say how cool that is. So what kinds of things are you doing to help these younger attorneys and all attorneys at the firm? Because I’m sure you’re dealing with everybody at all levels, right? Let’s, let’s focus on some of the junior attorneys to start. What are some of the things that you’re doing to help them to level up their skills and their experience? 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, we always encourage at least one network, joining one networking group, starting your very first year, to start building that book of business, because we know how important that is, and honestly, how long it takes. It’s not something that happens overnight. So why wait until you are a partner at a firm or trying to become a partner at a firm? Start now. Um, I also, I often throw out networking events ideas. We also have networking events at our office. We just moved, actually, to One Battery Park a couple of weeks ago, so you you’re going to have to check out the new office very soon, but I ensure that they know about what’s going on in whatever city they are, because we do have attorneys across the country, so I really try to pick the best networking events for them and the ones– I’m located in New York at our head office, but so I also go to events with the attorneys and teach them things that really come naturally to me, but may not come naturally to them. You know, introducing them yourself and repeating back their name, but also ensuring that you’re connecting on LinkedIn right then and there. And then the next day, it’s that follow up. It’s, you know, sending that note. And then, if you know, you picked up a good rapport. It’s also important to act on it while it’s hot, and ensure that you set up that coffee date right then and there, and make sure you keep that relationship alive. And it’s not only about what they can do for you, but actually, what are you, what are you bringing to the table for them? You know? What are you exposing them to? Who are you introducing them to? Are you bringing them to our client events specifically to meet our other clients that might mutually benefit their business. So it’s just getting those wheels turning for them that I think they really like, and I love when I can do it hand in hand with them, and they see, see it happen in action. 

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah, that’s so great. Do you find that you do like more one-on-one coaching with each person? Do you do more group sessions? What have you found one that you’re doing most and what do you find most successful?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, I think the one-on-one sessions can’t be beat. I do those more than anything. I do those both with the junior attorneys and senior attorneys, with the senior attorneys who already have that book of business, but all our attorneys here know we want to grow our business, so they’re really a part of that. And those one-on-one meetings, talking about goals, setting goals for the quarter, and the quarter ahead of that, what do you want to do this quarter? Is it speaking engagements? Do you want to run a CLE– and these are all things that we can prep you for. If you’ve never done it before, I can help you. Have you ever done a media appearance before? And that’s what we talk about in those one-on-one conversations. I get to know the attorneys one on one so well that I know exactly during our next one on one, what should we work with? You have a goal of doing a speaking engagement. Let’s make you a great speaker, and let me know what you’re passionate about, and we’ll go out there and find it.

Joe Giovannoli  

That’s awesome. That’s so great. So Romano has such a strong brand. I think as long as even before I started working with you guys. Yeah, I just remember how impressed I was that a law firm had a brand such as Romano’s. And I just wonder how, because it is a large task, how you align bringing people into the organization that fit and match that brand. So, yeah, I’m wondering, I’m wondering what, what do you do like? What’s that process like to make sure you’re bringing in the right– on both sides, both right people, meaning people internally, but the right clients too, right? You know, because you can’t have the right people internally if you don’t have the right clients coming in the door to keep those people happy, right? So, right? Talk, talk to me about that a little bit.

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, we always say that we hire people and fire people based off of our core values. So we ensure when we’re interviewing, when we’re talking to people, and this is not only interviewing our staff, but getting to know prospective clients as well. Are they a team player? Are they attentive? Do they show proactive behavior? Do they have examples of when that, you know, something was hard, but they got it done? Are they a positive person? And we have specific, almost, traits and examinations where we can really find that out, and I think we’ve been doing it for so long now. We’ve, we’ve made the mistakes of, you know, you know, going against that gut. Well, they weren’t super positive, but they were maybe having an off day, but at the end of the day, it didn’t work out, because they weren’t a positive person. And that is part of one of our core values, and how we make sure everyone’s aligned, including our prospective clients, but it’s also, we also really pride ourselves in having them keep their individuality. We have tons of attorneys that have different hobbies, some are creative. Some are sports. Attorneys that are passionate in sports and business, attorneys who love to sing and go to Broadway, and so we have everyone, and so we do let those individualities and those little nuances about that person really shine, and I think that’s what makes it work. So at the core, we’re all aligned on core values, but still can make our individual selves shine in a way that brings us the clients that we actually want and actually enjoy working with.

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah, that’s great. And so just for the people listening, Romano core practices, what practices do you guys cover? 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, we have, like we said, we started with entertainment and corporate. We have added on litigation, employment and intellectual property as well.

Joe Giovannoli  

Awesome. Now I know that you’re creatives-focused right? That’s like one of the major areas that you have always, you know, thrived in right and right. So that doesn’t just extend to performers or to entertainers, right? Obviously, we’re an, we’re an agency, considered a marketing agency, but you work with a lot of agencies, and so talk to me about the business development process or strategy when you’re going out and looking for the right clients, like, who’s the right client for Romano Law?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, that’s a great question. We look for clients that are business oriented, no matter if they are creative, or they might be growing a business that is going to be a financial tech company. We just look for people that want to start a business, and we can be that starting firm for them and grow with them. So we don’t only look at what they’re doing today. We ask them, What will your business look like in 5, 10, 15 years, and we want to be that firm that grows with that business. We want to set you up so in 10, 15, years, you are protected when you’re adding on employees and opening yourselves up for equity partners and things like that. So at the end of the day, business oriented people and people with business ideas, that’s our ideal client.

Joe Giovannoli  

Awesome. That’s great. So what, what’s the big thing that’s taking your time right now? Or what’s the big thing that’s taking your brain space right now? Right? We’re coming, we’re winding down, you know, we’re, we’re in Q4 you know, most people look at the fourth quarter as the Super Bowl, right? It’s like, where they’re, yeah, you know, sprinting towards all their goals that they neglected for the year, right? And they’re thinking about next year. Some people are doing budgeting. Some people have already done budgeting. What’s, what’s currently taking up the most of your time, and what are what’s taking up your brain space?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, we keep talking about growth mode, so that’s always taking up my brain space. We are very lucky, and we just found those four new attorneys that really aligned with our core values and became new attorneys on the team. Um, one’s in Texas, his name is Soma. One is in Maryland. His name is Jamar. And then we have two more here. In New York. So it’s really just acclimating those new attorneys to the firm, getting them, you know, bringing their clients here, ensuring that their clients see us as their new home, also setting kind of brand guidelines for them. They know they wanted to be at Romano, and that’s the reason why they’re here, but once they are here, it’s really just ensuring that they know how we are out facing and again, letting their individual attitudes and personality shine through. But also you’re now a part of a firm, you’re now a part of a bigger family, and explaining those clear brand guidelines that we have, and matching them to their personalities and their niche departments and their niche regions. So we’re really drumming up local advertising, local marketing budgets for Texas and Maryland, places we haven’t been before. So it takes a lot of work behind the scenes to grow businesses and brand new locations, in order to let everybody know that, you know, we now have representation in Texas. We can take on your Texas cases and Maryland and Florida and California, things like that. So I would say getting the new attorneys acclimated, onboarded, and ensuring that they’re brand ready to face our prospective clients.

Joe Giovannoli  

Awesome. So it sounds like to me, and I don’t want to assume, so I’m going to ask you a question. You just talked about these attorneys. Were these solos? Were these folks that were at bigger firms, like, Where? Where did these attorneys come from?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, a lot of them were solo practitioners. A lot of them had a passion for building something on their own. But, you know, they realized they would. They wanted support from a bigger team. They wanted support of other like minded, entrepreneurial attorneys to help them grow their business. So these are really big entrepreneurs who want to grow, but they almost got too big for themselves and needed that support, and that’s why they found a perfect home here. Because, you know, they can bring that individuality that they have and bring better practice their niche developments that they have, their niche practice areas, but still be able to do all aspects of the business that their clients might need. They might have only been able to do the M&A buying and selling of their businesses, but now, if they get into a dispute, they have dispute attorneys to lean on. They have employment attorneys to lean on if their clients’ businesses are growing, and they’re adding on employees, they have employment attorneys. So it’s really that they grew as solo practitioners as much as they could, and now they’re ready to go back to a firm that they can help their clients develop into the businesses they want to be. 

Joe Giovannoli  

That’s awesome. So it sounds like acquisitions are definitely a growth, a growth strategy for Romano. Maybe we take a minute here and just for again, for our listeners, because we have a wide range of people that listen. What are, what are the criteria you’re looking for, for somebody that may want to be able to come over to Romano and may want to join Romano?

Kayla Orekomaiya  

Yeah, we’re looking for senior attorneys that kind of like what I said, there might be a solo practitioner that it’s just gotten too big for just to be that solo, and they need support, and they don’t necessarily want to deal with, you know, hiring employees and managing employees. They want to maybe get that invoicing off of their plate. They want to learn more about marketing, so they would love to be at a firm that has a marketing director like myself that can help them build their brand and what to do after they’ve gone to networking events. What do I do after that? How do I post on LinkedIn? How do I get conversions off of speaking engagements? What are things I can do? So I think those are the seniors we’re looking for. We’re looking for seniors that are smart, are aligned with our core values, but also have a book of business that they can bring to the firm in order to help us work together, in order to satisfy and support the prospective clients that are coming in and our current clients.

Joe Giovannoli  

That’s awesome. Yeah, I, as I said, I as you were talking, I was starting to get the gist that you were definitely going the acquisition route. I think that that’s awesome. And I, you know, again, I can’t attest enough how awesome it has been working with Romano. And just the culture as a whole is outwardly, you could feel it outwardly, which is great. 

So we’re going to take a quick break here. We just wanted to take a moment to acknowledge our sponsor for the Tip of the Law podcast, 9Sail. 9Sail is a law firm-focused digital marketing agency specializing in providing lead generation and awareness building services such as SEO, paid search, content creation, and Digital Public Relations. Grow your firm with 9Sail. 

Coming up to the top of the episode, we ask every guest the same one, one of the same questions, which is, it’s called the Tip of the Law, right? So we like to leave each episode with one tip that the guest would like to leave everybody with that they could bring back to their firm that would have an immediate impact. What would be your one tip that you would give folks that are sitting in a similar seat to you? 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

I think my one tip for everyone is to ensure that you find the person that you can have those one-on-one conversations with about your goals, about your needs, and have that buddy to support you in those goals and needs, have somebody that you can lean on and talk to. So it’s just not yourself. You need that other person to motivate yourself and to reach those goals. They can’t be done alone. So whatever goals that you have, get a buddy shout it from the rooftop of what your goals are, because your circle is bigger than you think it is, and somebody can probably help you get to where you want to be and get those goals met.

Joe Giovannoli  

Yeah? A strong accountability partner. The Navy SEALs call them swim buddies, right? Yeah, but having that person with you that can hold you accountable can help you to get there and to cheer you on along the way. I know I’m not a lawyer, and I don’t work in a law firm, but I know that that has been huge for me, having those people by my side that I could talk to, and Domenic happens to be one of those people. I’m very grateful for that, but that accountability partner is huge. And it sounds like it sounds like you do that for a lot of folks at your firm, you have your hands full, but you are an absolute rock star. I really appreciate you taking the time to talk to me today and looking forward to hopefully a future episode where we can have you on and we can talk more marketing. 

Kayla Orekomaiya  

I love it, Joe, and it’s always wonderful working with you, and happy to be on.

Joe Giovannoli  

Thank you so much. Appreciate it. And for everybody listening, thanks for tuning in and tune in next week. Take care. Thank you for tuning in to Tip of the Law podcast hosted by Joe Giovannoli. If you’ve enjoyed today’s episode, be sure to subscribe to Tip of the Law and leave us a comment wherever you listen to your favorite podcast you’ve been listening to Tip of the Law.