Feedback for Bird & Bird answer

[Iris best]

Hi all,

Could someone give me feedback for my answer to: Based on your research, what do you understand to be the biggest opportunity for one of the sectors in which we specialise? (Max:150)"

The UK government’s recent acceleration of the end date of for petrol and diesel cars to 2030 is representative of a wider focus on the decarbonisation of the automotive industry. Although some may see this as an obstacle in such a carbon-dependant industry, decarbonisation also presents significant opportunity for businesses at all stages of the automotive lifecycle, if they are able to innovate their products to meet the demands of this changing landscape. In particular, those original equipment manufacturers that are able to adopt technologies and develop the electric products needed to support this industry shift will stand to take a lead in this evolving market, both enabling and precipitating the wider transformation of automotive products. In turn, such a seismic shift in the industry will undoubtedly require Bird & Bird’s expertise across the sector to support the work of businesses at all stages of decarbonisation process, from investors to dealer networks.

 

[JHGNB]

Maybe my interpretation of the question differs from yours but I felt your answer focuses on the current issue/your research too much and doesn't clearly identify 'one' sector. If I was answering this, I would start with a line explaining the current issue and then have a line about the sector that will benefit. Then for the rest of the answer, I would tailor the research about that topic to explain why it is the biggest opportunity for that sector (almost like a sandwich of research + sector + your opinion/justification). The question doesn't say why you think it will be the biggest opportunity or how will that particular sector help but it would be good to keep them in mind when writing.

 

[Jaysen]

A few thoughts:


Overall, I think it's shaping up to be a great answer. As @JHGNB said you may want to consider being a little clearer that this is the biggest opportunity for the automotive sector, although I do think you touch on this.

 

[Iris best]

o The UK government’s recent decision to bring forward its ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars to 2030 is representative of a wider focus on the decarbonisation of the automotive industry. Certainly, as a carbon-dependent sector, some may see these aggressive targets as a significant obstacle. However, it is the magnitude of innovation required to meet these challenges which also makes decarbonisation the biggest opportunity for businesses at all stages of the automotive lifecycle, if they are able to develop their products to adjust to this shifting landscape. In particular, those OEM’s able to adopt new technologies to develop the electric products required to support the industry shift will likely gain a lead in this evolving market, both enabling and precipitating the wider transformation of automotive products. It is clear that technological innovation will be critical to enabling businesses to capitalise on the opportunities of decarbonisation and Bird & Bird’s market-leading expertise in advising industries disrupted by technology situates them perfectly to provide expert solutions to supporting businesses achieving their potential provided by this opportunity.


Rewritten- any advice?

 

[OB]

o The UK government’s recent decision to bring forward its ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars to 2030 is representative of a wider focus on the decarbonisation of the automotive industry. Certainly, as a carbon-dependent sector, some may see these aggressive targets as a significant obstacle. However, it is the magnitude of innovation required to meet these challenges which also makes decarbonisation the biggest opportunity for businesses at all stages of the automotive lifecycle, if they are able to develop their products to adjust to this shifting landscape. In particular, those OEM’s able to adopt new technologies to develop the electric products required to support the industry shift will likely gain a lead in this evolving market, both enabling and precipitating the wider transformation of automotive products. It is clear that technological innovation will be critical to enabling businesses to capitalise on the opportunities of decarbonisation and Bird & Bird’s market-leading expertise in advising industries disrupted by technology situates them perfectly to provide expert solutions to supporting businesses achieving their potential provided by this opportunity.


Rewritten- any advice?

I think the top half is great, but maybe focussing on the second half and how we can simplify it and make it more focussed. The second half of your answer are two very long sentences. I’m the worst for long sentences but I think it really helps the readability of an answer to try and separate them. Idin Sabahipour says a bit about this towards the end of this video:

It would be great if you could focus on why Bird & Bird would benefit, and why OEMs (maybe this acronym needs explained in the answer) will benefit. You have the right idea in the answer already but I think stating it in simpler terms and succinct sentences would make it really snappy and attract Grad Rec’s attention. Also maybe name a client Bird & Bird works for or work they’ve done in this sector to prove why the firm has market-leading expertise.

Hope that helps!

 

[JHGNB]

o The UK government’s recent decision to bring forward its ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars to 2030 is representative of a wider focus on the decarbonisation of the automotive industry. Certainly, as a carbon-dependent sector, some may see these aggressive targets as a significant obstacle. However, it is the magnitude of innovation required to meet these challenges which also makes decarbonisation the biggest opportunity for businesses at all stages of the automotive lifecycle, if they are able to develop their products to adjust to this shifting landscape. In particular, those OEM’s able to adopt new technologies to develop the electric products required to support the industry shift will likely gain a lead in this evolving market, both enabling and precipitating the wider transformation of automotive products. It is clear that technological innovation will be critical to enabling businesses to capitalise on the opportunities of decarbonisation and Bird & Bird’s market-leading expertise in advising industries disrupted by technology situates them perfectly to provide expert solutions to supporting businesses achieving their potential provided by this opportunity.


Rewritten- any advice?

I would consider flipping the answer and start with Bird & Bird's sector and how it can help. The issue with your current answer is that it goes into too much detail about the research topic so there is a build-up. As a reader, I can see that you have identified a good opportunity but now I want to know how it related to the firm. However, when I finally do come to the bit about the firm it feels a bit generic so I end up feeling slightly disappointed because, after that detailed build-up, I also expected a detailed link to the firm's sector especially if I worked Bird & Bird, I would be even more interested in hearing about your views on the firm's capabilities.

Here is my thought process if I was going to answer this question. I know that's not what you asked but it may help to see another perspective.

I would start by identifying a sector - they give nice little summaries on their grad website. Automative is the most relevant. Now the next thing would be to go and discover what that sector actually does, are there any examples of the work done under this sector? any facts about the value of deals? Or any prestigious clients? The first place would be to check their normal website and not the graduate one. Find the section on the automotive sector and you will see that they list the kind of work they do under this sector e.g. advice on regulatory and environmental matters, Financing, investment and strategic partnerships, Product safety and liability matters, including warranty, recalls and field actions etc In the highlights of their recent work they say that they advised Audi and they also advised global vehicle components manufacturer Delphi Automotive on the acquisition of the motorised vehicles business of automotive connector manufacturer FCI S.A. They then give a link to a PDF document which gives a more detailed overview of what kind of work they do. This is extremely helpful for this question. I would then go check websites like Chambers etc - to see the sector rankings and find any news stories on Bird & Bird. That's the research done. Now comes the writing:

When writing, I will always keep in mind that I want to work at this firm and also that the person reading this also works at this firm. Therefore, my focus should be the firm unless the question states otherwise. I would start the first sentence by identifying the specific sector e.g. Bird & Bird's automotive sector has a strong reputation with clients such as Audi, xyz, yfd. (if you can find a stat on how much the sector has grown over the years then even better). One of the biggest opportunities for this sector is the decarbonization of the automotive sector. Actions by UK govt. such as the recent announcement on the ban on diesel and petrol cars could lead to an increase in M&A as manufacturers look to strengthen their expertise in electric vehicles (I have made this sentence up but at this point, I would normally go and research about that particular industry, read news articles to identify what the current and future issues are and how these companies plan to deal with them?) so if in my research, I find that current manufactures are looking to acquire firms that specialise is greener cars then I would bring that in and say that this is an opportunity for the Bird & Bird's M&A team and in fact, the firm has done M&A work e.g. Delphi automotive. If you notice Delphie HQ is in Ireland and FCI S.A. is probably in some other country because the S.A. designation is used by some jurisdictions. So there is an opportunity to mention Bird & Bird's ability to do cross-border work well. One can be even more specific with the help of that PDF document mentioned earlier although word count could be an issue.

Basically, I am not going into too much detail about the research topic but I am going into detail about how and why it is a big opportunity for Bird & Bird. Apologies for my answer being so long and do forgive any mistakes as I am writing this in a sleep-deprived state!

 

[Iris best]

I would consider flipping the answer and start with Bird & Bird's sector and how it can help. The issue with your current answer is that it goes into too much detail about the research topic so there is a build-up. As a reader, I can see that you have identified a good opportunity but now I want to know how it related to the firm. However, when I finally do come to the bit about the firm it feels a bit generic so I end up feeling slightly disappointed because, after that detailed build-up, I also expected a detailed link to the firm's sector especially if I worked Bird & Bird, I would be even more interested in hearing about your views on the firm's capabilities.

Here is my thought process if I was going to answer this question. I know that's not what you asked but it may help to see another perspective.

I would start by identifying a sector - they give nice little summaries on their grad website. Automative is the most relevant. Now the next thing would be to go and discover what that sector actually does, are there any examples of the work done under this sector? any facts about the value of deals? Or any prestigious clients? The first place would be to check their normal website and not the graduate one. Find the section on the automotive sector and you will see that they list the kind of work they do under this sector e.g. advice on regulatory and environmental matters, Financing, investment and strategic partnerships, Product safety and liability matters, including warranty, recalls and field actions etc In the highlights of their recent work they say that they advised Audi and they also advised global vehicle components manufacturer Delphi Automotive on the acquisition of the motorised vehicles business of automotive connector manufacturer FCI S.A. They then give a link to a PDF document which gives a more detailed overview of what kind of work they do. This is extremely helpful for this question. I would then go check websites like Chambers etc - to see the sector rankings and find any news stories on Bird & Bird. That's the research done. Now comes the writing:

When writing, I will always keep in mind that I want to work at this firm and also that the person reading this also works at this firm. Therefore, my focus should be the firm unless the question states otherwise. I would start the first sentence by identifying the specific sector e.g. Bird & Bird's automotive sector has a strong reputation with clients such as Audi, xyz, yfd. (if you can find a stat on how much the sector has grown over the years then even better). One of the biggest opportunities for this sector is the decarbonization of the automotive sector. Actions by UK govt. such as the recent announcement on the ban on diesel and petrol cars could lead to an increase in M&A as manufacturers look to strengthen their expertise in electric vehicles (I have made this sentence up but at this point, I would normally go and research about that particular industry, read news articles to identify what the current and future issues are and how these companies plan to deal with them?) so if in my research, I find that current manufactures are looking to acquire firms that specialise is greener cars then I would bring that in and say that this is an opportunity for the Bird & Bird's M&A team and in fact, the firm has done M&A work e.g. Delphi automotive. If you notice Delphie HQ is in Ireland and FCI S.A. is probably in some other country because the S.A. designation is used by some jurisdictions. So there is an opportunity to mention Bird & Bird's ability to do cross-border work well. One can be even more specific with the help of that PDF document mentioned earlier although word count could be an issue.

Basically, I am not going into too much detail about the research topic but I am going into detail about how and why it is a big opportunity for Bird & Bird. Apologies for my answer being so long and do forgive any mistakes as I am writing this in a sleep-deprived state!

This is SO helpful. thanks so much

 

[Iris best]

Bird & Bird’s automotive sector has a strong reputation with clients such as Audi and Mitsubishi. One of the biggest opportunities for this sector is the decarbonisation of automotive vehicles, driven by actions such as the UK government’s recent acceleration of the end date of petrol and diesel cars to 2030. Although often seen as an obstacle in such a carbon-dependant industry, the underlying requirement for product innovation and business growth to meet the demands of this changing landscape represents new opportunities for investors, OEMS, and suppliers who are able to finance and develop the necessary electrical products. The firm’s recent work assisting the agreement between PSA Group and Total for the creation of a joint venture devoted to the manufacturing of batteries for the automotive industry is just one example of the growth and opportunity triggered by decarbonisation. Bird & Bird’s deep industry knowledge, alongside their strength in advising on cross-border contractual and IP issues will be crucial to enabling businesses to capitalise on decarbonisation opportunities.


I have edited this answer please can someone give me some feedback. Thanks!