Weil Gotshal’s collapse highlights the risk of building a business around star talent

The demise of the 95-year-old law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges has shocked the legal industry. The once-thriving firm boasted approximately 1,200 lawyers, generated over $2 billion in annual revenue, and maintained a client base filled with major corporate entities. However, the exit of a select few high-profile partners sparked a cascade of resignations that ultimately led to the firm's dissolution.

Among these influential figures was Michael Aiello, the firm's top-paid partner and a key dealmaker who reportedly commanded an annual salary of more than $20 million. Aiello led a corporate practice that comprised more than 600 individuals and enjoyed a close rapport with the firm's long-standing leader, Barry Wolf. When Aiello departed for rival Cravath in September, accompanied by five other partners, the departures ignited a broader exodus of talent.

This scenario underscores the precarious nature of businesses that hinge on the commercial value of individuals who possess immense power and sway. Such star performers attract clients, generate revenue, and facilitate the recruitment of additional talented personnel. However, when these relationships and capabilities become concentrated in a limited number of hands, the company becomes highly susceptible to significant disruption if these individuals choose to leave.

This same risk is not exclusive to the legal industry; it can also be observed in investment banks, where a "rainmaker" controls relationships with major clients; in consulting firms, where senior partners drive much of the business; and in technology companies, where a founder or influential executive becomes synonymous with the organization's success.

Furthermore, the issue of concentration in smaller divisions and functions can manifest, where teams become overly reliant on a single high-performing individual, whose departure leaves a void in expertise, relationships, or leadership that others may struggle to fill. For leaders across all levels, the conundrum lies in harnessing the advantages of exceptional talent while simultaneously safeguarding their teams and businesses against the potential fallout of losing such individuals.

This necessitates the cultivation of strategies that maximize the benefits of outstanding talent while simultaneously fortifying the organization against their absence. This could entail broadening client relationships across teams, assembling a more extensive pool of professionals who can generate business, and dispersing knowledge and decision-making authority.

For ambitious professionals, the fallout from this event prompts a related inquiry: What proportion of one's career value is contingent upon the enduring success or the backing of a prominent leader? The underlying message may be to foster the development of two distinct types of career capital concurrently: one is the value generated within an organization, and the other is the value one can carry with them to other opportunities. Ruth Umoh can be reached at ruth.umoh@fortune.com. This report originally appeared on Fortune.com.