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When it comes time for people to look for a leader, Russell Garrett always seems to be standing in the spot where all eyes land.

It鈥檚 how he ended up becoming a Boy Scout troop leader and assuming a lead role in a volunteer emergency communications group. More, recently, it鈥檚 how he ended up being elected as the new managing shareholder of Portland-area law firm Jordan Ramis.

Garrett, whose practice includes commercial litigation and real estate, admits that one reason why he tends to be tagged for leadership roles is that he often raises his hand. But he also brings to the table a set of skills and an approach that make him a good fit for such a position.

For Garrett, being a leader 鈥� whether it鈥檚 for a scouting group or for the law firm that has earned a local reputation for its trademarked Dirt Law practice 鈥� isn鈥檛 just about overseeing an organization鈥檚 operations. He believes the role comes with a responsibility to help others develop their own leadership potential.

That philosophy stretches back to when Garrett鈥檚 son, now 26, joined a Boy Scout troop in Lake Oswego. With no other volunteers in sight, Garrett agreed to become the troop鈥檚 leader, on one condition 鈥� he was going to teach the troop members leadership skills so that in a year鈥檚 time, they would be the ones running the group.

鈥淚t鈥檚 hard because you have to stand back and let them lead,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou have to give them the skills to jump into the deep end of the pool knowing that they鈥檙e in a safe environment and won鈥檛 sink while (also) letting them believe they have to swim to survive.鈥�

While Garrett knows that developing leadership skills in lawyers is more complex than working with teens 鈥� he was managing shareholder at Bullivant Houser Bailey鈥檚 office in Vancouver, Washington, before leaving to join Jordan Ramis in 2011 鈥� he says the general philosophy applies.

Even as Garrett steers Jordan Ramis toward its future, he鈥檒l be keeping an eye out for potential candidates to succeed him later. It鈥檚 something he sees as another basic guideline for those in positions to lead.

鈥淎s you move into a leadership role, you need to find a way to make that role replicable,鈥� he said. 鈥淟eadership is transitional. I want the next person coming in to step in and move the firm to the next thing it needs to be.鈥�