By now it’s fairly common knowledge: Women often do not apply for a job if they don’t check every box, whereas men regularly seek jobs for which they are only partially qualified. This is no less true in the legal profession, and applies to landing an entry-level associate position all the way up to being promoted to general counsel or making partner.

The reality is, as you advance in your legal career, you very rarely have all the skills, experience and capabilities that a new post will require. Instead, pursuing growth opportunities requires the confidence to see your own potential and enlist the right mentor to develop the necessary commercial awareness, analytical skills or litigation experience on the job, rather than waiting until you’re “perfectly prepared.”

This panel will explore:

• How to position your current success and experience:
  • Let your cases speak for you
  • Make your manager your advocate
• Dealing with rejection – every “no” means you are closer to a “yes”
• Utilizing peer groups to enhance confidence
• Panelist success stories

Working remotely has created a new set of challenges, especially for those in a caregiver role—often women. Whether you are caring for children, elderly parents or just having a balanced work-life integration, COVID-19 has placed an even greater strain on those already trying to keep up with the demands of a successful career.

This panel will explore:

• Best practices for working remotely
• Why companies should support – not penalize – parents and caregivers now and in the future
• Realistic tips for achieving balance
• The silver lining: How the pandemic will change the way we work and create more opportunities for flexibility

Women leaders in both business and the legal profession are still rare. Because creating and maintaining a gender-balanced workforce is no longer a gesture of good will, but essential to financial growth, finding ways to foster diversity in corporate leadership is imperative.

This panel will explore:

• Bridging the gap between the business and legal units
• Recruiting and sustaining female talent
• Increasing awareness of the effects of implicit biases around female stereotypes:
• They are not tough enough
• They are more invested in their families than their careers
• Tips and Success stories

According to Bible scholars, there are no unicorns left in the world because they never made it on to the Ark. It is thought that they were running late or they had a disagreement with Noah. No one is quite sure. The point is that who knows how many other creatures missed the boat!  In The Loudest Duck by Laura Liswood, she writes that at some point, corporate diversity came to mean the inclusion of at least two of every kind. Far too many managers and leaders figured that if you crammed a pair of each minority into a company or into a boardroom, you had accomplished the task of creating a diverse work environment. Nothing could be further from the truth! 

This panel will explore: 

• How can partners and associates engage their firm in more creative D&I initiatives? 
• How can firms show their clients that they are sincerely implementing change and not just using a broad brush? 
• How is credit given at law firms and what has to change? 
• What responsibility do in-house counsel have in helping law firms to become more diverse? 
• What can corporations do to become more diverse? 

This is a timely topic now that the workplace is as age-diverse as ever before. And it seems that the generations differ on how things should be run in the workplace. Older workers say they feel like they are being pushed out while younger workers are leaving in large numbers because they feel under-valued. If organizations are going to thrive, everyone needs to understand their coworkers and, most importantly, avoid letting their implicit biases get in the way.

This panel will explore:

• How to work through the stereotypes that encourage bias
• Understanding and appreciating differences in perspectives
• How to encourage better communication in order to bridge the gap
• Constructive mentoring (formal and informal)
• Succession planning that works for all

Leaders of color are resolute in their determination to get ahead. Why then do so few make it to the top in Big Law or major corporations? The numbers are abysmal with 2.81 percent in equity partnership positions and 3.9 percent in the C-suite. Due to ongoing events since the spring of 2020, public outcry for change is at an all-time high. And while diversity and inclusion initiatives are becoming more commonplace in both law firms and corporate America, progress is slow.

This panel will explore:

• Challenges that minority leaders face in the legal profession
• Why law firms and other employers should care about retaining and advancing people of color
• Performative vs. Substantive change
• Affinity groups and other resources
• Success stories - Advice for young attorneys of color

Over the past 25 years, American public acceptance of LGBTQ individuals has grown, at least in some quarters. But LGBTQ people still face plenty of barriers in the legal industry that include whether it is safe to be “out.” Even law firms with a culture of inclusivity can have hiring partners on staff who are homophobic or transphobic.

This panel will explore:

• Getting clarity on sexual orientation v. gender identity
• Visibility v. passing
• Understanding the challenges and barriers that the LGBTQ community faces in their quest for full acceptance in their chosen fields of expertise
• Affinity groups and other resources
• Success stories- Insights, perspectives and advice from industry leaders