Talent Management
What’s Your Hook?
January 21, 2016
By Valerie Fontaine – A narrative hook grabs readers’ attention at the beginning of a story and draws them in so they continue reading. Similarly, in a job search, your hook or Unique Value Proposition (UVP) states the clear benefit you provide to a prospective employer. It communicates who you are, what you do, what differentiates
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Under the Microscope: Three Types of Reviews That Can Benefit Your Firm
December 3, 2015
By Naomi Beard – (Originally published August 2015, PD Quarterly by NALP) The importance of lawyer talent development has taken hold within law firm culture. Once regarded as a discipline found primarily in corporate America, talent development has been increasingly recognized by law firms as critical reinforcement for their strategic and business goals. Today, law firms dedicate themselves to
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Looking into My Crystal Ball . . . Hot Practice Areas for 2016
November 23, 2015
By Valerie Fontaine – Hot and cold areas of law practice fluctuate with economic cycles. Areas that are hot right now may be completely cold in the future, and vice versa. Right now, and for the foreseeable future, real estate and corporate transactional practices are absolutely hot. Real estate finance, development, construction, purchase and sale, and
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What Associates Want
September 3, 2015
By Valerie Fontaine – Associate attorneys are the unhappiest workers in America, according to a 2013 CareerBliss study reported in Forbes magazine. Citing the structured environment, heavy emphasis on billable hours, and the long and uncertain path to partnership, associates ranked their satisfaction with the way they work and the rewards they receive lower than workers
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What is a Successful Legal Career?
August 25, 2015
By Ellen Ostrow – (Originally Published in the Women Lawyers Journal; 2015, VOL. 100, NO. 3) If asked to evaluate your career – as of this moment – as successful or not, how would you react? What would determine your conclusion? Had you prevailed in court last week, perhaps you would respond with an emphatic “successful.” But had
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Talent People: Do Your Associates Know What Partners Want From Them?
August 4, 2015
By Courtney Dredden Carter – In interviews with more than two hundred high performing partners at AmLaw 200 law firms (through my work with the Diversity Lab), I have had the opportunity to glean what these partners value in terms of their colleagues – and particularly what they value in the associates with whom they work. While
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Implicit Bias: Light It Up
May 12, 2015
By Patricia K. Gillette – Why are so many people afraid of the dark? Maybe because you don’t know what’s there. You sense danger. So you remain quiet and wait for someone to turn on a light. That is what it feels like to be the victim of implicit bias. It is hard to detect. And
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One of These Things Is Not Like The Other, Or Is It?
April 13, 2015
By Jacqueline Wilson Cranford – Some of you may remember the Sesame Street Song, “One of These Things (Is Not Like The Other)”. For me, it brings back fond childhood memories, watching Sesame Street and trying to identify those pictures, objects, or people who were distinguishable from the rest of the group. For many people, thinking
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Career Counseling for Lawyers: It’s Never Too Early
April 6, 2015
By Naomi Beard & Jessica Hedrick – As part of the outplacement process, law firms have long invested in specialized career coaching services for departing associates to ensure thoughtfully executed and ultimately successful career transitions. Any attorney who has worked with a career coach through such a transition can point to numerous advantages afforded them by
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Punished By Rewards
February 7, 2015
By Sue Manch – It’s law firm associate bonus season once again and the Above the Law blog’s http://abovethelaw.com/bonuses/) reporting of results from firm to firm is alternatively stirring anger and schadenfruede among associates – depending on whether their firm awarded so-called, “DPW”, “half – DPW”, or lesser amounts. With the NY-centric firms having banner
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