Articles Tagged with “work life balance”

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workingmother.pngPerhaps this post is just an excuse to brag about my wife, Ivy Brown, who was recently honored as a Working Mother of the Year in the advertising industry by Working Mothers Magazine and the Advertising Women of New York.

The event itself was pretty remarkable. There were more than 750 attendees in the grand ballroom of the Marriott Marquis in New York City. The tables were a who’s-who of leadership from blue chip companies–from Johnson & Johnson and Comcast to Facebook and Sony. The commissioner of the National Basketball Association was at the NBA table, honoring a working mom from his organization.

A highlight was definitely watching the short video our kids put together to commemorate the occasion. They were asked the question, “what do you like to do with your Mom?” Lily, 9, scripted out the video with her brother Benjamin, 5. They put notes on a white board and had me videotape it (with an iPad) until they approved the final version (14 takes later). Talk about marketing. Besides the big screen at the awards, this video has appeared everywhere, from internal company newsletters to social media and in their classrooms at Moorestown Friends School. Lily’s performance earned her the gig of making the “lunch is served” announcement at the awards program (where she quickly memorized the cue card and showed no fear in standing on the stage in front of the crowd).

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Why do I have the feeling that discussing Women’s Initiatives in law firms will only get me into trouble?top_logo.gif

A recent report by the National Association of Women Lawyers finds that 97% of large law firms have women’s initiatives, but that they often lack the funding and goals to make a difference. I read the entire 34-page report, and came to a few conclusions. First, nothing surprised me about the results. Second, most of the concerns correlate to one another. Yes, there are less equity partners, thus yes, women don’t end up with as much rainmaking credit; thus yes, women don’t end up in positions of firm-wide leadership (since they are not equity partners and not originating business); and yes, women don’t receive the same compensation since they are not originating as much business. In the end, it all comes back to the ability to generate business.

What the report fails to do is offer any real solutions to the stated problems. I’ve worked with many similar initiatives over the last 10+ years and found mixed results. For the most part, it is not for a lack of funding. Law firms finance these efforts, and finance related activities. Surprisingly (that is my mocking voice), putting a firm logo or advertisement in a dinner program or similar magazine supplement does not make things better. Providing “workshops” on rainmaking by people that are not actually female lawyer rainmakers in real life don’t help either (if you are going to be effective, then you need to provide women partners from your own law firm). And, finally, providing spa services and high teas (yes, these are done) does not lead a female associate into the partnership and leadership ranks of a law firm.

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