Women of Color Research - Strategies & ToolkitFrom Visible Invisibility to Visibly Successful

ambar.org/WomenofColor

Today’s Presenters

Research Overview and Moderator: Insert Name Here

Panelists: Insert Names Here

Race/Ethnicity

72% overall response rate to survey

Survey Participants:632 Women of color

132 Men of color194 White women

157 White men

Women of Color Focus Groups

ChicagoNew York

Los AngelesAtlanta

Washington, DC

Visible Invisibility: Women of Color in Law FirmsPublished 2006

Profile of Respondents

Major Research FindingsWomen of Color White Men

Reported experiences involving demeaning comments or harassment

43% 2%

Reported exclusion from formal and informal networking opportunities

62% 4%

Reported denial of desirable assignments 44% 2%

Reported having limited client development opportunities

43% 3%

Reported receiving unfair performance evaluations

31% Less than 1%

Reported meeting billable hour requirements

46% 58%

Reported being the sole income provider 71% 81%

Major Research Findings

Salary

Men of color earned approximately 1/3 more than women of color

White women earned approximately 2/3 more than women of color

White men earned nearly double the salary of women of color

Attrition

81% of minority female associates leave law firms within 5 years of being hired.

NALP Foundation for Law Career Research and Education, 2005. Toward Effective Management of Associate Mobility. Washington, D.C., National Association for Law Placement.

Among employers listed in the 2013-2014 NALP Directory of Legal

Employers, just 7.10% were minorities and 2.26% of partners were minority

women. Some firms report no minority women partners.

NALP Foundation for Law Career Research and Education, 2014. Women and Minorities at Law Firms by Race and Ethnicity – An Update. Washington, D.C., National Association for Law Placement.

Attrition

31% of women of color left law firms to go to corporate legal departments.

23% of women of color left for government positions or a judicial clerkship

15% of women of color left for a job outside the legal profession.

Major Research Findings

Visible Invisibility: Women of Color in Fortune 500 Legal DepartmentsPublished 2012

Race/Ethnicity

777 responded to this question

24% (186) Women of color 6% (50) Men of color

50% (386) White women20% (155) White men

Employment Status

818 respondents to this question

76.5% (626) Employed at Fortune 500 corporation

23.5% (192) Not Currently Employed

at Fortune 500 Corporation

Profile of Respondents

Career Aspects and Compensation

Compensation

Recruitment

Hiring

Retention

Advancement

Hiring & Recruitment

Most women of color reported no bias in hiring and recruitment.

However, women of color believed they are the least likely of the groups surveyed to be hired at senior or executive levels, and most likely to be hired at junior levels.

Retention Men and women attorneys of color were less

likely to have a mentor who is white and at a

senior or executive level than other groups.

Women of color most likely to report

demeaning or harassing comments.

Women of color most likely to report missing

out on desirable assignments.

Women of color reported combined effect of

gender, race, and ethnicity limited access to

important networks.

Advancement

Women of color more than other groups reported concerns that the path to advancement is not transparent.

Survey responses indicated that stereotypes and double-standards followed women of color, especially as they achieve positions of authority.

Succession planning more often than not left to chance.

Compensation

Women of color expressed concern that they earn less from Day One than other groups.

Women of color also reported their concern that the average amount a women of color earns diminishes as the size and salary range of a corporate law department increases.

Corporate Law Departments Compared To Law FirmsSimilar Obstacles Greater Overall Satisfaction

at Corporate Law Departments

Inability to tap into important professional networks

Difficulty developing quality mentor/protégé relationships and attracting well-connected sponsors

Challenges in navigating the evaluation and promotion process

Improved quality of life

Opportunity to expand their expertise and career options beyond law into business arena

Ability to develop strong relationships with clients.

MCCA’s 14th Annual Woman General Counsel Survey

Fortune 500 Companies 105 Women General Counsels 19 Women of Color GCs, a total less than

4% of all Fortune 500 GCs

Fortune 1000 Companies 84 Women GCs 7 Women of Color GCsDiversity & The Bar, Sept/Oct 2013

Women of Color Research Initiative Program Toolkit

Program Agenda PowerPoint Slides Core Reading & Handouts Library of Scenarios &

Discussion Guide Speakers Bureau Bibliography Toolkit available

at no cost at ambar.org/WomenofColo

r

Women of Color Research Initiative Program Toolkit

Discussion Scenarios

ambar.org/WomenOfColor

1. What can Kim do about Michael’s perception that she is not a team player and not management material?

2. Should Kim communicate her concerns to the HR department? Why or why not?

3. What advice do you have for Kim about how to harmonize her cultural values with her perception of behaviors needed to succeed?

Request for Promotion – Kim

Salary Disparity & Billable Hours - Lakisha

1. What additional information would you find useful in this scenario and why?

2. What, if anything, should Lakisha do about the salary disparity?

3. What should Lakisha do to secure additional work assignments?

4. What should Lakisha do about the performance evaluation process and the lack of feedback?

Institutional Changes Within Law Firms

Empowerment of Individual Women of Color

From Visible Invisibility to Visibly Successful: Success Strategies for Law Firms and Women of Color in Law FirmsPublished 2008

Institutional Changes Within Law Firms

1. Grow and sustain active outreach to women of color.

2. Develop concrete measurement tools to measure progress.

3. Develop multiple channels for networking and to foster dialogue.

Institutional Changes Within Law Firms

4. Develop quantitative measures for tracking and analyzing the flow of work.

5. Create general categories of skills and knowledge for self-monitoring.

6. Build evaluation process that includes self-advocacy and training in evaluating other attorneys.

Institutional Changes Within Law Firms

7. Integrate business development skills-building.

8. Develop a succession-planning strategy.

9. Create an effective Diversity Committee or similar leadership structure.

Empowerment of Individual Women of Color

1. Believe in yourself, and do not let anyone shake your belief in yourself.

2. Give excellence. Get success.

3. If you can’t find mentors, you have to make mentors.

4. It takes a village to raise a lawyer.

Empowerment of Individual Women of Color

5. Network, network, network.

6. It’s all about that book[of business].

7. Take care of yourself.

8. Show up. Speak up.

Women of Color Research Initiative Program Toolkit

The Program Toolkit is available at no cost at www.ambar.org/WomenofColor.

Replicate a program like this at your local bar association or place of employment.

Read the full research reports. Additional resources will continue to be

added.

For More Information

Women of Color Research Initiativewww.ambar.org/WomenofColor

ABA Commission on Women

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @ABAWomen