Spotlight on Flex – Jamie Drewry

The Spotlight on Flex showcases professionals from member organizations who exemplify personal and professional success while working a flexible schedule. Their stories illustrate the long-term benefits that flexible schedules offer to both individuals and organizations.

This month, we are pleased to share insights from Jamie Drewry, Partner in the Indianapolis office of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.

Jamie DrewryDiversity & Flexibility Alliance: How have you made flexibility a priority and a success through your schedule?

Jamie Drewry: I summered at FaegreBD in 2006 and then started as a full time, first year associate in 2007. As a first year associate, my primary focus was to build relationships with the partners in my group; I had a very internal versus external focus. In 2013, I was a sixth year associate and had my first child. The firm has a very generous maternity leave policy, and I was out on leave for about four months. I came back full time, but when I found out I was pregnant with my second child about one year later, I started to explore flex as an option. I knew the firm had flexible schedule options, but I really hadn’t looked into them before.

FaegreBD made switching to a flex schedule an easy choice. It was clear the firm meant what they advertised on paper regarding their flex policy. I moved to a schedule with 80 percent of the standard billable hour requirement in 2015 and went on another four month maternity leave after the birth of my second child. I was put up for partner while on leave, returned to work at an 80 percent, reduced hours schedule, and was made partner at the end of that year. This is my first full year as a partner, and it’s clear the firm has been incredibly supportive of my career and schedule.

I’m still in the office five days a week from 9am – 5pm, but I try to work from home one day a week. I focus on my kids in the morning and evening. Once the kids are in bed, I return my focus to work with the goal of preserving my weekends. Read more

Action Step – Paid Leave Policies: Five Common Mistakes Can Lead to Attrition and Liability

The Alliance’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies and policies related to diversity and flexibility.  Members can access full versions of all of the Alliance’s Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

PAID LEAVE POLICIES: FIVE COMMON MISTAKES CAN LEAD TO ATTRITION AND LIABILITY

Having a generous paid leave policy for lawyers can be a great recruiting and retention tool. Legal employers commonly provide at least 12 weeks, and sometimes 18 or more weeks, of paid maternity leave. Unfortunately, these legal employers often make mistakes that undermine the usefulness of their leave policies and could even expose them to liability.

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The First Step to Ensuring Your Flex Success™ – Define Your Success

This is the first of a series of seven blog posts featuring advice on our Seven Strategies for Flex Success™. Check back as we walk you through the seven steps that will guarantee your success while working flexibly: Define Your Success; Own Your Value; Activate Your Mindset; Create A Strong Personal Brand; Build Your Networks; Expand Your Ideas on Business Development; and Enhance Your Work-Life Control.

seven-strategies-for-flex-successOnce you’ve decided that a flexible schedule is right for you, you need to be able to envision your future plans. As you define your successful, flexible career path you should clearly map out your one, three, and five-year vision. That vision should include what you want personally and professionally and how the two can mesh to define success on your own terms.

Once you are clear on your own goals you can begin to envision your long and short-term plans for your career, your lifestyle, and your family. You’ll also need to think through potential opportunities and obstacles and clearly map out financial and professional development needs. Do you want to be home with your children for an extended leave? Can you afford to work part-time? Do you want to take a sabbatical? Do you have childcare options? Your flexible work plan can then be mapped out to support your aspirations. You’ll be much better able to negotiate the needs of your firm once you have a clear sense of your personal needs.

Over the years we’ve asked countless professionals working flexible schedules about their initial planning stages. Here are some of their words of wisdom… Read more

Are You Managing Your Team Effectively?

If you’re a manager, you know that it’s not always easy to successfully manage your team and cultivate effective time management skills. It’s often challenging to establish a strong foundation to motivate your team to deliver top-quality work. According to Paul Burton, time management expert and Founder & Principal of QuietSpacing LLC, there are four key elements to successfully managing a team: Consideration, Collaboration, Communication and Coordination.

Join Paul at 3:00pm EST on Monday, September 19 as he leads our bi-monthly Signature Seminar entitled “Orchestrate: Four Productivity Skills Every Manager Needs.” Paul’s webinar is open to all Alliance members and will provide immediate, actionable tips for mid-level managers on how to:

– Find the correlation between goals and how things get done;

– Effectively connect and engage those with whom you work;

– Diplomatically manage up and manage down; and

– Navigate the important landscape of middle management. Read more

Orchestrate: Four Productivity Skills Every Manager Needs

September 2016

Featuring — Paul H. Burton, Founder & Principal, QuietSpacing LLC

Managing cases, deals, and other people are vital skills mid-level people must develop. Yet, there are scant legal-focused resources available to help them build that skill set. Productive managers focus the right people on the right efforts to deliver top-quality work to clients in a timely manner. Mid-level managers can repeatedly achieve that result if a strong foundation is established first. Join us for September’s Signature Seminar with Paul Burton as he provides immediate, actionable suggestions around these four quadrants – consideration, collaboration, communication, and coordination – so anyone can orchestrate and control their time management skills. Participants will learn to: see the connection between larger goals and how things get done; effectively connect and engage those with whom you work; diplomatically manage up and manage down; and navigate the important landscape of middle management.

Spotlight on Flex – Erik Lemmon

The Spotlight on Flex showcases professionals from member organizations who exemplify personal and professional success while working a flexible schedule. Their stories illustrate the long-term benefits that flexible schedules offer to both individuals and organizations.

This month, we are pleased to share insights from Erik Lemmon, Associate in the Denver office of Holland & Hart LLP.

Erik LemmonDiversity & Flexibility Alliance: How have you made flexibility a priority and a success through your schedule?

Erik Lemmon: After college I attended the US Navy’s Officer Candidate School to train to be a pilot. Although I really loved being in the Navy and serving my country, I wasn’t passionate about the flying, especially given the months away from home the job entailed. I transferred to the Reserves on active duty to complete my commitment and started law school in 2005. I summered at Holland & Hart in 2007, and I started as a first year associate in the fall of 2008 in the Denver office.

My wife, a child clinical psychologist with a busy practice, and I moved to Arizona for her clinical internship in early 2010 after we had our first child. I switched firms when we moved, but we returned to Colorado and Holland & Hart in 2011. In 2013, we had our second child, and I knew something had to give. With a four year old daughter and newborn at home, I wanted to be involved at work, but I wanted to be a fully involved parent as well. If I wasn’t going to miss being an integral part of my family to be a pilot for the Navy, then I certainly wasn’t going to miss it to be a full time lawyer.

At first I didn’t think about the firm’s flex time program; I was looking at smaller firms and exploring in-house opportunities. I talked to a friend at the firm, and she suggested staying at Holland and working reduced hours. After speaking with the firm’s flex coordinator, I went to an 80 percent schedule. Looking back, I can’t believe I didn’t think about this option right away, and when I talk to male and female associates, I highly encourage them to explore flex as an option for their own careers. The firm is incredibly supportive and has a true-up policy; I’m compensated for any work above my agreed upon hours plus receive a bonus for exceeding them.

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