Washington Lawyer - July/August 2024 - 23

FEATURE
" The criteria for an applicant is that they have excellent legal skills, exhibit
strong leadership and business development skills, and have the dedication
and spirit to succeed in Big Law, " Schiff says. " Sometimes it takes two
or three years for an applicant to be selected. "
Successful applicants attend monthly virtual meetings as well as two retreats
that take place at Schiff's home in Florida. Given the firm's size -
2,200 lawyers - and nationwide presence, the retreats help forge strong
personal and professional connections among participants.
During COVID, members of the current and prior classes met weekly for
support and to share opportunities; some even formed a Peloton group
that still meets regularly. " Some of our classes continue to get together,
even after their program year [ended], " Schiff says. And reunions for all
classes take place every other year. " They've become a very strong group
within the firm, and firm management fully supports it, " Schiff adds.
'OLD GIRL NETWORK'
Addressing the issue that led Schiff to create the program, Rising Stars
participants are introduced to firm leadership, including C-suite and section
leaders, during monthly meetings. " This month, our class met with
the firm's chief operating officer and chief talent officer. Next week, we
are meeting with the head of human resources. It's really a combination
of knowing the firm, learning about the firm, meeting with these people,
and also making those connections, " Schiff says.
Additionally, Holland & Knight's firmwide managing partner and chair
join the second annual retreat, and Rising Stars participants attend a directors
committee meeting. Participants attend a dinner in advance of
the meeting and are assigned a director to meet and interact with.
Rising Stars participants read books on leadership and management and
receive training in client development. Importantly, each one is provided
with a business development coach and an executive leadership coach.
They produce business development plans that are reviewed and discussed
by the group.
" At the end of the year, the participants walk away with
a really good business development plan and the skills
to execute it, " Schiff says. " Many of the women who
graduate from the program go on to become equity
partners and also are involved with firm leadership.
Several Rising Star alumni serve on the directors committee
and are executive partners and practice group
leaders. Many of our former Rising Stars are the top
producers for the firm. "
A demographic analysis conducted by the firm has
produced interesting results. Many in the Rising Stars
program are the first in their family to become attorneys,
making their cultivation by the firm particularly
impactful. " The Rising Star participants develop client
development and leadership skills and, most of all,
confidence and peer-to-peer relationships, " Schiff says.
" We've created an 'old girl network' within the firm,
which didn't exist 20 years ago. "
Leila Marie Jackson Batties, from the 2008 Rising Stars
class, says the program provides critical support and
Participants of Arnold & Porter's Executive Leadership Academy with Andy Colón (right) and
Sean Howell (left), the firm's chief legal talent officer and chief operating officer, respectively.
JULY/AUGUST 2024 * WASHINGTON LAWYER 23
training for upcoming talent. " At the time, I had only been at the firm
for a few years, commuting between two offices, and had a young child.
Things were quite hectic, " she recalls. " Being part of the Rising Stars program
forced me to pause and dial in on my professional and personal development,
helped me create a network within the firm, and allowed me
to become more rooted in the firm. Sixteen years later, these elements of
my Rising Stars experience remain with me in big and little ways. "
Following her participation in Rising Stars, Batties made partner and continues
to pursue leadership roles in the firm, serving as co-hiring partner
for Holland & Knight's D.C. office and as cochair of the firm's Black Affinity
Group. Outside work, she is on the D.C. Policy Center board and the Walter
Reed Community Advisory Committee.
Schiff says that the Rising Stars program is possibly her proudest professional
accomplishment and gratifying on several levels. " I am very proud
of the fact that management has been so supportive of the program, "
she says.
The success of the program didn't go unnoticed by the firm, which re-created
Rising Stars to launch its gender-neutral Path to Partnership program.
Rising Stars has also drawn praise externally. In 2023 Chambers USA honored
Barnard and Schiff with a diversity and inclusion lifetime achievement
award. " It is an incredibly rewarding opportunity and a labor of
love to support and mentor such amazing and successful women. It's
women helping women, " says Schiff.
MULTIFACETED INTEGRATION
At Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, firm leaders are seeking to address
the wide array of professional and personal challenges new partners
face. In 2022 it launched its Executive Leadership Academy (APEX), a
training program available to new partners, lateral partners, and counsel
who typically come from government or in-house roles.
" We conceived of APEX during the pandemic, " says Ellen Kaye Fleishhacker,
co-managing partner at the firm. " We observed that it was harder
Jati Lindsay

Washington Lawyer - July/August 2024

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