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Any take on culture of MS Menlo?
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Are these pants still in style for women??
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Is this still a thing? Lol 25/F/Chicago
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I may be jaded...but here goes anyway. There’s always a price to pay for everything, and more often than not you can’t have it both ways simultaneously (maybe at different times in your life but not usually at once). As a third year I think you have to determine what it is you want to focus on, your development or this because if you go down the road of trying really hard to diversify this place and give it too much of yourself it’ll take, take and take and it will deplete you. In the meantime you’ll have lost out on time, energy, opportunities in developing your skill set and/or biz dev training. It’s not fair, but it’s at least been my experience and when you’re still in the thick of it when it comes to learning how to be the best lawyer and business person possible it takes a toll—one that’s not always worth it for you personally. I personally would focus on my training and development right now and prioritize that, and make the tough moves you need to to ensure that happens.
I’m not saying that you as an associate cannot create change, but actual real change for diverse attorneys happens when they direct more diverse attorneys to partner tracks. That’s probably the most tangible and effective way of building a diverse firm.
I went to law school in Chicago and being from the Northeast, you have to know the situation is better in bigger coastal cities for diverse attorneys. I’m not saying it’s perfect anywhere (and my firm can for sure improve its recruitment and hiring of diverse attorneys), but it’s worth thinking about if this is an important issue for you. The Midwest honestly can’t really compare.
Maybe there's a Forbes 100 corporation in your city and you could go in house? Not saying corporations are inherently better than firms but there is probably more stockholder pressure for large companies to having diversity initiatives than there is less pressure from clients or partners to do the same. Or to the extent firms are pushing for diversity bc of client demand, you may prefer being the client asking why there aren't more POC on a file instead of fighting for quality work at a firm...
Short of an uphill battle at a firm to change the culture, I think there's other ways to join diverse or diverse focused workforces while living where you love. You may want to start by networking with an affinity bar to get a sense of what other places are like in your area
A1: I think I get where you're coming from, it takes a critical mass of diverse attorneys to effect change and we need all the help we can get in the Midwest. However, the op is faced with a toxic culture and wondering what options there are to manage through.
As grateful as I am for those who came before me, I wouldn't ask anyone to sacrifice their well being to "tough it out" in the hopes of making things better for the next person. I can't make that choice for OP, so let's at least recognize there are other ways to push the legal culture forward for D&I work, and yet work in an environment where you feel your contribution is valued. If OP wants to leave and not be one of the few POC partners, they're not letting anyone down, they're putting on their own oxygen mask before assisting another person.
However, I absolutely love living here. My boyfriend and I have a beautiful house that we have put our hearts and souls into. It’s a gorgeous area (cold, but it’s the Midwest so at least there aren’t forest fires or hurricanes? 🤷🏽♀️) and I have family nearby.
I think the same issues are present in other firms in the area as well. There are really only 4 of comparable size and pay scale in this city.
I don’t want to move. I really want to stay here. But also I can’t subject myself to this work environment long term. My firm’s policy committee has expressed their desire to retain and recruit more diverse talent and they do seem concerned with the lack of diversity. However, I don’t. think they are doing nearly enough to fix their issues.
I would love to take some sort of action to steer my firm in the right direction and make changes that will make it a better workplace for women and for POC. Has anyone ever been successful in creating any sort of change like this? I’m curious to hear about how those conversations went and whether anything was fixed.
I think people would listen to what I have to say because they don’t want to lose me (I am a top billing associate at my firm and generally have good relationships). At the same time, I’m just a third year associate. Not sure how much power I have in this situation.
Any advice would be helpful!
Get out of there. They’ll never give a crap about you and you’re not going to change their ways. Go to a diverse city where there are more people that look like you and that have your interests at heart. (I lived in podunk Midwest too so this is from experience)