33 ASIAN LEGAL BUSINESS – MARCH 2024 WWW.LEGALBUSINESSONLINE.COM ROUNDTABLE can be pronounced with I&D because it touches on personal issues that often have indirect connections to business functions. The way we are addressing those is through ongoing discussion and using variety of approaches; our experience is that different causes, or evidence points, move different people. RICHARDS-YELLEN: In my opinion, the best strategy for deepening a firm’s commitment to DEI is to show how addressing the challenges faced by women, minorities, and LGBTQ+ lawyers makes the firm stronger and creates value for the firm. I also believe it is self-evident that lawyers and professional staff are more likely to invest, more fully and for a longer timeframe, in a firm that they believe shares their values. Relationships are stronger and more authentic when people feel connected to the firm and their colleagues. Client attraction and loyalty are enhanced when a firm is proficient in the implementation of DEI strategies. Clients feel the dynamic culture and want to engage with the firm and its lawyers - this engagement may include assigning more matters to the firm. One stumbling block can be when there is distance between the values a firm articulates and what people feel. Firms must continue to chip away to close that gap. Sidley’s strategy to address this challenge is to translate our DEI priorities into action. ALB: How can a role as CDO enhance the firms’ standing and help firms achieve their commercial goals? BATTS: Given shifting demographics across regions, having a CDO helps an organisation adapt to changing client and employee needs, ensuring sustained relevance and success while providing the firm with a competitive advantage. A CDO also ensures that a firm’s DEI strategy is representative of its client base and values. For example, Cooley partners with industry organisations, such as the Women Entrepreneurs Network (WEN) and Women in Law Hong Kong (WILHK), to explore programs in professional development and community leadership. Firms that invest in their DEI functions, as demonstrated by the presence of a CDO, are working toward the future of the business, where DEI will be a nonnegotiable imperative and standard practice for a healthy, thriving organisation that attracts clients as well as talent. ANDREWS: The combination of elements that make up the CDO role – leading on internal initiatives, engaging with client I&D requirements, and being an external ambassador – means they are uniquely positioned to leverage a firm’s I&D effort. Each of those elements informs and interacts with the others, leading to synergistic benefits that would be difficult to obtain if those functions were performed by different people. We had a relatively recent example of this synergy on the topic of gender equality. Related aspects surfaced separately during a client-initiated certification process, an internal review of progression opportunities, and a media interview. Having our CDO involved in all of those instances meant our actions in each case were both coordinated and more effective. ALB: If law firms want to consider creating a CDO role, what kind of considerations should they keep in mind? BATTS: Firms should consider creating a role that closely aligns with their company culture and business perspectives, as the position will bring fundamental changes to their business strategies and daily operations. Key questions to ask are: is there buy-in within the C-suite to set up a CDO for success, and is the firm ready to reflect on its practices systemically? As for practical elements, what is the CDO’s reporting structure, and how is the role resourced, both financially and with the support of human resources? I am incredibly lucky that at Cooley, furthering our DEI objectives is a top business priority for our most senior leadership. While there is still work to do, the support of the firm and close alignment with our core values means I’m optimistic about the road ahead. ANDREWS: The key considerations are: what does the firm want the CDO to achieve, and what support does the CDO need to achieve that? Creating a CDO title without the required support will result in little progress, and, in time, create the impression of a superficial, or even cynical, approach. To give the example of our own experience: we decided that for the CDO role to be effective it needed to be a top-level management board position and, ideally, filled by one of our senior partners. We made that choice because it would provide I&D leadership that had the access, authority, and freedom to create the strategy that was the best fit for our business. That approach has so far been successful, in that we have avoided the challenges reported by some of our peers. Examples include an I&D leader not having sufficient support from the firm management to deliver the required cultural evolution, or an external I&D hire not having a sufficiently deep understanding of a firm’s business culture to develop a strategy that is the right fit. RICHARDS-YELLEN: There are basic steps to take to set up a CDO for success. The CDO should be integrated into the firm and have access to leaders, resources, and information. The firm should provide the CDO with tangible structural authority. Speaking more personally, Sidley leaders have reflected on how to build successful leaders, leading to the creation of a thoughtful talent integration process at all levels. And, after I joined Sidley, I benefitted. The process established by the Director of Business Process Improvement and the Chief Learning & Development Officer provided me with a thorough overview and understanding of the CDO role and, importantly, the firm’s culture. Sidley recognises that leadership starts with an associate’s first day on a job and that inclusiveness is a key element in building leadership at every level. For example, I became acquainted with our Built to Lead professional development offering that was strategically developed to ensure that managing and senior managing associates have the skills to take on new responsibilities. Moreover, our leadership continues to check in with me regularly to provide guidance. Their efforts have played a huge role in integrating me into the firm.
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