Notes From the President & CEO
PROGRESS, BUT THERE’S STILL WORK TO DO
8
WHEN I FIRST STARTED PRACTICING LAW, I RARELY SAW GENERAL COUN- SEL OF COLOR, PARTICULARLY AT THE FORTUNE® 500 LEVEL. Te past few years have seen gradual, progressive growth across all industries. Te key finding of the 14th annual general counsel survey is that women are making gains in ‘hard hat’ industries (survey starts on page 18). Te expanded opportunities for women in industries that were previously dominated by men means that women are not allowing themselves to be pigeon-holed in certain industries or practice areas. Tis bodes well not only for the hiring of women GCs but for the retention, development, and advancement of all women lawyers. Minority general counsel also saw an increase in
their numbers in the Fortune® 500 (see page 30 for minority GC survey results). Te 48 minority general counsel in this year’s survey are three more than a year ago. Progress was also made at the Fortune® 1000 level, where four additional diverse general counsel were added. While the progress is encouraging, the representation at the GC level still pales in comparison to the growth of minorities in the U.S. population at large. One has to wonder if the ingredients for success, such as mentoring and support systems, and access to quality work and “stretch assignments” exist without regard to gender or ethnicity. With Asian women so poorly represented in the surveys, that doesn’t look like it’s the case, which means we still have work to do. Te biggest challenge facing the legal industry right now is the pipeline. Corporations are doing a
Publications Staff
President & CEO Joseph K. West
Founder and Publisher Emeritus Lloyd M. Johnson Jr.
Editor-in-Chief Joshua H. Shields
Publishing Consultants Bill Cox Toni Coleman
Advertising Don Cooksey
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DIVERSITY & THE BAR® SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2013 MCCA® Staff
Jennifer Chen Mahzarine Chinoy David Chu Donna Crook Charles Hollins Jessica Martinez Aracely Muñoz Petrich Andrea Pimm
Contributing Writers Tom Calarco Brian Dabbs Patrick Folliard Jonathan Groner Thomas W. Laryea Lydia Lum Joshua H. Shields
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better job hiring women and minorities for their top legal position but they need to contribute more to the pipeline. A typical corporation only hires a lawyer who has experience at a firm. Tat means a candidate for in-house work needs to compile an average of three years of work at a firm before a lateral move can be considered. Backing up, law school cost is increasing, so it is easy to see where the problems lie. MCCA is dedicated to increasing opportunities
for women and minority lawyers. It is heartening that the numbers are increasing at the legal industry’s top levels. We, as a profession, need to take note of the women of this year’s survey, put on our ‘hard hats,’ and build the legal pipeline.
JOSEPH K. WEST President & CEO
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