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Mentorship opportunities key in educating staff
Leading up to the 31 March deadline, an Australian law firm has reiterated why a focus on mentorship is pivotal in the upskilling of lawyers.
Emma Musgrave
Speaking to Lawyers Weekly as part of our CPD special, Lander & Rogers chief people officer Catherine Whitehead said the firm has ensured it has instilled an active strategy towards the mentorship of its people, noting its importance for those coming through the ranks.
“After that, our approach to mentorship is more informal,” she said.
“As well as mentoring within lawyer groups, we draw on the talents of our C-suite to coach our partners and senior lawyers on the path to partnership in non-legal skills such as people management, client relationships and financial knowledge.”
Speaking virtually at an International Women’s Day breakfast hosted by legal practice management software provider LEAP, former prime minister Julia Gillard also spoke of the importance of mentorship in the profession. She suggested finding someone, or persons, who can serve as a mentor and sponsor.
“Not necessarily a woman, it could be a man – but find someone who is prepared to play a coach role for you, as a mentor and ultimately someone who is prepared to be your sponsor. By that, I mean a slightly different thing: a sponsor is someone who is prepared to put their brand in your service. Someone who is prepared to back you when promotions season comes around, someone who says that I know that she will do an incredible job, and help you navigate your way up the hierarchy that law firms do have,” she suggested.
Those coming through the ranks should be “very thoughtful about mentorship and sponsorship”, Ms Gillard added.
One may not find the ideal candidate for such roles immediately, she noted, “but over the first few years of your professional career, having a scanning eye for who can best play those roles for you is really important”.
Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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