A Haven For Straight Talk: <b>Mystery Shopper</b>

Story 1: I was treated to lunch recently by a 4th-year associate at a large corporate law firm. She was on a fund-raising committee and wanted to pick my brain for ideas about free or cheap prizes for an associate raffle. I suggested use of primo parking spots, bar dues paid for a year and a lunch with firm management. She nodded while jotting down the first two, but the last one made her look up at me with the “Are you mad?!?” face. When I asked for clarification, she told me that while the associates respected and admired the firm's most senior partners, the idea of trying to engage them in conversation over lunch was frankly terrifying.

Story 2: I was talking to an associate from another firm about a marketing training program they'd begun a year or so ago. I wanted to know how it was going, and he told me that it was going slowly, but OK. The one big surprise was the overwhelming assumption on the part of the associates that being asked to learn about marketing must mean that the firm was in financial trouble, which it ain't. “We've just learned to make that clear at the get-go,” he told me.