Confident Communication Key to Success

The glass ceiling is alive and well in America's 200 largest law firms. According to a survey released last October by the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL), women make up a paltry 16% of equity partners, 16% of governance committee members and 5% of managing partners in these firms. NAWL says the firms should double the number of women equity partners and corporations should reach the same target with chief legal officers by 2015. Even so, the percentage of women in equity and leadership roles in the legal profession would still fail to reflect that women now represent about 50% of all law school graduates.

Many law firms, already mindful of the challenge of retaining and promoting women lawyers, have instituted formal women's initiatives. Pepper Hamilton's Web site features the firm's 'Pepper WIN!' program geared to recruiting, retaining, promoting and supporting women attorneys. Day Berry and Howard's site also describes a women's initiative, 'Women Working Together,' intended to enhance opportunities for women attorneys through networking, mentoring and professional development. These programs likely serve dual purposes: bolstering skills and creating goodwill between the firms and their women attorneys.

Since speaking with persuasive self-confidence is critical to the success of any professional ' and since oral communication skills generally are neither taught in law school nor innate to everyone who chooses to join the legal profession ' one area of professional development that holds increasing interest for law firms is communication skills. Today's law firm professional development programs often include a public speaking or presentation skills component. Many are investing not only in educating lawyers in the general features of effective presentation style and structure, but also in offering attorneys the opportunity to work one-on-one with coaches who deliver pointed feedback tailored to each attorney's strengths and weaknesses. These programs are by no means limited to litigators. All attorneys deliver presentations of one kind or another to other attorneys at work, to clients, or sometimes to larger audiences of peers or prospective clients. Even extroverted lawyers who feel comfortable in public speaking situations are candidates for coaching, for the same reason that Tiger Woods still takes golf lessons.

Do women attorneys have a particular need for communication skills development? Yes, according to books such as Phyllis Mindell's How To Say It For Women: Communica-ting with Confidence and Power Using the Language of Success, Susan Miller's Be Heard the First Time! The Woman's Guide to Powerful Speaking and Deborah Tannen's Talking from 9 to 5: Women and Men at Work. These experts from the fields of communications, speech pathology, and linguistics cite research that indicates that many of women's verbal tendencies can undermine their efficacy at work. Downplaying accomplishments, resisting authoritative language and valuing relationships over results all can work against women seeking power and authority. Hedging declarative statements, frequent apologizing, and speaking with 'feeling' verbs are typical manifestations of these tendencies. Those women who do advance often assert their power in ways perceived to be aggressive or condescending, thereby undermining their potential to become effective leaders. On the flip side, women who can own their accomplishments without being arrogant, who can be strong as well as compassionate and who can nurture relationships to their advantage can be exemplary leaders. They can blend the best of the feminine with the best of the masculine.

The physical aspect of communication also plays an important part. Some research indicates that 55% of communication is body language, 38% is tone or intonation, and only 7% is from the words we use. Pioneer television journalist Pauline Frederick once said: 'When a man gets up to speak, people listen, then look. When a woman gets up, people look; then, if they like what they see, they listen.' As such, in the realm of physical presentation, women also may have challenges that men do not. Deborah Tannen terms this 'being marked;' however a woman chooses to dress and accessorize herself at work itself is a communication whereas men have a standard business attire that, generally speaking, is neutral with respect
to communication.

How can law firms respond to these findings? Through specific women's initiatives or general professional development, firms can offer presentation skills coaching as well as access to image consultants. Some firms might elect to present a program specifically tailored to women lawyers; others might want to gather both men and women for a dialogue on gender communication habits in an effort to close the gap; still others might offer intensive presentation skills coaching to all attorneys, mindful to use coaches who will bring to individual coaching sessions a knowledge of communication tendencies particular to women. In the end, better communication skills alone won't shatter the glass ceiling ' but they can make a powerful impact.

The glass ceiling is alive and well in America's 200 largest law firms. According to a survey released last October by the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL), women make up a paltry 16% of equity partners, 16% of governance committee members and 5% of managing partners in these firms. NAWL says the firms should double the number of women equity partners and corporations should reach the same target with chief legal officers by 2015. Even so, the percentage of women in equity and leadership roles in the legal profession would still fail to reflect that women now represent about 50% of all law school graduates.

Many law firms, already mindful of the challenge of retaining and promoting women lawyers, have instituted formal women's initiatives. Pepper Hamilton's Web site features the firm's 'Pepper WIN!' program geared to recruiting, retaining, promoting and supporting women attorneys. Day Berry and Howard's site also describes a women's initiative, 'Women Working Together,' intended to enhance opportunities for women attorneys through networking, mentoring and professional development. These programs likely serve dual purposes: bolstering skills and creating goodwill between the firms and their women attorneys.

Since speaking with persuasive self-confidence is critical to the success of any professional ' and since oral communication skills generally are neither taught in law school nor innate to everyone who chooses to join the legal profession ' one area of professional development that holds increasing interest for law firms is communication skills. Today's law firm professional development programs often include a public speaking or presentation skills component. Many are investing not only in educating lawyers in the general features of effective presentation style and structure, but also in offering attorneys the opportunity to work one-on-one with coaches who deliver pointed feedback tailored to each attorney's strengths and weaknesses. These programs are by no means limited to litigators. All attorneys deliver presentations of one kind or another to other attorneys at work, to clients, or sometimes to larger audiences of peers or prospective clients. Even extroverted lawyers who feel comfortable in public speaking situations are candidates for coaching, for the same reason that Tiger Woods still takes golf lessons.

Do women attorneys have a particular need for communication skills development? Yes, according to books such as Phyllis Mindell's How To Say It For Women: Communica-ting with Confidence and Power Using the Language of Success, Susan Miller's Be Heard the First Time! The Woman's Guide to Powerful Speaking and Deborah Tannen's Talking from 9 to 5: Women and Men at Work. These experts from the fields of communications, speech pathology, and linguistics cite research that indicates that many of women's verbal tendencies can undermine their efficacy at work. Downplaying accomplishments, resisting authoritative language and valuing relationships over results all can work against women seeking power and authority. Hedging declarative statements, frequent apologizing, and speaking with 'feeling' verbs are typical manifestations of these tendencies. Those women who do advance often assert their power in ways perceived to be aggressive or condescending, thereby undermining their potential to become effective leaders. On the flip side, women who can own their accomplishments without being arrogant, who can be strong as well as compassionate and who can nurture relationships to their advantage can be exemplary leaders. They can blend the best of the feminine with the best of the masculine.

The physical aspect of communication also plays an important part. Some research indicates that 55% of communication is body language, 38% is tone or intonation, and only 7% is from the words we use. Pioneer television journalist Pauline Frederick once said: 'When a man gets up to speak, people listen, then look. When a woman gets up, people look; then, if they like what they see, they listen.' As such, in the realm of physical presentation, women also may have challenges that men do not. Deborah Tannen terms this 'being marked;' however a woman chooses to dress and accessorize herself at work itself is a communication whereas men have a standard business attire that, generally speaking, is neutral with respect
to communication.

How can law firms respond to these findings? Through specific women's initiatives or general professional development, firms can offer presentation skills coaching as well as access to image consultants. Some firms might elect to present a program specifically tailored to women lawyers; others might want to gather both men and women for a dialogue on gender communication habits in an effort to close the gap; still others might offer intensive presentation skills coaching to all attorneys, mindful to use coaches who will bring to individual coaching sessions a knowledge of communication tendencies particular to women. In the end, better communication skills alone won't shatter the glass ceiling ' but they can make a powerful impact.