While the question of gender equality is often raised in professional services firms, the issue of diversity is much less so. And yet it’s a major issue for the life of firms, both in terms of talent attraction and well-being in the workplace.
Today, it’s difficult to take stock of diversity in professional services firms, given the complexity of obtaining data on employees’ religious beliefs, sexual orientations or ethnic origins. In addition to these characteristics, diversity also involves the age, physical abilities and social origins of employees.
If Kami Haeri, author of a report on the future of the legal profession, is to be believed, law firms are still far from diverse. With the exception of Linklaters and Hogan Lovells, no professional services firm has yet won a trophy from the Mozaïk RH Foundation, Diversity Conseil or the UK’s Diversity Awards, which honor companies committed to promoting diversity. A lack of commitment is synonymous with loss of earnings, at a time when legal and accounting departments are increasingly including this criterion in their calls for tender. What’s more, customers are often looking for people who understand them: a homogenous firm therefore misses out on the potential of a diverse clientele. Last but not least, according to a study conducted by Mc Kinsey & Company in 2019, promoting diversity within companies leads to an almost 35% increase in their financial performance. This is hardly surprising: by attracting talent from all horizons, and fostering exchange and tolerance, these structures create an environment conducive to emulation and innovation.
EXEMPLARY INITIATIVES
The values of equality and diversity often feature in corporate presentations. Words aside, only a handful of professional services firms have taken steps to put them into practice. Cohen Amir-Aslani is behind the ” La grande famille” program, aimed at young people from the legal and management streams at the IUTs in Bobigny, Saint-Denis and Villetaneuse. The five winners will receive internships, mentoring and scholarships. Other firms, such as In Extenso IDF, Hogan Lovells, Dentons Europe and Eversheds, have signed the Diversity Charter, thereby committing themselves to raising awareness of this issue among their staff, combating discrimination and seeking to reflect the diversity of French society.
Clifford Chance has also set up an internal support network for LGBTQ people and signed the charter of the association l’Autre Cercle, which aims to ensure an “inclusive work environment” for all.
For its part, LinkLaters has chosen to focus on a number of areas: implementation of a seniors’ plan; Allies program; global diversity manager and local diversity associates; scholarships.
Firms wishing to bring about a change in their attitudes and practices can take their cue from these initiatives, or find their own ways of doing things. To achieve this, there’s nothing like relying on existing tools and structures, such as specialized recruitment and training firms, diversity labels and charters, or think tanks. The Club 21ème siècle think-tank thus advocates professional diversification within senior management positions and boards of directors. For example, it keeps a list of independent directors from diverse backgrounds.
ADVICE FROM ELIOTT & MARKUS
Putting words into action means getting your teams to rally around a shared vision. The best way to do this is to organize a brainstorming meeting with your colleagues to identify problems and possible improvements. Alternatively, a web platform can be used to collect ideas from employees.
Once these ideas have been collected, the diversity committee you’ve set up can define an action plan and implement it. This can take the form of anonymous CVs for recruitment, internships/scholarships for student lawyers from disadvantaged areas, and audits of promotion processes. Committing to an approach that promotes diversity is a long-term process that also involves training sessions for your HR, a tedious process review and ongoing, cross-functional awareness-raising.
It’s only once these actions have been launched that you’ll be able to legitimately display your commitment on your corporate presentations, backing them up with video testimonials for added credibility.
Simply put, surrounding yourself with the best is the strength of a diversified firm.
Further information
Diversity Matters, McKinsey & Company, 2019
Corporate social responsibility for law firms
Dominic Jensen, Eliott & Markus
