Riker Danzig says the bright red neon sign towering over Morristown's green, a touch of modernity in the historic town.
The distinguished law firm is proud of its status as the firm with more female partners than any other in the area. And the firm doesn't just rest on its laurels. Twice a year, Riker Danzig, led by the female partners, holds women's leadership events.
Networking is the goal of most attendees and they make the most of the cocktails and hot hors d'orves. Riker Danzig partners and associates mingle with accountants, real estate brokers and other businesswomen. It's a typical scene except for gender.
Each event has a speaker, also female, followed by dessert and coffee. Probably because the attendees are women, the desserts learn toward chocolate. Stereotyping, but delicious.
At first, the cocktail receptions moved around, but Riker Danzig settled at the Guevenor Morris (now renamed the Westin Governor Morris, but natives know that is incorrect). It is the perfect venue with a balcony for the cocktail party adjacent to a spacious banquet room. And the food and service are consistently great.
The latest even featured Lisa Shallot of Goldman Sachs who spoke about her rise through the ranks and offered some tips from her experiences for women on the way up.
Most of the mature women in the audience nodded frequently as Shallot spoke about characteristics of many women in the workforce.
Nothing sparked affirmative gestures as quickly as when she talked about women as reluctant to focus on their strengths. Even in their annual reviews, most women focus on their needs for improvement rather than on what they do well.
Shallot advised women to list their strengths, even to the extent of looking at past performance review and asking friends and colleagues for their observations. She pointed out often others perceive strengths in an individual that may escape the person herself. Friends and colleagues may also not see the very thing the woman thinks is her major strength.
Accepting challenges and moving out of one's comfort zone were other items of advice Shallot offered.
The audience questions revealed the group was seriously paying attention, but they didn't hesitate to head straight for the chocolate.
No comments:
Post a Comment