By Nikki Weaden (MSc 20-21)

Attrition rates for junior lawyers are amongst the highest in the legal industry and across professional services^{[1, 2]}. Research conducted with 225 junior lawyers found 60% were actively considering moving outside of the law or would consider it in the future^[3]. In a US survey of 1200 lawyers, a third of which were junior associates, 70% described themselves as loyal to their firm, yet 75% were open to new opportunities or actively seeking them^[4]. Whilst there may be several reasons for this, recent sources suggest there are discrepancies between the expectations that young lawyers have for a legal career versus the reality of a career as qualified lawyers^[5]. These discrepancies are leading to tension and discomfort and for some, this results in seeking new opportunities, be it at other law firms, moving to an in-house role or pursuing a different interest altogether.

Whilst a certain level of attrition is normal and to some extent beneficial, these statistics present serious concerns. The costs associated with losing key talent can be immense, with the average cost of replacing an associate lawyer being over £30,000^[6]. On top of this, there is the cost of training new recruits, as well reduced productivity at the team level if it takes time to fill vacancies^[7]. The cost of training a lawyer to qualify is estimated between £100,000 to £300,000^[8], it therefore makes commercial sense to retain these trainees as they progress through the firm. With so much at stake, we must question how employers can help to reduce the discrepancies between career expectations and the reality, but first, we need to explore where these differences lie.

Where do the discrepancies lie?

In a recent study^[9], 15 junior lawyers at a London city law firm were asked to reflect on their career expectations before starting their training contract and consider how these expectations meet the reality of their career.

“There’s much more to being a lawyer than the law”

A particularly strong theme in the research related to lawyers having much broader role responsibilities than anticipated. Having to do due diligence, conflict checks, billing, even more training, and business development hadn’t cropped up in conversation. And the biggest surprise of all – time recording. Very few had any knowledge of how a firm operates commercially before starting out, and so the idea of having to record their time in 6-minute units came as quite a shock and not a particularly pleasant one. Questioning whether it would be useful to know this information beforehand, it was felt it would at the very least minimise surprises encouraging a smoother journey.

“There’s a misrepresented glamour of the career”

For many, the likes of television programmes such as ‘Suits’ and ‘The Good Wife’ influenced perceptions of what it means it be a lawyer – you can have it all, right? Well, not exactly.  The junior lawyers felt the glamour hadn’t lived up to expectations and whilst this aspect was more important for some, there was an element of disappointment. Expectations were also formed by law firms at recruitment events selling a particular lifestyle – think fancy client lunches, golfing days and of course plenty of international travel. Law firms want to attract the best possible talent… but is over-selling a plausible long-term strategy?

“Some expectations have been met, both good and bad”

It’s important to note that it wasn’t all about the discrepancies. The reality lived up to some expectations including doing intellectually stimulating work, career security, and financial security. There were also some particularly nice surprises – they found teamwork and collaboration exceeded expectations. However, some expectations that were met led to less positive experiences. This related to the requirement of needing to work long hours. Having this expectation didn’t make it any easier and for many, this remains a part of the career they wish to see change.

What’s the impact?

The junior lawyers felt positive about their careers to date, but this was paired with an uncertainty of what the future held for them and what it was they truly want from a career. The traditional route to partnership is becoming less appealing and the temptation of new, exciting avenues is always there (particularly with the continuous ‘grass is greener’ roles presented by LinkedIn recruiters). Whether junior lawyers decide to stay or leave may depend on whether the balance between their expectations and the reality tips more towards the positive aspects, and this will require firms to support them and present different opportunities.

What can firms do to minimise surprises and support junior lawyers?

The practical recommendations of this research focuses on two angles, the first – how law firms can present a clearer picture of a legal career during recruitment processes to reduce the gap between expectations and reality. Second, with the goal of retaining junior lawyers, how firms can support and guide them through their careers as well as present different internal opportunities.

During recruitment processes:

Strike a balance: Firms must be clear around their expectations of junior lawyers to minimise surprises when they qualify and in the early stages of being qualified. Whilst it’s important to ‘sell’ the firm, it’s just as important to communicate all aspects of the role.

Differentiate by the support offered: Striking a balance between the positive and negative provides an opportunity to emphasise how the firm can support junior lawyers with the additional aspects of the role, this may offer a point of difference to other firms.

Encourage research, and more research: Encourage potential recruits to find out as much as possible about the career before applying to join, provide hints and tips on where to find honest and helpful information.

Supporting junior lawyers:

Clear expectations and providing support: Junior lawyers need clear expectations of their role upon qualification – training and coaching should be offered at transition points but also as they continue to grow in the firm. Through understanding motivations, more relevant opportunities can be offered.

Mentoring: As an additional source of support, firms should encourage mentoring at junior associate level. Informal mentorships have been found to have greater impact^[10], firms could therefore provide guidance in seeking a mentor and having powerful career conversations.

Internal career options: Law firms are now offering more internal career options than the traditional partnership route, these roles should continue to expand in line with business strategy. Firms may consider implementing more structured policies around sabbaticals and secondments to be clear on these as career options.

References

(1) Lex Conscientia. (2016). Reducing Attrition: Motivating Millennials to Remain in your Law Firm. Retrieved from https://lexconscientia.co.uk/infobank/item/365-reducing-attrition-motivating-millennials-to-remain-in-your-law-firm

(2) PwC. (2019). Annual Law Firm’s Survey: Adapting to a new world. Retrieved from https://pwc.blogs.com/pwcresearch/2019/11/annual-law-firms-survey-adapting-to-a-new-world-.html

(3) Law Society of Scotland. (2019). Young lawyers and the retention issue.Retrieved from https://www.lawscot.org.uk/members/journal/issues/vol-64-issue-06/young-lawyers-and-the-retention-issue/

(4) Major, Lindsay & Africa Report.(2019). Millennial Attorney Survey: New expectations, evolving beliefs and shifting career goals. Retrieved from https://www.mlaglobal.com/en-gb/insights/research/2019-millennial-attorney-survey-new-expectations-evolving-beliefs-and-shifting-career-goals

(5) Bleasdale, L., & Francis, A. (2020). Great expectations: millennial lawyers and the structures of contemporary legal practice. Legal Studies, 1-21.

(6) Oxford Economics. (2014). The cost of brain drain: Understanding the financial impact of staff turnover. Retrieved from https://www.oxfordeconomics.com/recent-releases/the-cost-of-brain-drain

(7) Brushfield, R. (2019). Law Society Report: Retaining young talent in law firms – part one. Retrieved from https://communities.lawsociety.org.uk/law-management-features/retaining-young-talent-in-law-firms-part-one/6000182.article

(8) Simmons, R. (2014). The Lawyer: Retention rates: Winning the war of attrition. Retrieved from https://www.thelawyer.com/issues/tl-28-july-2014/retention-rates-winning-the-war-of-attrition/

(9) Weaden, N. (2021). A career in the law: a qualitative study of the expectations and realities of junior lawyers. Unpublished Masters Thesis. City University, London.

(10) Major, Lindsay & Africa Report. (2019). Millennial Attorney Survey: New expectations, evolving beliefs and shifting career goals. Retrieved from https://www.mlaglobal.com/en-gb/insights/research/2019-millennial-attorney-survey-new-expectations-evolving-beliefs-and-shifting-career-goals

By Fionnuala Kirby (MSc 20-21)

What exactly is the “broken rung” and why does it matter?

            Women struggling to move from entry level to first level manager is a theory otherwise known as the ‘‘broken rung’’ on the corporate ladder (Huang et al., 2019). We’ve all heard of the “glass ceiling” preventing women from getting to ‘the top’, but recent research by McKinsey & Company (2019) suggest that the obstacles to progression that women face actually occur much earlier in their career. Quite simply: the first step is the biggest hurdle. Female employees are underrepresented at every level due to not being promoted at the same rate as their male colleagues; in 2020, for every 100 men that were promoted to manager, only 85 women were (Thomas, 2020). This unsurprisingly has a long term impact on the talent pipeline given that female representation decreases with each level up the ladder, ultimately resulting in  less women in leadership roles. For companies to not address this issue more aggressively is frankly quite short-sighted given the positive financial impact gender diversity has been shown to have. Research has shown that company profit and share performance can be almost 50% higher in companies where women are better represented (Dixon-Fyle et al., 2020). Given that the term, the “broken rung” has only recently been coined, it has been relatively underexplored in organisational psychology.

New research

            A recent qualitative study (Kirby, 2021) sheds much-needed light on not only the “broken rung” theory, but how women can indeed overcome it, as well as how organisations can help mend it. The study involved in-depth interviews with women who successfully conquered the “broken rung”. These women were first-line managers working in male-dominated industries including engineering, technology, accountancy and consultancy. The study sought to understand the female managers’ perceptions around what affected their progression to first-line management, which allowed for both barriers and faciliators to be uncovered.

Figure 1: Factors which impact female career progression to first-line management

What did they find?
            As seen in the above Figure 1, results from this qualitative study suggest that four dominant themes represent the factors which impact early female career progression. These include: Personal Resources, Relationships, Professional Reputation, and External Influences. The corresponding subthemes and illustrative quotes can be seen in Figure 1. Furthermore, three major findings surrounding the “broken rung” were uncovered:

1. Female workers’ professional relationships are critical in helping them overcome the “broken rung”. 
               This finding indicated that mentorship and sponsorship are critical to advancing women. Participants benefitted from gaining support and advice from mentors, but they also needed someone to advocate for them i.e. sponsor. Furthermore, participants needed to proactively seek out influential mentors and sponsors as they would have more power within organisations.
2. The persistent negative aspects of male-dominated environments enables the “broken rung” to remain broken. 
               Several study participants experienced microaggressive behaviours such as exclusion and age discrimination, particularly regarding their youth. This resulted in participants feeling they needed to go to greater lengths to prove themselves, gain trust and build their reputation.
3. Women consider themselves “lucky” when they ultimately overcome the “broken rung”. 
               Despite explicitly describing their conscious efforts to progress up the ladder, 12 out of the 14 participants perceived luck to be a significant factor in their success progressing to management. A possible explanation for this finding is the “confidence gap” which suggests that women generally feel less confident in their abilities and therefore attribute success to factors such as luck rather than taking credit (Kay &Shipman, 2014).

Kirby (2021) also provides a useful model illustrating how varying levels of facilitators and barriers affect women as well as demonstrating how the woman may act depending on these factors (See Figure 2).  

Figure 2: Model of Barriers & Facilitators to Progression

Interpreting the Model:

• The Successful Female: Having a high level of facilitators and a low level of barriers, a woman can overcome the “broken rung”
• The Fighting Female: Having a high level of facilitators gives them the energy to fight the “broken rung” but a high level of barriers means they ultimately won’t succeed.
• The Stagnant Female: Having a low level of facilitators and a low level of barriers results in women feeling stagnant in their career progression.
• The Hopeless Female: Having a low level of facilitators and a high level of barriers results in women feeling hopeless about their career progression.

So how can organisations fix this “broken rung”?

            Firstly, we need to avoid the idea that women are the ones to be ‘fixed’. Dealing with barriers such as dismissal, bias and subtle discrimination throughout the working day results in exhausted women having to become resilient to such behaviours and instead focus on building relationships and their reputation. Instead, the organisational and social context in which they operate is what should be addressed given that the systemic issues lie within the male-dominated environment. Kirby (2021) made the following practical recommendations for organisations to consider as proactive and reactive interventions:

• Women need strong managers within the organisation, who are going to provide them with support, opportunities for development and recognise their contributions. Yet in order for a manager to be able to provide this support to their female report, managers also need to be provided with the skillset through attending leadership training or seeking advice and support from Human Resources.
• Organisations need to foster a culture where mentorship and sponsorship are commonplace. This may be through initially formal programmes, but what starts out as initially forced, can become more naturally-occurring.
• Organisations need to eliminate unconscious bias and second-generational bias through providing training to initially those involved with hiring and performance reviews, followed by rolling it out to all employees. This will foster a more inclusive environment where male allies will flag inappropriate behavior towards women.
• Companies should increase their focus on developing junior females through training and development, providing them with the necessary leadership skills.
• Organisations should ensure that promotion processes have clear, consistent criteria and are advertised neutrally to ensure there is no gender-bias.

Looking ahead

In comparison to 20 years ago, women have made significant progress in the world of work, however, in terms of achieving gender-equity – yet we’re still not quite there. While practical recommendations and possible interventions have been highlighted, as with any systemic issue, in order for men and women to be treated equally, it is something we should not only address in the workplace but in our homes and in our society. We all have a part to play in creating a more equal and just world.

References

Dixon-Fyle, S., Dolan, K., Hunt, V., & Prince, S. (2020). Diversity Wins, How Inclusion
 Matters. McKinsey & Co., May.

Huang, J., Krivkovich, A., Starikova, I., Yee, L., & Zanoschi, D. (2019). Women in the
 Workplace 2019. San Francisco: Retrieved from McKinsey & Co. website:
 https://www. mckinsey.com/featured-insights/gender-equality/women-in-the-
 workplace.

Kay, K., & Shipman, C. (2014). The confidence gap. The Atlantic, 14(1), 1-18.

Kirby, F (2021). Overcoming the Broken Rung: Female managers’ perception of their      progression to first-line management within male-dominated environments – a
            thematic analysis. (Unpublished Master’s thesis). City, University of London,
            London.

Thomas, R., (2020). Women in the Workplace 2020. San Francisco: Retrieved from McKinsey & Co.website: https://wiw-report.s3.amazonaws.com/Women_in_the_Workplace_2020.pdf