Devoted to Corporate Attorneys, Corporate Lawyers, and Corporate Counsel

On May 25, 2006, the American Corporate Counsel - America hosted a career seminar for in-house attorneys in Santa Clara, CA. 

Today, attorneys who work in business cannot just sit in a room and be smart.  They need to take on responsibilities that build expertise in the direction where they want to head.  To do this, design the direction one wants to be in, and build expertise in the area in the next 3-5 years. 

Jobs come from personal networks and alliances.  Alliances are people who trust someone, and would put their own reputations on the line to recommend that person.  They are normally people a person has worked with and know.

Networks are contacts in the industries that one wants to get into.  To increase one's networks, get introduced to respected people by attending industry events.

To move a career forward, set specific, measurable, realistic goals that align with the employer's goals.  To do this, one must understand how he/she is viewed by his/her relationships.  Change is constant, but in order to see the change, understand one's focused.  Is one's attention and priority to his/her family or career?

To have organizational savvy, be sensitive to communications inside a company.  For example, how does one executive see objectives differently from another.  Understand what people are trying to achieve.  See the results from the bottom line point of view which is objective and from the reputation perception which is subjective.

In order to build trusted relationship, make sure the data communicated is right.  Just as important as building relationships is maintaining them.  Be observant to connect interests.  Understand one's own goals and develop the goals of others by being able to translate one person's messages to others.  When corrections are needed, be poised even when plans do not get executed accordingly.