Lǐyòng shùjù jiāqiáng gōngsī fǎlǜ bù de DEI zhànlüè

SPECIAL REPORT Introduction Having a morediverse and inclusiveworkforce has longbeen seen as apowerful enabler ofbusiness, as well as acritical differentiator As guardians of their organization’s legal identity and culture, sophisticated general counseland their legal departments do much more than provide legal advice. They are proactive,core business advisors who must consider what is legal, strategic, and right. Recognizing theimportance of their role, as well as the pace of external change driven by profound global These programs are crucially important from both a human and business perspective and cancontribute enormously to the success of any legal department. However, they can seem hollowand nebulous without any real data or metrics to help track progress that will show if the Some law departments have addressed this issue by utilizing legal operations managementtechnology, such as Thomson Reuters® Legal Tracker, to track and measure the diversity oftheir outside counsel and use that data as a factor in outside law firm selection and pricingdecisions. Not only does this encourage their law firm partners to ensure that their own DEI Values, ethics, and strategic goals Adopting a DEI strategy is no longer the work of progressive law departments. Today, it’s anexpected thread in the fabric of any organization’s culture but getting it right — where it’sauthentic and real — takes perseverance, safety, vulnerability, and an unwavering commitment In recent years, companies and their legal departments have come under increased pressure,from investors, consumers, clients, and employees, to take tangible actions that increaseworkplace DEI. Many organizations have made welcome commitments to DEI through noblestatements of solidarity. Ensuring that you back up these commitments and statements with a By all measures, having a more diverse legal department and wider organization is a benefit.Having a more diverse and inclusive workforce has long been seen as a powerful enabler ofbusiness, as well as a critical differentiator for companies and its employees. Investing timeand resources into a robust DEI strategy for your legal department can not only help yourdepartment achieve its objectives, but also influence DEI strategies in the wider legal industry DEI: Top of the agenda Legal departments are recognizing that they have the power to drive change in theirorganizations. Along with a growing acceptance of the business case for DEI, corporate legaldepartments have been spurred into action as a result of regulatory pressure, media scrutiny, In the last 12 months, implementing a DEI program has skyrocketed to the top of legaldepartment priorities. In 2021, the Corporate Legal Operations Consortium (CLOC) publishedtheir annual State of the Industrysurvey findings. Implementing a DEI program was a top-ranked priority, with 61% of legal departments identifying it as a high priority. This is in starkcontrast to the 2020 results, in which only 27% of respondents deemed it a high priority, where The CLOC study also asked the legal departments, including legal operations functions,that conduct formal reviews of their law firms to list the topics for review. In 2021, 50% ofrespondents listed diversity as criteria for review. This was another significant increase on the % of law departments citing diversity as a criteria for reviewing law firms This data represents a clear shift in the way that corporate law departments are thinking aboutDEI initiatives, both within their organization, and in their dealings with outside counsel. Helpingto safeguard their organization through the implementation of a DEI strategy demonstrates Making the case for DEI There is a significant body of research to show that diversity brings many advantages to anorganization. Among them are increased profitability and innovation, stronger governance, andimproved problem-solving abilities. A diverse workforce brings a wider range of perspectives, Findings from McKinsey demonstrate that not only has the business case for increased diversityremained robust over recent years, but also that the relationship between diversity and the Their research found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on executive teamswere 25% more likely to have above-average profitability than companies in the fourth quartile— up from 21% in 2017 and 15% in 2014. In the case of ethnic and cultural diversity, McKinsey’sfindings are equally compelling: in 2019, top-quartile companies outperformed those in the While this research shows a strong correlation between diversity and financial performance, itshould be recognized that being a more diverse company doesn’t automatically translate intobigger profits. Further, over-emphasizing the economic benefits of your DEI strategy can becounter-productive to your objectives; it can convey a sense of disingenuity, and if the financial DEI is ultimately about confronting harsh facts and navigating sens