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CELEBRATING HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH p.266

All Things Diversity & Inclusion

SEPT/OCT 2012$25.00

GLOBAL COMPANIES FOR ADVANCING WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP

Erin Moseley, BAE Systems, Inc. • Margaret A. Mitchell, YWCA Greater Cleveland • Laura Monica, Pepco Holdings, Inc. • Latondra Newton, Toyota Motor North America, Inc.Tania Moussallem, BLC Bank • Gwen Muse-Evans, Fannie Mae • Linda K. Myers, Kirkland & Ellis LLP • Tracie Morris, ComEd, Exelon Corporation

Carol Murphy, Aon • Ana M. Middleton, Army and Air Force Exchange Service • Dana O'Brien, CEVA Logistics • Irene Natividad, GlobeWomen

September/October 2012 WWW.DIVERSITYJOURNAL.COM 165

11TH ANNUAL

Company and Executive 2013 AWARD WINNERS

All Things Diversity & Inclusion

®

› Has discrimination affected you as a woman in the workplace? If so, how did you deal with it? At many points in my career being a woman has been an advantage. Kirkland is eager to promote diversity, and being a diverse lawyer helped me to get noticed and gave me a leg up.

› Is there an educator who had a profound impact on your career and/or life? If so, what did they do to motivate you? My high school French teacher. She served in the French Resistance in WWII. She taught me that women can do anything.

› How do you balance career and lifestyle/ home responsibilities? Time management is critical. I get up early to exercise, review emails, spend time with my kids, and drop them off at school. I organize weekends to maximize family time. When traveling for work, I spend time with my Kirkland colleagues to maintain close relationships with them and I choose my philanthropic activities smartly.

“As important as knowing what to do is HOW to get it done.”

EARNING ANY ADVANCED DEGREE IS A TREMENDOUS ACCOMPLISHMENT. But while higher education is often a prerequisite in today’s job market, women need more than formal

schooling if they are to succeed in greater numbers. They need informal, internal education that includes visibility into organizational dynamics, including the political land-scape of their workplace. As important as knowing what to do is how to get it done. With work experience, that inter-nal education can transform women employees into leaders.

Finding a sponsor and learning from that person is essen-tial to career advancement. I’ve been lucky enough to have two at Kirkland & Ellis. One is a senior private equity part-ner and now the chairman of our global management com-mittee. The other is co-head of our restructuring practice who is also a member of the firm’s global management com-mittee. Both are men.

My sponsors placed tremendous faith in my abilities and gave me opportunities to shine with key clients. They pro-moted me internally at Kirkland. And importantly, they have been generous with their time and counsel in ways that have allowed me to gain insight into firm management mat-

ters much more quickly than if I was learning on my own.The guidance I have received from them has made me

passionate about helping younger lawyers to succeed by providing them opportunities to grow professionally and personally, and giving them support and encouragement as their careers progress. I was one of the founders of the Kirkland Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI), which pro-vides training and networking opportunities for women attorneys. I have worked hard with other women leaders to expand WLI’s scope and reach to our ten offices around the world. WLI has been a valuable resource in recruiting and retaining talented women. The focus of much of our programming is giving our women that “inside scoop” that helps them become more attuned to the organizational par-ticulars of Kirkland.

Businesses need to find more ways to facilitate and reward these sponsorship relationships that will help talented, well-educated women gain insight into the internal landscape within their organization and allow them to translate their great ideas into reality. Only then will more women get the leadership recognition necessary for more broad-based advancement.

HEADQUARTERS:

Chicago, Illinois

WEBSITE:

www.kirkland.com

BUSINESS: Law firm

EMPLOYEES: 1,518

TITLE: Partner

EDUCATION: BA, University of Wisconsin-Madison; JD, Georgetown University

FIRST JOB: Salesperson at a clothing boutique

MY PHILOSOPHY:

From those who have much, much is expected.

FAMILY: Husband, Dennis; children: Megan, Ryan, and Brendan

174 PROFILES IN DIVERSITY JOURNAL September/October 2012

Myers

Company and Executive Women Worth Watching® 2013 Award Winner

Linda K. Kirkland & Ellis LLP