Lawyer Monthly - Women In Law Special Edition

WOMEN IN LAW EDITION LAWYER MONTHLY 61 flexible working solutions to staff, without compromising on the performance of systems and the security of data. Lawyers can work confidently away from the office, accessing their normal desktop applications from mobile devices. Diversity Benefits Everyone But why is diversity important? It can actually impact on your bottom line: the top gender-diverse companies are 15% more likely to earn above average financial revenues compared with other companies in their industry – due to the increased range of perspectives that a more diverse workforce offers 4 . With more and more industry campaigns and legislation being introduced to promote gender diverse workforces, it’s easy to think the problem is going away. However, employers still have a big part to play in ensuring that staff have access to the technology they need to enable lawyers to work remotely and operate with more flexibility. And it’s not just law firms that are benefitting from flexible working solutions, “At Nasstar, we’ve been delivering cloud solutions since before it was really a concept and over the years, I’ve seen technology really gather speed as a key enabler for flexible working patterns,” says Niki Redwood, Financial Director at Nasstar. “As a company, empowering our staff is important and this can often be reflected in remote or flexible working patterns. There’s no one size fits all approach here, and for some being in the office five days a week suits their role, however, it’s important to ensure that all our staff have the right tools to communicate and collaborate securely wherever they are. “As a busy mum and FD, I basically work all the time, but can do so flexibly so that I can be there for the school run or work from home if one of my children is ill.” Keystone Law has embraced technology thoroughly, using tech to reduce business overheads and drive efficiencies across their firm, enabling over 300 lawyers to work more dynamically and flexibly. Technology is critical for a firms’ ability to ensure lawyers can collaborate seamlessly with their colleagues and clients quickly and efficiently, no matter where in the world they are. “Lots of traditional law firms are constrained by legacy IT systems which are difficult to change,” says Sarah Needham, Commercial Contracts and IP Lawyer at Keystone Law. “Having access to industry-leading technology that enables us to set up and invoice clients in a matter of minutes lets me focus on my core job and be as productive and efficient as possible for my clients.” Flexible working also promotes more productive working environments. “I’m much more productive working at home compared to working in a traditional office, and I can fit my work around picking my children up from school, working later in the evening at a time that suits me”, says Joanna McKenzie, Consultant Solicitor in Keystone Law’s dispute resolution team. It’s important to remember that increased flexible working doesn’t just benefit women; it benefits everyone in the firm. With shared parental leave becoming more popular, dads are also able to take advantage of more agile working practices, and firms can grow without losing top talent who need more flexibility and choices about how, when and where they work. Diversity benefits everyone 52% of respondents said that they worked in an organisation where flexible working was now in place 3 15% more likely to earn above average financial revenues compared with other companies in their industry 3 Top gender-diverse companies are 1 https://www.pwc.co.uk/industries/law-firms/pwc-law-firms-survey-report-2018-final.pdf 2 https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/featured%20insights/gender%20equality/women%20in%20law%20firms/women-in-law-firms-final-103017.ashx 3 https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/news/press-releases/largest-ever-survey-on-gender-equality-in-legal-profession/ 4 https://blog.clearcompany.com/resourceful-ways-workplace-diversity-and-inclusion-are-important-to-your-success