Navigating your career can be a daunting task, but with the right approach, you can achieve your goals and land your dream job. I know that firsthand and was recently invited to share some of what I’ve learned about career management at the 2023 CLOC Global Institute held last month in Las Vegas.
The Corporate Legal Operations Consortium member community represents individuals from the entire legal spectrum, all with the common goal of supporting one another to help move the business of law forward. The annual CLOC Global Institute is the leading event bringing together that ecosystem to focus on legal innovation and transformation. This year’s CLOC Global Institute hosted 2,500 attendees, including nearly 200 speakers presenting more than 75 sessions. In addition, 116 companies showcased legal innovation within the conference exhibit hall.
At a session hosted by IPRO at the CGI, I shared how to use the right strategies and practical approaches to proactively identify and land a range of professional opportunities throughout the CLOC community. My most important advice: Don’t be passive in your job search and in your overall career-planning. Rather, think about your career not as a destination, but as a journey or a progression.
I started my own legal industry career in the analog world of litigation support and evolved with that segment to e-discovery. From there I moved to an early legal process outsourcing provider and then to an ALSP before landing in my current field of recruiting. I’d always recruited key people into the companies where I’d worked and saw how valuable recruiters could be in helping me attract the best talent, which is why I decided to start Celeritas Recruiting. My personal journey is an example of being proactive in landing the job you want, which helps me leverage my experience to help others in our legal community.
As noted earlier, the CLOC community encompasses a broad spectrum of members. In addition to legal operations, the ecosystem includes law firms, ALSPs, consulting firms and software and service providers. And within those entities exist countless roles and positions, some of which are new just within the past few years. Along with various positions within legal operations are now roles related to contract intelligence, legal process management, innovation, pricing, solution architecture, project management and data science, just to name a few. And this doesn’t include the full range of jobs within the software segment, as enterprise legal management technologies span contracts, matter management, M&A, litigation and investigations, e-discovery and forensics.
Because the overall industry is so large, we routinely see movement within and between those various entities. There are many ways to apply your skills from an in-house environment to an ALSP, from a technology company to a law firm or from a service provider to a legal operations department, for example. So when looking for something new, always consider alternative paths, positions and jobs that may not be the most traditional next step but could be right for you. Don’t be afraid to define your own win.
In keeping an open mind about the array of possibilities that might be suitable given your areas of interest and experience, it can be helpful to think not about being on a ladder that you’re trying to climb, but more of navigating something more like a lattice.
A career lattice is a progression pathway that allows for vertical, horizontal and diagonal movement. That means you don’t have to stay in your current department – or even organization – to grow. Unlike the traditional image of climbing a ladder, the lattice metaphor accepts the reality that not every promotion yields the progression you may be seeking and that career progression doesn’t have to be in the form of a promotion at all.
Defining your own win acknowledges that a lateral move or even a demotion in title or compensation isn’t necessarily always a bad thing and, in fact, could be the right move in your personal journey. For example, making a lateral change may mean moving to an area you enjoy more, gaining more flexible hours or not being required to travel – or perhaps being able to travel more, if that’s what you seek.
Tips for Staying Proactive
- Keeping an open mind isn’t just about expanding the universe of jobs that might be a good fit, but also means being willing to consider new roles even when you weren’t looking for them. Sometimes the best opportunities come up when we least expect them. Don’t say no simply because you weren’t planning to make a change. Instead, give new possibilities reasonable consideration.
- Being open to change and not passive in managing our careers doesn’t require us to continually look for whatever is next. What it does entail is networking, developing our skills and building our personal brand so that we’re ready when the next step comes along.
- Meeting new people and expanding relationships by joining professional organizations and connecting with others via platforms like LinkedIn are great ways to enhance your networking activity. If you know someone you respect or want to emulate, approach them and ask about the decisions they made and their journey.
- Attending conferences, seminars, etc., is also excellent for networking, as well as for staying current with trends and expanding our knowledge. Further developing skills and in-demand qualifications keeps us competitive in the job market, so consider taking courses, attending workshops to earn certifications or even pursuing an advanced degree to enhance your skill set. Think about how AI might impact your area of work and how you can best stay current with the latest technology trends. Use your expanded knowledge and share your experience by posting insight on a blog or LinkedIn or by presenting webinars or getting published to further build your brand.
- When you’re being intentional about finding a new position, don’t forget to research your options. Explore the job market to identify potential opportunities by looking at listings, company websites and professional networking platforms to get a sense of the skills and qualifications required for your dream job. Don’t be afraid to be proactive by reaching out to potential employers and expressing your interest in working for their company. Be persistent and follow up regularly to stay top of mind. If a recruiter reaches out about a role that’s even remotely interesting, schedule a 10-minute call to learn more.
Remember to stay flexible. Career paths don’t always need to be a straight line, so be open to new opportunities, even if they don’t fit your original plan. Be willing to take on new challenges and explore different avenues to find the right fit. Think about your career as a progression – it’s a journey and not just a destination.
Navigating your career takes time and effort, but with persistence and hard work, you can achieve your goals and land your dream job.