MCCA/Paul Hastings Case Study Series

Collaboration and creating an inclusive workplace are key to talent retention, innovation and risk mitigation. In recent years, there were many noteworthy employee challenges in corporate America and around the world. Those events suggest that the world is changing and although there is growing division, many were finding strength in numbers and we saw employees standing united in protest demanding changes in their work culture and/or policies to reflect their collective values.

We see every day how employers who are not invested in their talent can have their challenges if not mistakes play out live on the world stage as social media and the internet spread the news in rapid fire.

The Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) as the leading voice for diversity, inclusion and equity continues to drive the discussion on workplace culture. In 2018 we released our bias interrupters research, a two-year comprehensive study of implicit gender and racial bias in legal workplaces in partnership with the ABA. We examined how to interrupt bias in business systems and provided the legal community new solutions and tools for interrupting bias across the legal profession.

In 2019, we partnered with Russell Reynolds Associates (RRA) to analyze which leadership behaviors impacted culture: (i) to help leaders understand what it means to create an inclusive culture; and (ii) provide tools to create a workplace that was inclusive to boost employee morale, productivity, retention and mitigate against any risks. Our Board members examined culture and how leaders can be proactive in shaping it. They invested time by participating in 360 reviews of their own behaviors and participated in the inclusive leadership workshop led by RRA. After a year of surveys and analysis, we produced our first and one of its kind benchmarking report on inclusive leadership.

But still, we wanted to learn and do more to support our leaders.

Thanks to the vision and leadership of Paul Hastings, MCCA partnered with Paul Hastings, its clients and our corporate members, to closely examine how corporations and its leaders are changing culture in their organizations. We examined three different industries across the country: pharmaceuticals, technology and finance, and will present case studies on creating an inclusive culture in legal teams and look forward to sharing more insights with you as the series continues.

CASE STUDY 01

Our first case study focuses on the experiences of Boehringer Ingelheim’s US Legal team. Thanks to Boehringer’s willingness to share and be transparent, we learned what it means to be a leader today where the workforce is rapidly changing and are not afraid to speak up, which could impact morale and bottom line.

CASE STUDY 02

Our second case study focuses on Intel’s experiences in weaving diversity, inclusion and equity into the core of its culture and business strategy. At Intel today, the discussions around business strategy and diversity inclusion are one deeply interrelated discussion.

CASE STUDY 03

Our third case study focuses on Barclays’ emphasis on inclusion and support of their employees to foster greater collaboration. What we have learned from Barclays’ legal department is that when leaders focus on inclusion and take the time to truly engage with their people’s needs and concerns, these moments can become powerful catalysts of change that ripple through the entire organization, producing meaningful cultural shifts.

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