Stephanie Scharf is the Founding Partner of Scharf Banks Marmor LLC, a nationally prominent women-owned law firm that represents corporate clients across a range of litigation and corporate matters. Stephanie is also a Founding Principal of The Red Bee Group, a consulting firm that helps businesses, organizations, and law firms achieve their growth goals.
Stephanie was the Chair of the American Bar Association’s Commission on Women in the Profession from 2017 to 2020 and was the 2015-2016 Advisor to the American Bar Association’s Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion 360. She has over 30 years of experience in complex litigation. Previously, she was a Partner at Jenner & Block and a Partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP.
Stephanie has published innovative research on topics such as the success of law firms in retaining and advancing lawyers, attributes of effective leadership, and strategies for growth and talent development. She understands the importance of data and how it can help law firms be an advocate for change, diversify their workforce, and achieve the concrete goals of their entire team.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
- Stephanie Scharf shares how she became interested in the advancement of women lawyers and lawyers of color
- Stephanie talks about why quantitative research is vital to create change — and describes findings from her own research
- What should law firms do to promote the advancement of historically excluded groups?
- The lessons Stephanie learned throughout her career: there will be a way up, and there will be a way forward
- Why every lawyer should have a sponsor backing them
- What makes formal sponsorship programs effective?
- How law firm leaders can meet their diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging goals
- The value of getting feedback from people at all levels of your organization
In this episode…
How can you initiate change in your law firm? Why is sponsorship important for both leaders and growing lawyers? What role does data play in achieving your firm’s goals? Stephanie Scharf is here to share her insight into these difficult questions.
As an industry thought leader with more than 30 years of experience in law, Stephanie understands the need for change — and the tools law firms can use to initiate change. Amidst the many moving parts of a law firm, one thing is for sure: if you are expecting change, you need to measure it. In her many years of research, Stephanie has discovered that data and metrics are major components of change. But the process doesn’t have to be complicated. Shape your goals around the needs of the team, craft a strategy to achieve them, and measure your progress each step of the way to decide what works.
In this episode of The Lawyer’s Edge Podcast, Elise Holtzman is joined by Stephanie Scharf, Founding Partner of Scharf Banks Marmor LLC and Principal of The Red Bee Group. Stephanie shares insight into her research, discusses strategies to create change in your law firm, and talks about the importance of measuring data and metrics to reach your goals. She also explains how sponsorship is mutually beneficial — and why every lawyer should have a sponsor.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Elise Holtzman on LinkedIn
- The Lawyer’s Edge
- Stephanie Scharf on LinkedIn
- Scharf Banks Marmor LLC
- The Red Bee Group
- “Walking out the Door” by Stephanie Scharf and Roberta Liebenberg
- NAWL Survey Report
- Forget a Mentor, Find a Sponsor: The New Way to Fast-Track Your Career by Sylvia Ann Hewlett
- Pat Gillette on The Lawyer’s Edge Podcast
Sponsor for this episode…
This episode is brought to you by The Lawyer’s Edge, a firm based in the New York metropolitan area founded by Elise Holtzman in 2008 to help lawyers become skilled business developers and leaders so that they can grow their practices, retain top talent, and step confidently into leadership roles.
The firm offers customized coaching, consulting, and training programs such as their signature business development program, Lawyers Making Rain.
Now more than ever, it’s not enough to just do good work and hope your law firm will thrive. And no matter how smart and hard-working you are, it can be time-consuming and overwhelming to figure it all out by yourself.
To learn more about how we help lawyers become rainmakers and leaders, visit thelawyersedge.com or email us at podcast@thelawyersedge.com.
