What We Love
Lots of lawyers would laugh if you told them they could make partner while working reduced hours—but not at this DC-based firm. “We recognize that alternative schedules allow talented attorneys to remain in practice,” says Grail Sipes, a working mom and regulatory law partner who works reduced hours. The freedom to design an individualized schedule stands out here, as demonstrated by another partner-mom, Carolyn Taylor, who worked until dinnertime when her daughters were little but now shifts her hours to suit her teens’ more complicated schedules. The firm tries to make flex requests painless: “I simply sent an email to notify the appropriate people of my intent to reduce my schedule—and that was it,” explains special counsel Wendy Feng, who worked reduced hours for nearly a year after her twins were born. “When I decided to increase my schedule, I just sent another email.”

Chair, Management Committee: Timothy Hester

Executive Director: John Waters

Women managers/execs: 47%

Women among top earners: 25%

Women on the board of directors: 14%

Women corporate executive hires in 2008: N/A

Women participating in management or leadership training in the past year: 75%

Women participating in formalized executive succession planning last year: 53%

Women promoted last year who utilized a formal flexible work arrangement: 0%

Formal compensation policies reward managers who help women advance: Yes