Strengthen Your Practice: Join a Mentoring Circle

By Courtney Quish 

The WBA has given a new meaning to the traditional notion of mentoring. The organization’s Mentoring Circles program provides great benefits to members of all ages and stages of professional development. Not only do junior members learn from those with more experience, but mid-level and senior attorneys gain an invaluable opportunity to hone management skills and build relationships and referral networks.

Under the traditional rubric of mentoring, experienced practitioners give and junior apprentices take. In the WBA Mentoring Circles, each member is both a mentee and a mentor. For this reason, the second term, “circle,” is a far more accurate description of the program. The WBA Mentoring Circles program offers professional development and networking opportunities for all members. While the benefits to a junior attorney might be more obvious, the circles offer equally valuable and compelling opportunities to mid-level and senior attorneys. Mid-level and senior attorneys will find that they are not only mentored by their peers and those of more seniority but also by junior attorneys who offer invaluable perspectives on the practice of law and the business of law, as well as open up other (and perhaps very different) avenues of networking.

By way of background, the Mentoring Circles program is designed to provide its members with a confidential forum to discuss professional development issues. The circles are comprised of 10 to 15 women of varying levels of experience from a wide range of practice areas. The circles meet a minimum of four times a year; some meet as often as once a month. For the most part, groups meet either in the mornings or evenings; meetings may take place at firms, restaurants, or at common meeting areas, such as a library. The WBA currently has circles in downtown Boston, Newton, and Bedford. Approximately 160 women are active in the program.

The circles address many of the same issues at the heart of the WBA’s mission, such as professional development for women, networking, and work-life balance. But, these circles offer a smaller, private and more personal forum that allows the groups to tailor solutions and strategies for its members. These discussions might touch on, for example, the balancing act of a new mother, the decision to change practices, or a firm’s hiring practices or efforts to increase retention. These issues draw on the personal experiences of junior, mid-level, and senior attorneys alike.
Participation in these circles immediately dispels that old-fashioned notion of the give-and-take mentoring relationship. For mid-level and senior attorneys, these circles provide leadership opportunities and expand referral networks.

Hone your management skills.
“I am always amazed at the benefit to mid-level to senior women,” said WBA President Kathy Jo Cook. “ It gives us an opportunity to see things from the eyes of a young associate, whose comments I find so often to be right! It has helped me to be a better manager.”
There is no question that management skills are indispensable to effectively and efficiently running a business. New attorneys don’t learn management skills in law school. But, they can certainly offer their (often brutally honest) opinions about the strengths and weaknesses of management styles they see. This feedback may not be so easy to extract from those who work in a more junior capacity. But, in the context of the circles’ confidential forum, this discussion is free-flowing.

In my circle, we have not only touched on particular management style “do’s and don’ts” but we continue to discuss general trends in management. For example, in one meeting, we discussed at length the changing expectations of associates and today’s associates’ growing insistence on a life outside of practice at a big firm. We explored a firm’s dilemma of satisfying associates and maintaining profitability and explored strategies for keeping smart, valuable associates while building a more profitable practice. These strategies touched on management styles as well as incentive packages and bonus structures. Discussions like these are prime learning opportunities for all circle members because all of us are managed, or manage, or both. And all of us, no matter whether in a law firm, government, public interest, or in-house position, have an interest in the financial success of our practice and the effective and efficient use of our resources.

Build your network.
“The circle promotes the development of relationships with women attorneys in other areas of practice, and in other firms,” said Constance McGrane, a partner at Conn Kavanaugh and attorney for 23 years. “This promotes networking, business development and referral opportunities.”
Every opportunity to build a relationship is another opportunity to develop business and your referral network. Unlike a one-evening bar event, the circles are an opportunity to build strong personal relationships with women in your profession who may become friends, colleagues or clients. These circles present the opportunity to market and to recruit.

Give back.
“I find it extremely rewarding when a circle member takes my advice or learns from my experience in a way that advances her own career,” said Julia Huston, immediate past president of the WBA and partner at Bromberg & Sunstein.

Of course, the Mentoring Circles also present the opportunity to mentor. Each circle is defined by the experiences of its members and the willingness of its members to share these experiences and lessons learned. In the private and intimate setting of these small circles, your advice falls only on open and thirsty minds. And the bright motivated women listening to you put your advice to work. There are not many places where mentoring can have such immediate and rewarding effects.

If you already participate in a circle, thank you for your commitment and energy. If you are not yet a member, please contact Marianne Spencer at membership@womensbar.org.


Courtney is an active member of the WBA, acting as the Association's Mentoring Circle Coordinator. Courtney can be reached via e-mail at courtneyquish@gmail.com.