April 6, 2022
3:00 pm Registration Opens
4:00 pm Registration and Opening Reception
Ballroom Foyer and Terrace
Sponsored by Kirkland & Ellis LLP
5:00 pm Kickoff
Four Seasons Ballroom
Recognition of the 2020 Hortense Ward Courageous Leader Award – Patricia Diaz Dennis
Speaker: Lisa Atlas Genecov, Past President of the Center for Women in Law
5:45 pm Opening Speaker
Four Seasons Ballroom
Speaker: Michele Meyer-Shipp, CEO, Dress for Success Worldwide
Susan Blount, Independent Director; EVP & General Counsel, Prudential Financial (Ret.);
Adjunct Professor, The University of Texas School of Law
How do legal skills transfer from private law practice to corporate business organizations to non-profits? Join Michele Meyer-Shipp and Susan Blount for a conversation on career trajectories and preparing for the unexpected.
7:00 pm Dinner
The Lawn
Sponsored by Latham & Watkins LLP
Toast: Ward Farnsworth, Dean, Texas Law
April 7, 2022
6:30 am Goat Yoga (Separate registration required)/Walk on the Lake
The Lawn
7:30 am Breakfast and Registration
Ballroom Foyer and Terrace
Sponsored by Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP
8:30 am Opening Remarks
Four Seasons Ballroom
Speaker: Veronica Vargas Stidvent, Executive Director, Center for Women in Law
8:40 am Keynote: Leading Change in a Time of Uncertainty
Four Seasons Ballroom
Leading Change in a Time of Uncertainty
Speaker: Farayi Chipungu, Lecturer, Harvard Kennedy School of Government
To lead through many of the types of challenges that we are facing in today’s world, effective leaders require abilities that go beyond authority or technical expertise. As facilitators, advisors, and advocates, lawyers are well placed to lead in times of significant change if they take up the opportunity. What are the skills needed to lead through change and crises? How do you position yourself for ongoing transformations? How can you mobilize people to make tough choices and build partnerships and alliances?
9:30 am Break
9:45 am Time Management for Mortals
Four Seasons Ballroom
Speaker: Oliver Burkeman, Author, Four Thousand Weeks
We live in an age of impossible demands, infinite choice, and relentless distraction. But much traditional advice on managing our time more efficiently only makes matters worse, encouraging us to believe we might "get everything done", yet leaving us more rushed and less focused on those goals that might have a lasting impact. Drawing on his New York Times bestselling book Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, Oliver Burkeman charts the alternative approach of confronting our finitude, accepting that there will always be too much to do – and, with this clear-eyed perspective, actually making time now for the work that matters most.
10:30 am Transition to Breakout Rooms
10:45 am Breakout Sessions
A Lawyer’s View of Disruption
Speakers:
Sarah Feingold, Creator, Dirty Legal Secrets and Co-Founder, The Fourth Floor
Melissa Fruge, Chief Legal & Risk Officer, Talkwalker, Inc.
Hon. Carrie Ricci, General Counsel, United States Army
Heather Stern, General Counsel, Whole Foods
Moderator: Amy Hinzmann
Unpredictability in business is the new normal. Recent changes in how work is performed, products are delivered, and customers are served require businesses to transform overnight. Legal departments are at the center of business transformation, but risk-adverse lawyers frequently serve as resistors instead of supporters. In this session, hear how forward-leaning general counsel from disruptive and disrupted companies are helping their businesses and teams navigate today’s constant change in the midst of uncertainty.
Future of Legal
Speakers:
Lori Lorenzo, Research & Insights Director, Deloitte Chief Legal Officer Program
Bryan Foster, Principal, Deloitte Transactions and Business Analytics LLP
This interactive workshop focuses on the disrupters that are driving change in the legal department, and the implications for individuals and organizations. The discussion includes group exercises, discussion and use case examples to help attendees navigate change by focusing on technology and talent. First, we will look at the evolving expectations for the legal department’s contribution to the business, the work the legal department does (and perhaps shouldn’t be doing), and the impact technology can have. Next, we consider the new and evolving skills sets and leadership attributes for legal, and the changing relationship of worker to workplace and why it’s important, along with the impact of change on the experience of work and culture.
Lawyer well-being: Health, happiness and success. We really can have it all.
Speaker: Kathy Richardson, Founder and Principal, HR Legal Search
This interactive session will explore ways to maximize our health and happiness while enjoying success. We’ll look at the current state of women in the legal profession and discuss the myriad challenges we face including juggling work, childcare/and our homelives, eldercare, maintaining friendships and navigating the new post pandemic normal. We will then engage in a safe and authentic conversation exploring how we really can have it all if we are mindful in our approach to both our professional and personal lives. Finally, we will share resources to support your well-being in life and in law.
The Changing Dynamics of the Legal Workforce
Speakers:
Priscila Coronado, President, Volume 136, Harvard Law Review
Gina Shishima, U.S. Chief Strategy and Operation Partnet, Norton Rose Fullbright
Lisa Tsai, Managing Partner, Reid Collins & Tsai
Karen Vladeck, Recruiter
Moderator: David Lat, Writer, Original Jurisdiction
A record 47.4 million people voluntarily quit their jobs in 2021. The legal industry was not immune. Law firm attrition, particularly among young associates, hit an all time high. This session will explore the social and economic dynamics changing law firms and corporate legal departments will help attendees learn the workplace priorities of today’s legal associates and law students.
12:00 pm Leadership Lunch
Four Seasons Ballroom
Lunch Network Sharing Exercise
Speaker: Scott Westfahl, Professor of Practice; Director of Executive Education, Harvard Law School
Learn more about network theory and mapping. Then experience the power exchange that comes with sharing networks.
Luncheon Keynote Speaker: Abby Phillip, CNN Senior Political Correspondent and Anchor of Inside Politics Sunday
CNN senior political correspondent Abby Phillip will offer a journalist’s perspective on the political and social transitions the country is undergoing and the ramifications of an increasingly diverse population on these trends.
1:45 pm Networking Break
2:15pm Afternoon Sessions
Four Seasons Ballroom
The Profession in Transition: Leading by Telling Your Story
Speaker: Sarah ElRaheb-Dagher, Education; Leadership Coach, Pedagogy Specialist, Harvard Kennedy School
Lawyers can be among the best storytellers -- for their clients. But what about telling your own story? As the profession experiences a transition marked by changing workforce dynamics and a search for meaning, successful leaders must harness the power of narratives to lead.
How can your narrative inspire the next generation of lawyers? Your colleagues? How can your story advance your goals? Beyond an elevator pitch, your personal narrative conveys your purpose and how you add value.
4:00 pm Break
4:15 pm Preparing for a Purposeful Career Pivot
Four Seasons Ballroom
Speakers:
Sandra Bang, Chief Diversity and Talent Strategy Officer, Shearman & Sterling LLP
Jane Bland, Justice, Supreme Court of Texas
Amanda McMillian, CEO, United Way Houston
Moderator: Vivia Chen, Columnist, Bloomberg Law
On average, Americans change jobs every 4.4 years and have 7 different careers in their lifetime. The pandemic accelerated this already rapid pace of job and career changes. Now more than ever people want, or need, to do something professionally different. But, making a successful career pivot requires introspection and careful planning. Attendees will explore different types of professional transitions in the legal profession through the inspiring stories of several highly accomplished women. They will learn how to prepare for a transformational career pivot including potential stumbling blocks and hallmarks for success.
5:45 pm Buses Leave for Legacy Dinner - Bullock Texas State History Museum
6:00 pm Cocktail Reception
Bullock Texas State History Museum
7:00 pm Legacy Dinner
Recognition of New Power Circle members, Amy Hinzmann
The Future of Work
Speaker: Heather McGowan, Future of Work Strategist, 2017 Global LinkedIn Top Voice for Education
Technology is changing work as we know it. Cultural norms are undergoing tectonic shifts. The global pandemic proved that we are inextricably connected whether we choose to be or not. And the changes did not have equal impacts, as we saw an exodus of women in the workplace. Internationally known writer and speaker Heather McGowan will discuss how the world of work is changing and how leaders can most effectively react to these rapid and disruptive changes in education, work, and society.
April 8, 2022
6:30 am Morning Exercise/Walk on the Lake
The Lawn
8:00 am Breakfast
Four Seasons Ballroom
Sponsored by Russell Reynolds Associates
9:00 am WELCOME
Four Seasons Ballroom
Prophetic City: Tracking the Economic and Demographic Transformations through Forty Years of Houston Surveys
Speaker: Dr. Stephen Klineberg, Founding Director, The Kinder Institute, Rice University
Few other cities more clearly exemplify the trends that are refashioning the social and political landscape across America - the growing inequalities in today's global, knowledge-based economy; the epic demographic transformations; and the new importance of quality-of-place attributes in determining the fates of cities. We review the findings from four decades of systematic surveys in Harris County to explore the way the new realities are unfolding, to assess the public's changing attitudes and beliefs, and to consider the implications of these trends for the way area residents are responding to the central challenges and opportunities that will inform the future of Texas and America in the Years ahead.
9:45 am Transition to Breakout Rooms
10:00 am Breakout Sessions
Transitioning to Board Service
Speakers:
Michelle Banks, Board Member, DirectWomen, Senior Advisor, BarkerGilmore
Sylia Kerrigan, Executive Director and Board Member, KBH Energy Center, Diversified Energy, Team Industrial
Susan Blount, President, Center for Women in Law Executive Committee, Independent Director; EVP & General Counsel, Prudential Financial (Ret.); Adjunct Professor, The University of Texas School of Law
Many senior lawyers are interested in transitioning to corporate board service when leaving active practice. But, the process of obtaining a board seat and the requirements for serving as a director are not widely known. Attendees will learn how corporate board members are selected and what they can expect when serving as a director, and how to prepare themselves and pitch for board service.
Preparing for a New Future
Speakers:
Precious Williams Owodunni, CEO and Founder, Mountaintop Consulting
Kathleen Woodhouse, Co-Founder, Nova Leadership; Managing Director, Woodhouse Partners
Transformational career pivots take introspection and thoughtful planning. Attendees will hear from a panel of experienced executive coaches on what they need to do to prepare for a pivot whether now or ten years from now.
The Next Generation of Legal Leaders
Speakers:
Cynthia Dow, Russell Reynolds
Victoria Reese, Heidrick & Struggles
As the world and legal profession change, so do the requirements for leaders. Attendees will hear from top legal executive recruiters on what law firms and corporations are looking for in leadership positions and what they can do to be ready.
11:00 am Break
11:15 am Concluding Remarks
The Lawn
11:30 am Farewell Networking Luncheon
The Lawn
