Corporations increasingly subscribe to the principle of corporate social responsibility. CSR is primarily based on the belief that a demonstration of concern for the environment, human rights, community improvement and the welfare of their staff can make a corporation far more profitable. And if not much more lucrative, at least a much better place to work.
Law firms can learn from corporate encounter to make their personal social responsibility applications. Such applications can support law firms to do nicely by carrying out great. They can strengthen the firm’s reputation and market place position. They can assist the firm identify with the culture and CSR activities of consumers and prospective customers. They can assistance lawyers and staff obtain more which means in their perform and increase as human beings.
In the words of the social duty Karma Committee at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck: Be kind. Be generous. Be concerned. Donate time. Donate effort. Donate income. Just come across a result in and give. You are going to quickly find out giving is also receiving.
A panel discussion about how law firms can learn about CSR and introduce some of its elements into their personal models was sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Legal Marketing and advertising Association. The plan was held May well eight at Maggiano’s Tiny Italy in downtown Denver.
Panelists included Sarah Hogan, vice president of Barefoot PR Bruce DeBoskey, lawyer and founder of The DeBoskey Group, which focuses on philanthropic advising Joyce Witte, Community Investment Advisor and director of the Encana Cares Foundation, Encana Oil & Gas (USA) and Amy Venturi, director of neighborhood relations & karma at Brownstein. Moderator was Cori Plotkin, president of Barefoot PR.
At law firms, the solution is the folks – the lawyers and help staff who offer high top quality legal services. It is an uncomplicated fit. There are a lot of ways that this ‘product’ can contribute time, talent and treasure to socially responsible activities.
Social responsibility: Focus and technique
Law firm social responsibility is all about making a distinction inside the community and the profession, and within a firm. Even the very best efforts will make no influence if spread as well thin. You can’t maximize the worth of your contributions or inform your story if your efforts are too diluted. To make a decision how to most properly invest its sources, a law firm wants a social duty focus and a method.
Social responsibility efforts need to be authentic. Law firms and other entities ought to usually stay away from ‘green-washing’ – telling a story that is aspirational, but not definitely accurate. Know your self. Let your firm’s special culture and capabilities figure out which efforts to pursue and which to avoid.
When examining your culture, don’t limit your self to partner input. Law firms are tiny communities, just about like households. Any effort to define culture and social duty really should represent not only the interests of lawyers, but the interests of all levels of assistance staff. Efforts must be meaningful all through the firm. The positive aspects to employee recruitment, retention and satisfaction can be outstanding.
DeBoskey outlined 3 sorts of community involvement and stated his belief that a good social duty strategy consists of components of all three.
In a standard model, an organization ‘gives back’ randomly to the community when asked – as a excellent citizen, rather than for any strategic purposes. In a social duty model, these efforts align with the capabilities of the business – like the legal skills of lawyers. Each non-profit requires legal suggestions.
At it’s most sophisticated, a social duty program includes utilizing your core item – legal services – as a tool for social alter. Volunteer with organizations like the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver, or the Rocky Mountain Children’s Law Center.
A strong concentrate makes it a great deal less complicated to make choices. Encana, for instance, focuses its charitable providing method on challenges surrounding its solution — all-natural gas. Karen McCleave Lawyer will donate income only if the request comes from a client, or if one particular of their attorneys is a member of the organization and on the board.
Law firms searching for extra guidance can obtain useful sources within the Corporate Neighborhood Investment Network. CCIN is an association for specialists whose principal duty is to handle neighborhood investment programs in a for-profit business setting.
Lots of corporations and a handful of law firms have in fact produced separate foundations to mange some of their giving. A foundation comes with additional restrictions and various tax methods. As entities with a life of their own, nevertheless, foundations are much more probably than a single-off efforts to continue a useful existence.
Social duty: Very good policies make fantastic decisions
Technique and concentrate supply the foundation for an effective social responsibility policy. Most law firms are inundated with requests from excellent causes asking for their help. A policy aids you know when to say “yes” to and when to say “no.”
In the law firm model, exactly where all partners are owners with a sense of entitlement to resources, it can be incredibly tricky to say no. A keenly focused policy makes it a great deal less difficult to do so and maintain the firm’s efforts on track.
Encana, for instance, makes use of a five-step tool to decide the level of fit amongst a request and the company’s strategic objectives in the field of natural gas – with level five getting the biggest commitment and level 1 the lowest.
Level 5 efforts integrate core product or service and normally involve natural gas cars and power efficiency initiatives utilizing natural gas. These efforts contribute to very best practices and top trends in the market, whilst enhancing the company’s reputation as a leader.
Level 4 efforts concentrate on strategic partnerships and normally involve sustainable and extended-term options like workforce development initiatives, signature applications (which can be repeated in other markets) and multi-year grants.
Level three efforts involve strategic grants to assist with projects, applications or initiatives produced to nearby non-profits aligned with natural gas.