Diversity: Rodey, Dickason, Sloan, Akin & Robb, P.A.

The Rodey Law Firm is committed to being a diverse workplace that reflects the diverse community in which we live and work. We firmly believe that a diverse workforce makes us a better law firm. It enables us to bring a broader perspective to the problems our clients face, leads to a higher quality of work, and also enriches the work atmosphere itself. Accordingly, it is the goal of the Firm to foster and maintain a firm-wide culture that supports and promotes diversity, so that all attorneys, regardless of their background, feel welcome, included, valued, supported, and able to succeed.

Rodey seeks to recruit, retain, and promote attorneys who are diverse in every sense of the word. In addition to supporting the professional careers of women and racial and ethnic minorities, the Firm believes that our clients benefit from the varying perspectives and life experiences that individuals with other types of diverse backgrounds bring to our Firm. To that end, the Firm has taken a number of specific and deliberate steps to implement its commitment to diversity.

The Rodey culture is collegial, team-oriented, and balanced. We have many of the finest litigators and transactional attorneys in the state; all are happy to share their knowledge and experience with new attorneys. Along with being outstanding attorneys, some of us are also mountain climbers, musicians, ultra-marathoners, parents, soccer coaches, backpackers, Scout leaders, skiers, movie buffs, golfers, ham radio operators, snowboarders, photographers, sailors, patrons of the arts, or active members of our faith communities. We are former clerks for judges and justices in state and federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court. Before becoming lawyers, some of us were engineers, nurses or members of the United States Armed Forces. We are alumni of twenty-five law schools. We are a group of diverse individuals working toward a common goal of providing excellent service to our clients.

DIVERSITY COMMITTEE:
The Firm has created a standing Diversity Committee, charged with the responsibility of developing, monitoring, and evaluating the Firm's strategies and progress in recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce. The Diversity Committee is comprised of members with a wide variety of backgrounds, including both junior and senior directors, associates, administrators, men and women, and racial minorities and non-minorities. These individuals share a strong commitment to increasing the Firm's diversity and use their unique experiences and backgrounds to support and further that goal. The Diversity Committee meets regularly to formulate both long-range goals and specific diversity initiatives.

RECRUITING:
The Firm seeks to recruit new and lateral attorneys with strong legal skills and diverse backgrounds. Part of that recruiting effort is developing strong relationships with professional, educational, and community groups that share the Firm's commitment to diversity. This year two of the Firm's partners have taken leading roles in such organizations. John P. Salazar, a senior director, is serving as Chairman of the Board of the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce. Charles J. Vigil, who also serves as Chairman of the Firm's Diversity Committee, is the current President of the State Bar of New Mexico.

The Firm also is committed to maintaining a strong relationship with the law school that serves this State. In cooperation with the University of New Mexico School of Law, the Firm has established the Rodey Scholarship, an annual scholarship offered to a minority law student entering the second year of law school. In addition, for the twelfth year, the Firm will participate in the State Bar Summer Law Clerk program, offering employment opportunities for diverse and deserving students at UNM Law School. Each year, the Firm recruits at least one of its summer associates through that program. The Firm also encourages all of its lawyers to participate in community and legal organizations that reflect diversity among their membership and support diversity goals.

RETENTION:
The Firm recognizes that recruiting alone is insufficient to create and maintain the diverse workforce that is critical to long-term success. Without specific retention initiatives, even the most well-developed and well-executed recruiting plan will fail to yield permanent and meaningful results. We strive to ensure that all attorneys, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or other minority status, receive the training, mentoring, and support that they need to feel welcome, included, and valued. Because studies show, however, that women and minorities often face unique challenges in the law firm environment, the Firm has taken an active approach in identifying and analyzing issues that affect women and minorities in unique ways. The Firm's primary goal with respect to its attorneys is to create the type of supportive environment that is attractive to both current employees and potential recruits. This goal is based on the recognition that recruiting and retention are inherently related and co-dependent. For example, the Firm will consider flex-time and part-time scheduling options, as well as alternative benefits packages. The Firm currently has several directors and one associate who have chosen alternative work schedules.

FIRM CULTURE:
The Firm recognizes that true progress in the area of diversity requires making diversity a core value shared by all members of the Firm. It requires involving key decision-makers who can take meaningful steps to implement diversity initiatives. It also requires involving women and minorities in all levels of Firm management. Finally, an unshakeable commitment to qualify of life is a critical component of a Firm culture that fosters and supports diversity.

In order to more effectively implement diversity initiatives, the Firm has significant cross-membership between the key committees that affect the recruiting, hiring, and retention of diverse attorneys. The Chairpersons of both the Associates Committee (Mike Morgan) and the Recruiting Committee (Deborah E. Mann) are current members of the Diversity Committee. Other select members of the Diversity Committee also serve on the Recruiting Committee (Lisa Chavez Ortega) and the Associates Committee (Paul R. Koller). Beyond being a voting member of the Firm's Recruiting Committee, the Chair of the Diversity Committee is an active participant in management-level decisions regarding the hiring of new attorneys.

In addition to recruiting and striving to retain qualified and diverse attorneys, the Firm has made it a priority to cultivate active participation by women and minorities at all levels of Firm management, including the Executive Committee, practice group leaders, and other vital Firm committees. For the sixth consecutive year, two of the six directors on the Executive Committee are women (Theresa W. Parrish and Nelse T. Schreck). The Chair of the Recruiting Committee, Deborah E. Mann, and the group leader for the Commercial Litigation group, Leslie McCarthy Apodaca , are also female. Every Firm committee includes at least one female.

The Firm is also highly committed to preserving and enhancing the quality of life for its attorneys. It strives to create and maintain an environment that allows them to fully pursue their passions apart from the legal profession. We respect individual circumstances and life choices, and we strive to provide an environment which fosters both commitment to clients and commitment to our families and the community. We believe that this type of environment leads to happier, more productive, and more loyal employees.

At Rodey, we consider our diversity efforts critical to the level of service that we provide to our clients. We also recognize that a commitment to diversity requires sustained attention and effort. Achieving and supporting diversity is an ongoing challenge, one that Rodey has made a priority of the Firm's management, recruiting, and day-to-day practice.