Jennifer Bluestein on Stepping It Up: A Guide for Mid-Level Law Firm Associates

Welcome to the 100th episode of The Geek in Review. We hope you've enjoyed listening to the podcast as much as we've had in making it. We talk with Jennifer Bluestein, Chief Talent and HR Officer for Perkins Coie in part one of a two-part interview. Jennifer's new book, Stepping It Up: A Guide for Mid-Level Law Firm Associates helps associates, partners, HR, and professional development personnel better understand the needs of those second to sixth-year associates as they move from learning how to practice law to learning how to practice law, while managing up and down the associate ladder. In part one, we discuss the basic challenges of a mid-level when it comes to communication skills, and knowing when to delegate, and when not to delegate. We also cover the issues with understanding partner evaluations of associates and what the difference is between a coaching moment, and what is a performance issue. Information Inspirations The American Bar Association reports that being a judge can be stressful. If you're looking for a great curated newsletter on all the mergers and other happenings in the legal tech industry, Nate's News, curated by Nate Schorr, may be just what you are looking for. AI bias is something we've all heard about. Recently the bias appeared in how the COVID vaccine is being distributed. At least that was how it was reported. Karen Hao from MIT Tech Review thinks it may be more of a people problem than an Algorithm/AI issue. And speaking of AI, Sheppard Mullins is the first law firm to sign the EqualAI pledge, with the hope of reducing AI bias in the practice of law. Listen, Subscribe, Comment Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcast. Contact us anytime by tweeting us at @gebauerm or @glambert. Or, you can call The Geek in Review hotline at 713-487-7270 and leave us a message. You can email us at [email protected]. As always, the great music you hear on the podcast is from Jerry David DeCicca.