Career Development Program
"Take Charge of Your Career"
A Unique Program for Career Success and Personal Wellbeing for Women Lawyers
March to April, 2025

Eugênia Schontag
Associate, DLA Piper US LLC
"This program was a great opportunity to discuss important career topics, learn from skilled professionals, and reconnect with old friends. The time we spent together was very productive. I am sure I will benefit from this program for years to come."

Stephanie Woodard
Attorney, US Department of State
"I'm so grateful to have taken this course. I feel much more confident in myself and in my career trajectory. With hard work, planning, and courage, I can in fact have it all."
Why This Program Matters For You
After a few years of law practice, women have generally gained confidence in their legal skills and ability to learn and be creative about practicing law. At the same time, many women begin to understand that legal careers are not typically a straight line; and that personal, social and professional goals can sometimes be in conflict. Some women will want to stay in private practice while others would like to consider in-house work at corporations, start-ups, not-for-profits, or government, or stop working in the law.
At more advanced levels, women continue to face challenges about how to advance, whether to stay in their current practice setting or change, and how to develop the leadership experiences and business skills that are required to reach the top levels of the profession. In addition, women at this stage often experience the push/pull of home and work, with ongoing concerns about pursuing demanding careers with family, social life and outside interests. There are still challenges around gender that face women lawyers are all levels in many different workplaces. Managing it all is no easy task, yet very few employers offer the kind of programs that meaningfully impact the types of choices and decisions that women face and how best to take charge of their careers.
This Program offers a solution: a safe space with a well-informed series of workshops that allow each participating woman lawyer to learn that she is not alone; that there are solutions to the work/life challenges; and that she has the ability and power to shape her career in ways that fulfill important personal goals.
Program Objectives
The "Take Charge of Your Career" online program focuses on the skills and mindsets needed for women lawyers to move into leadership roles, overcome challenges at critical career stages of their careers, and develop positive and proactive approaches for moving ahead in their careers. It will combine discussions with experienced leaders in the profession, guided conversations with coaches and alumnae peers, and interactive small group workshops, all designed to help women advance in their careers while also making choices that matter for personal well-being.
Target Audience
The program is being offered exclusively to two (2) cohorts of alumnae and other Female Lawyers: lawyers 3-8 years after graduation and lawyers 9–18 years after graduation. There will be four (4) virtual sessions for each cohort between mid-March to the end of April, 2025.
Programming for both cohorts will incorporate ideas reflecting the latest research about women as leaders and workplace factors that help or impede women from advancing into leader roles. The specific content, discussion and interactive exercises will be tailored for each cohort to reflect their level of experience and career goals.
Sessions For Female Lawyers 3-8 Years After Graduation
Each session lasts 90 minutes
How Do I Put It All Together? Work, Family, Life
March 11, 2025
It’s not easy to mesh together the many parts of life in ways that make you feel good about yourself and what the future can bring. After just a few years of practicing law, a question that women often ask themselves is, “Do I stay or do I leave?” Based on our experiences and national research about women’s careers in the law, we will discuss what it means to have work/life balance, what are the common dilemmas that women face at difference life stages, and how you can frame a work/life balance that is personally and professionally satisfying.
The Benefits Of A Difficult Conversation And How To Do It
March 25, 2025
The skills to engage in difficult conversations – with peers, team members, or leaders – are essential aspects of work. We use realistic scenarios to role play and discuss why people avoid difficult conversations, the value that difficult conversations create for you and for teams, when to speak up, and the techniques to conduct those conversations to satisfying resolutions.
The Power Of Networks For Growing Your Reputation and Client Relationships
April 8, 2025
At all levels of practice, networks are the building blocks for successful careers. Networks provide the opportunity to learn and exercise leadership skills, enhance your reputation with clients and in the larger community, and grow the business relationships that are essential to advancing careers. Networks are key to greater recognition within your organization and for advancing into senior roles. We use discussion, demonstrations, and other interactive exercises to show how to create and use networks in ways that are natural and also move your career forward.
Getting What You Deserve: Negotiating for Yourself at Work
April 22, 2025
Whatever the workplace setting, you may feel it’s not easy to attain the position, salary, bonus, skills, or assignments that you feel you deserve. In this session, you will learn about the personal and workplace impediments to negotiating for yourself and standing out from the crowd. We will use examples and roleplay conversations so you can see the best approach for you to use forgetting what you need to move up at work.
Sessions For Female Lawyers 9-18 Years After Graduation
Each session lasts 90 minutes
What Got You Here Won’t Get You There
March 13, 2025
Can I really do this? Am I ready? Those are questions women lawyers often ask themselves at the point when they are expected to take on leadership roles for major matters, practices and offices. This session focuses on understanding and developing leadership skills, overcoming personal blockers to becoming a leader, and effective ways to guide team responses, including disagreement or conflict, for high team performance.
Managing Difficult Conversations As A Leader
March 27, 2025
A hallmark of leadership is being effective in difficult conversations and embracing techniques for managing conflict in positive ways towards shared solutions. Using realistic scenarios, this interactive session will teach through examples and group discussion about important communication skills to understand and implement with your peers, those who report to you on a regular project basis, and the very senior leaders in your workplace.
Getting What You Deserve: Negotiating for Yourself at Work
April 10, 2025
Whatever the workplace setting, you may feel it's not easy to attain the position, salary, bonus skills, or assignments that you feel you deserve. In this session, you will learn about the personal and workplace impediments to negotiating for yourself and standing out from the crowd. We will use examples and roleplay conversations so you can see the best approach for you to use forgetting what you need to move up at work.
The Power of Networks For Your Reputation, Client Relationships, and Business
April 24, 2025
At all levels of practice, networks are the building blocks for successful careers. Networks provide the opportunity to learn and exercise leadership skills, enhance your reputation with clients and in the larger community, and grow the business relationships that are essential to advancing careers. Networks are key to greater recognition within your organization and for advancing into senior roles. We use discussion, demonstrations, and other interactive exercises to show how to create and use networks in ways that are natural and also move your career forward.
Program Faculty
The program's training and coaching team comes from the Red Bee Group. The team includes former General Counsels/Chief Legal Officers of international companies, Executive Committee members of international law firms, Presidents of national bar associations, and Board Members of public companies and major not-for-profit organizations.
Our guided cohort format allows “lessons learned” from highly experienced lawyers, using group exercises and discussions around real-life examples and key concepts for success. The Red Bee Group also draws from its unique portfolio of groundbreaking national and regional studies about sustaining long-term careers in the legal profession. Below are the professionals whom we anticipate will lead sessions (typically two professionals per session).
Stephanie Scharf, co-founder of the Red Bee Group, was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis, a partner and member of the Management Committee at Jenner & Block, and founder of Scharf Banks Marmor LLC, a nationally prominent women-owned law firm. She is past President of the National Association of Women Lawyers, former Chair of the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession, and former member of the Presidential ABA Diversity & Inclusion Commission. Stephanie earned a J.D. and Ph.D. in Behavioral Sciences from the University of Chicago, which informs her approaches to coaching, group learning, and data-based research about legal careers. Stephanie has conducted over 20 national studies about women in the law, and enjoys counseling lawyers about their personal pathways to satisfying careers.
Kelly McNamara, co-founder of The Red Bee Group, is former Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of Discover Financial Services. Kelly serves on the Boards of Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Rush University Medical Center, and several nonprofit organizations. Among multiple diversity initiatives, she founded and developed the Diversity and Inclusion Education program at Scalia Law School, the first-ever diversity education program offered by a law school. Kelly is an experienced coach on leadership for individuals and group cohorts, in a wide array of work settings including national corporations, law firms, government and non-profit organizations.
Wendy Shiba has served as chief legal officer of two NYSE-listed companies, after practicing at O’Melveny & Myers, and beginning her career as a law clerk on the Supreme Court of California. Wendy is a past President of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) and a co-founder of the Collaborative Bar Leadership Academy. She previously served on the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession, where she chaired the Women of Color Research Initiative. Wendy was also a member of the ABA Presidential Diversity & Inclusion Commission. She has coached multiple attorneys individually and in group settings on various aspects of career advancement.
Thomas Bender is an exceptional leader and expert on firm management, and in the course of his career, has coached a wide array of lawyers. Before joining Red Bee, Tom served as Littler Mendelson P.C.’s co-president and co-managing director from 2012-2020 and was responsible for the overall strategic direction of the firm’s U.S. and global offices. Tom was also instrumental in advancing the firm’s diversity and inclusion efforts, which gained significant recognition by the media, legal industry and clients.
Roberta ("Bobbi") Liebenberg is one of the nation’s leading authorities for advancing diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. She has implemented coaching programs, and designed best practices for both law firms and corporations seeking to hire and advance women and minority lawyers at all levels of the organization. Bobbi has served as Chair of the American Bar Association’s Commission on Women in the Profession; and as Chair of DirectWomen, the only organization dedicated to increasing the representation of women lawyers on corporate boards. She has conducted national research about careers for women lawyers, including a recent large study about the impact of motherhood on careers for women lawyers.
Christine Edwards is a former equity partner of Winston & Strawn. She also has served as Chief Legal Officer at Morgan Stanley, and as Chief Legal Officer at BankOne, a predecessor company to JP Morgan Chase. Chris is currently on the Board of BMO Financial, headquartered in Toronto, and on the Board of its US subsidiary, and BMO Harris, headquartered in Chicago. She has counseled a wide array of lawyers around career development and leadership skills.
Elisa D. Garcia is an accomplished corporate executive and attorney with over 30 years of experience advising management and boards of directors on strategy, legal, business, activism, and government relations matters. Elisa most recently served as the Chief Legal Officer of Macy’s, Inc., and was previously the Chief Legal Officer of Office Depot, Inc., and General Counsel for Domino’s Pizza. Elisa began her legal career with the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher. She currently serves on the Board of the Institute for Inclusion in the Law and the Board of DirectWomen. She was named by ALPFA as one of the “50 Most Powerful Latinas in Business” and by the National Law Journal as one of “America’s 50 Outstanding General Counsel.”
Deborah P. Ashton is a licensed clinical psychologist with a Ph.D. and Ed.D from Harvard University. Deborah has led diversity and inclusion for Medtronic, Dareden Restaurants, Harley-Davison, Novant Health and Argonne National Laboratory. She is an experienced speaker and workshop leader and has advised many corporate clients on cultural competency, pay equity, addressing implicit bias, sexism, intersectionality, and systemic racism. Among her many activities for the advancement of professional women, Deborah has spearheaded annual pay audits at Fortune 500 companies, and developed the Six Pillars of Diversity and Inclusion™ strategic model.