THE LAWYERS WEEKLY
June 4, 2010| 23
BUSINESS
CAREERS
Law firms understand the
importance of attracting and hiring
top talent. That may explain why
many firms invest in recruiting top
law school graduates and often hire
back articling students who demonstrate continued promise. This
investment, however, provides no
guarantee that the students you
hire will be a natural fit with the
firm. To prevent mismatches, law
firms need a strategy and approach
designed to help new practitioners
adapt quickly to the firm’s environment and increase their chances of
long-term success. That’s what
onboarding is all about.
What is onboarding, exactly?
The term onboarding derives
from the expression “to bring
someone on board” by enabling
them to become part of a new
organization or getting them in
sync with new strategies or ideas.
When applied in a hiring context,
onboarding is about helping new
hires become productive, dedicated
SARA
ARNSTEIN
&RICHARD
LEE
members of the firm from the outset. Notably, it is not only important when hiring recent graduates;
it is also essential when helping
experienced hires adapt to a new
situation, particularly when they
have come from a firm with a different culture and different processes and procedures.
Onboarding enhances productivity
A comprehensive onboarding
program is a critical component of
an overall talent management
strategy, helping ensure that your
firm attracts and retains the best
and brightest. The goal is for new
hires to be able to contribute to the
firm as quickly as possible while
developing a sense of loyalty,
belonging and commitment. In
fact, evidence suggests that an
investment in onboarding makes
real long-term sense, as it can
increase employee retention,
improve worker productivity and
foster employee engagement. Con-
sider the following:
NYUL / DREAMS TIME.COM
Law firms should make a good first impression on new hires, say experts.
Recruitment without tears
DAL
BHATHAL
A changing landscape
Most businesses have responded
to the economic downturn by scru-
tinizing all aspects of their oper-
ations. The provision of legal servi-
ces (both from in-house
departments and law firms) is no
exception. As difficult decisions
continue to be made about legal
spending, there is a heightened
focus on things like alternative bill-
ing arrangements, virtual law
firms, outsourcing and insourcing.
The Association of Corporate
Counsel’s 10th Annual Chief Legal
Officer Survey shows that most
chief legal officers plan to
increase the size of their depart-
ments, an expansion that is being
fuelled not only by the economic
recovery, but also as a result of stra-
tegic plans to internalize legal work
and rely less on external counsel.
The growth of existing in-house
departments, along with the con-
tinued establishment of new ones,
will no doubt come as welcome
news to the enormous pool of can-
didates wishing to go in-house.
The question is: what does the
increased movement in the in-
house market mean for companies
and their recruiting practices?
Knowledge Management Lawyer
Lawson Lundell LLP, a full-service business law firm, is seeking a
Knowledge Management Lawyer for its Vancouver office. The successful
candidate will establish and maintain a knowledge management system for
the firm and will work collaboratively with our lawyers, students and staff to
ensure that they use our knowledge resources most effectively.
The ideal candidate will have 7 or more years of practice experience in a
business law firm, excellent drafting, research and organizational skills,
and a passion for the area of knowledge management. The candidate
must have outstanding communication skills and the ability to work well
with others. Training in information technology, library science or current
employment in a knowledge management role would be ideal, but is not
required.
For a more detailed description, visit our website at
www.lawsonlundell.com/Careers/Management-Staff.
Interested applicants should contact Nathan Daniels,
Partner, 604.631.6736, ndaniels@lawsonlundell.com.
Corporate Counsel
Location: Markham • Type of Employment: Part-Time, Six-Month Contract
We have an immediate opening for a part-time in-house legal counsel. Reporting to
Corporate Counsel / Manager, Litigation Services, this position will include the following key
responsibilities:
• Provide advice on privacy legislation, and review and update internal and external privacy
policies.
• Licensing: liaise with global licensing department for creation of new licences, draft
requests for licences for new content sources, maintain and manage existing licences,
track expiry and renewal dates and royalty obligations, renegotiate royalty rates in
keeping with global guidelines upon licence renewal, and ensure compliance with licence
obligations.
• Contracts: draft new customer contracts and terms and conditions for new products,
review and draft contracts for services with third-party vendors, manage and control
vendor contracts, control and manage standard non-disclosure agreements, and review
and draft custom non-disclosure agreements.
• Intellectual Property: liaise with global IP department on patent, trademark and copyright
matters to protect LexisNexis Canada intellectual property, and respond to any alleged
infringement matters.
• Litigation Risk Reduction and Management (Pre-Litigation and Litigation)
• Corporate Records: liaise with external counsel to ensure corporate records, resolutions,
minute books and annual government filings are up to date (including Ontario and Federal
filings and extra-Provincial filings), and draft responses to audit requests.
• Compliance: provide advice and ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations
(i.e., competition, accessibility, consumer protection and consumer reporting laws and
regulations).
• Delegation of Authority: help draft and enforce delegation of authority policies for financial
authority and contracting authority.
The ideal candidate will have:
• Bachelor of Laws degree
• 3–5 years of related experience
• Excellent analytical, research, writing and presentation skills
• Strong interpersonal and organizational skills
• Experience with employment contracts, licensing and renewals
• Knowledge of privacy and consumer reporting legislation an asset
• Client service focus
• Team player attitude
• Initiative and self-motivation
Closing Date: June 4, 2010
Contact Information:
Athina Iliadis, Human Resources Consultant
123 Commerce Valley Drive East, Suite 700, Markham, Ontario L3T 7W8
Fax: 905-479-9241 • Email: hr-resumes@lexisnexis.ca
