How law firms can make lasting changes in diversity and inclusion with Chris Kirby and Dominica McGinnis of Bridgefield Group
Chris Kirby is an established professional coach and the Founder of BridgeField Group. He has worked as a business development coach since 2000, working initially for the WJF Institute before founding PCT Solutions in 2005. He then founded BridgeField Group which offers development and diversity programs for firms of all sizes. He has firsthand experience in law, having started his career as an attorney. Now he uses the experience to give firms and individual clients the tools they need to excel.
Dominica McGinnis is an experienced coach herself and the CEO and Co-founder of BridgeField Group. She started out as an executive coach and has worked with influential clients from organizations such as USAA, the City of Austin and Pfizer. She has likewise worked with PCT Solutions in conjunction, working alongside Chris Kirby to train the next generation of firms. Before BridgeField, Dominica worked as a Business Development and Client Services Consultant for MediaTracking.com. She served in the US army for four years, rising to the rank of Captain and Senior Military Consultant.
In this episode:
Diversity has been the elephant in the room with law firms for decades. Despite the efforts of diversity training, most law firms still struggle to retain a varied staff with their own unique strengths. It’s not only a matter of principle, but also of profits. A lack of diversity and inclusion has been shown time and time again to hurt the performance of law firms. Even the firms that want to improve have struggled to implement it. So how can you do diversity the right way?
One solution is to take the training out of diversity training. BridgeField Group has found tremendous success by utilizing coaching and more personal interactions to fuel that change. It’s no longer a token effort or a checklist, but a broadening of perspective and identity that can transform law firms. They have seen it work with their clients, and now, they show you how they do it.
Michelle Calcote King hosts Chris Kirby and Dominica McGinnis of BridgeField Group to find out about their approach to diversity and inclusion. They go over the unique challenges of diversity and BridgeField’s process for building relationships. The three also touch on pressing topics such as mental health, the hiring process and making lasting changes. Find out the rest by listening to this episode of the Spill the Ink! podcast.