Navigating the Return to the Office
The pandemic-related disruptions of the past 18 months have caused many to reevaluate what they want out of their careers. But it can be difficult to find a space to have honest conversations with colleagues in the industry about how to find the job you are really looking for. Rory O’Neill reports.
INTA’s Trademark Administrators Committee plans to provide the opportunity at this year’s Annual Meeting Virtual+. Trademark Administrators Best Practice Idea Exchange: Paradise Lost or Paradise Found, which will be held two times during the week, will offer trademark administrators (TMAs) a chance to explore what their dream job really is—and how to get there.
This does not necessarily mean moving somewhere new.
“It’s not about saying the grass is always greener, because it’s not,” said Laura Echols, senior trademark paralegal, Pirky Barber PLLC (US).
“The pandemic is encouraging people to think about what’s really important to them,” she added.
The 90-minute Idea Exchange will be based around a series of interactive role-playing exercises aimed at helping attendees navigate the challenges of looking for a new job or talking with their current employer about how to advance their career.
Participants will then be able to discuss the revelations, strategies, and conclusions that emerged during breakout groups.
“We wanted to get into people’s heads a little bit and get a feel for what the average TMA is thinking right now,” explained Emily Quackenbush, senior trademark paralegal, Perkins Coie, LLP (US).
Increasingly, research is showing that employees across industries have had more than a year to reflect on their needs and aspirations during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many want a new model of work.
According to a March study by financial services company Prudential, entitled “Pulse of the American Worker Survey,” one in three U.S. workers would not want to work for an employer that required them to be onsite full-time after the pandemic. Among all workers, 68 percent of respondents indicated a hybrid workplace model is ideal.
A survey carried out by PricewaterHouseCoopers (PwC) in August of 1,007 full- and part-time U.S. workers also found that 65 percent of employees are looking for a new job. The study, “PwC US Pulse Survey: Next in work,” revealed that employees are looking for new opportunities with competitive packages, including more flexibility (34%), benefits (23%), and compensation (41%).
Both Ms. Echols and Ms. Quackenbush are chairs of the Content Subcommittee of the TMA Committee and organizers of the Idea Exchange.
In Ms. Quackenbush’s view, the Idea Exchange comes at a time when the workforce is in a particular state of flux, as TMAs reconsider what is most important to them.
She is speaking from personal experience, having secured a new arrangement to continue working remotely on a permanent basis.
“For me, not going back to the office was huge,” Ms. Quackenbush said, noting the benefits, from her perspective, were straightforward: “My billable hours have increased significantly, there’s less interruption, and a lot more flexibility.”
Ms. Echols agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced a reevaluation of how TMAs do their job.
“Whether to go back to the office is at the top of everyone’s minds. We’re very busy, and our workload has increased greatly,” she observed.
“It’s not about saying the grass is always greener, because it’s not. The pandemic is encouraging people to think about what’s really important to them.”
Laura Echols, senior trademark paralegal, Pirkey Barber PLLC (US)
How to Be Flexible
Judging from Ms. Quackenbush and Ms. Echols’ experiences, and from what they have heard talking to colleagues, flexibility is perhaps the most important perk law firms and corporations can now offer their TMAs. Flexibility, of course, does not necessarily mean working from home, but represents the choice to do what suits each individual best.
“Some people might want to be able to sit in front of their boss and show them what they’re doing. Flexibility for others is working from home. That needs to be at the forefront, and I think that’s true around the world right now,” Ms. Quackenbush said.
Ms. Echols also suggested that employers should cater to staff’s different needs in order to get the best out of them.
“For more junior paralegals, I do think visibility is an issue,” she said, explaining: “You’re at home and you’re working, but if no one is acknowledging that, you can feel underappreciated.”
The wider debate around whether remote working and other pandemic-enforced adaptations are likely to become permanent is particularly pertinent for the legal sector, Ms. Quackenbush noted.
“Law firms can sometimes not be as forward-thinking as corporations. They’re usually the last to join the ‘club’ of being an innovative workplace,” she suggested. But, as her own experience demonstrates, this may be beginning to change.
“When you get folks together from all parts of the world, including more junior staff, it’s so fascinating to see what comes out of these conversations.”
Emily Quackenbush, senior trademark paralegal, Perkins Coie, LLP (US)
Likewise, INTA’s “IP Law Firms of the Future Think Tank Report” claims that the current pandemic may be a “critical force” in driving law firms to let go of conservative thinking and embrace hybrid working and new technologies such as blockchain.
“Firms are starting to wake up. They don’t want to lose their best people,” Ms. Quackenbush said. “I think it took the pandemic for a lot of firms to realize what could be possible.”
The other side of working from home, of course, is that the boundary between life and work comes under threat, increasing the risk of burnout.
“We’re seriously busy. Our workload has increased significantly during the pandemic,” Ms. Echols said.
For Ms. Quackenbush, she sometimes would step away from her workday at home, make dinner for the family, and then find herself working until midnight. “I had to readjust,” she said.
Ms. Quackenbush feels both individuals and management are jointly responsible to recognize the risks of burnout.
While these issues are likely to feature prominently during the Idea Exchange, the nature of the session’s format means the content will be determined by what participants bring to it. The Committee hopes to capture the full diversity of experiences of TMAs around the world.
“That’s the beauty of it,” Ms. Qackenbush exclaimed. “When you get folks together from all parts of the world, including more junior staff, it’s so fascinating to see what comes out of these conversations.”
The 90-minute event will run twice to facilitate global access in different time zones—Tuesday, November 16 at 1:30 pm (EST) and Thursday, November 18 at 12:00 am (EST).
Also of interest, the Trademark Administrators Committee will present a Workshop entitled Remote Working: It’s More Than Just Track Pants, on Thursday, November 18, 1:30 pm–4:00 pm (EST). A panel will explore the realities and challenges of full-time remote work, the transition back to in-person work, and other considerations related to what the “new normal” will look like. Time will be allotted for Q&A with the speakers and for small group discussion among attendees. Pre-registration is required.
Pre-registration is required for the TMA Idea Exchange and TMA Workshop. There are a limited number of seats still available at each.
In addition, TMAs, among others, may want to consider Mentorship: A Secret Ingredient to Career Development. This session, on Tuesday, November 16 from 3:45 pm to 4:45 pm (EST), will feature a panel of mentors and mentees—both TMAs and attorneys—discussing how these relationships have rewarded them personally and professionally. Emily Burns, senior trademark counsel, Google (US), will moderate the panel.
Footage used under license from Envato Elements / german-skydiver
Thursday, September 24, 2021
Published by:
