About Neal Gerber Eisenberg’s Women’s Network

The Neal Gerber Eisenberg Women’s Network was born in 2005 out of the desire to capitalize upon and augment the power of the women practicing at the firm. The Women’s Network provides programming to the firm’s women attorneys, focused on the development of personal, professional and leadership skills. The Women’s Network also seeks to provide Neal Gerber Eisenberg’s women attorneys with opportunities to build their personal and professional networks outside the firm and to develop strong mentoring relationships with other women. Angela R. Elbert and Emily Mulder Milman serve as co-chairs of Neal Gerber Eisenberg's Women's Network.

All programming presented by the Women’s Network is aimed at enriching the professional lives of Neal Gerber Eisenberg’s women attorneys, which in turn benefits the firm. The Women’s Network presents programming in three formats: Lunch ‘N Learn programs, Ladies Lunches and Social Networking Events. In addition to presenting internal programming, the Women’s Network hosts an annual event for women clients and prospective clients of the firm, allowing our women attorneys to refine their marketing and business development skills and to develop their own client relationships.  Many women at the firm have chaired or co-chaired a Women’s Network program or event, an excellent opportunity to showcase creativity and build leadership skills. 

By harnessing the power of women practicing at Neal Gerber Eisenberg and focusing on our development as professionals and leaders within and outside the firm, we have dynamically impacted the future of the women who practice here, and the future of the firm itself. The success of the Women’s Network at Neal Gerber Eisenberg demonstrates in a palpable way how women can come together to effect positive change in their own professional pursuits, while at the same time advancing the business objectives of the firm. The positive impact of the efforts of the Women’s Network is measurable — nearly one-third of the firm’s practice groups and committees are now chaired by women partners, Neal Gerber Eisenberg has been ranked in the 2008 Vault/MCCA Guide to Law Firm Diversity Programs as 16th in the nation for its percentage of women equity partners and the firm recently was named a Top 50 Best Law Firm for women by Working Mother magazine and Flex-Time Lawyers LLC. 

Women’s Network Programming & Affinity Group

Professional Connections Client Events

The Women’s Network hosts an annual "Professional Connections" event for women clients and prospective clients of the firm.  Events include:

• Sponsor of the 2010 WomenOnCall.org Meet & Match event on February 17, 2010. Click here for more information.
• Neal Gerber Eisenberg and Grant Thornton LLP hosted a panel presentation on October 21, 2009 entitled “Keys to Success for Women in Business,” which was followed by a networking reception for all women attendees to encourage them to build their professional network. With more than 160 women executives from the Chicago business community in attendance, the event expanded professional networks while fostering a more inclusive business community. Click here for more information.
• Primary sponsor of 2009 WomenOnCall.org Meet & Match event on February 11, 2009.   Click here for more information.
• Hosted the 2008 Professional Connections Event on November 12, 2008 for women clients and friends of the firm. The event was held at 1154 Lill in Lincoln Park where guests designed their own handbags and connected with other women from the legal and business community.
• The Women's Business Law Conference hosted by the Women’s Network was held on Thursday, January 25, 2007. The day began with presentations by Neal Gerber Eisenberg attorneys on hot topics of the time and concluded with luncheon keynote speaker Susan Sneider who presented a topic entitled, “Internal Networking for Professional Growth and Career Enhancement.”   The seminar was followed by an afternoon of pampering at a local spa and concluded with dinner at N9ne Restaurant.

Lunch 'N Learn Internal Programs

Quarterly Lunch ‘N Learn programs focus on issues of importance to women lawyers, and often to all attorneys.  Lunch ‘N Learn programs are open to all attorneys of the firm.  Recent Lunch ‘N Learn programs focused on included the following events:

• The April 13, 2010 program entitled "From Idea to Action: Making the Pitch" was presented to over 30 attorneys and featured Neal Gerber Eisenberg partners examining different scenarios, which they then turned into a pitch for new business.
• The February 16, 2010 program entitled "Striving for Balance in a High Stress Job" was presented to approximately 30 attorneys and featured former Administrator of the ARDC, Mary Robinson.
• The September 22, 2009 program entitled "Mastering the Art of Communication" was presented to over 40 attorneys, which featured Lane Bowes, a nationally recognized communication expert. Ms. Bowes also provided one-on-one coaching for seven attorneys to further examine and improve their communication styles.
• The July 14, 2009 program entitled “Effective Strategies for Successful Relationships with Outside Counsel” was presented to over 60 attorneys, which featured a panel of general counsels who shared with us best practices and pet peeves when dealing with outside counsel.
• On April 14, 2009, the Women’s Network hosted its first Advanced Leadership Academy. Sue Manch, an experienced consultant in the legal industry, identified key leadership skills and the challenges women often face in leadership positions.
• The March 12, 2009 panel presentation entitled, "What Law School Didn’t Teach You: The Business of Being an Associate" featured shared success stories, helpful tips, and answered questions on topics ranging from working with partners and clients to personal and professional networking within and outside the firm.

Neal Gerber Eisenberg Women Attorney Networking Teams (WANT)

In previous years, the Women’s Network has hosted informal lunchtime programs for Neal Gerber Eisenberg’s women attorneys aimed at the development of networking skills and mentorship relationships. In 2010, the Women’s Network is launching Women Attorney Networking Teams (WANT). WANT will facilitate internal networking and mentoring opportunities by grouping Neal Gerber Eisenberg women attorneys of varying seniority levels and areas of practice for a quarterly lunch. The teams will reconnect while discussing topics of relevance including leadership in the community, effective self-promotion in the professional environment and business development and marketing techniques. We envision that WANT will serve as a platform for the development of natural mentoring relationships, benefiting the mentee and mentor alike.

Social Networking Events

The Women’s Network hosts social networking events which encourage social interaction among the firm’s women attorneys.

NGE PLAY (Parenting, Lawyering And You) GROUP

The Women's Network has created an affinity group for all Neal Gerber Eisenberg attorneys -- the NGE PLAY (Parenting, Lawyering And You) Group, chaired by firm attorneys Joshua A. Klein and Sarah G. Malia.   The mission of the NGE PLAY Group is to harness the experiences and resources of Neal Gerber Eisenberg attorneys and facilitate the sharing of those experiences and resources at all stages of the parenting process -- whether you are considering parenthood in the future, expecting your first child, navigating life from preschool through high school or your children are already out of the nest. Recent programs organized by this group include the following:

• The June 16, 2010 event entitled "Kids and Technology: What You Need to Know" featured speakers sharing their experiences with their kids and technology, suggestions on monitoring your kids' social networking activities and insights on keeping you kids safe.
• The March 23, 2010 event entitled "Are We Really Covered" featured speakers discussing tips for creating wills and trusts, setting up fiduciaries and durable powers of attorney, the additional life insurance benefits attorneys of the firm can take advantage of and several other estate planning topics.
• The December 18, 2009 event featured break-out sessions that discussed topics and ideas on "Keeping the Torch Lit -- Reconnecting with Your Spouse."
• The September 17, 2009 event featured a lively roundtable discussion entitled “Why It’s Ok to Put Baby in a Corner…success stories on effective discipline for kids of all ages.”
• The May 6, 2009 event entitled “Honey, Who is Watching the Kids?” provided a wealth of information for parents who are navigating child care options.
• The PLAY Group’s first program entitled “Saving for a Child's Education: Exploring Traditional and Non-traditional Options,” was held on January 27, 2009 and featured a presentation that provided information on 529 investment options, prepaid tuition programs and other educational savings options.