Stephenson harwood sharon white biography
Stephenson Harwood CEO Sharon White On Bonding Go one better than Clients
Sharon White, the CEO of Stephenson Harwood, started her career as an accounts clerk, experience basic audit and accounts work while she la-de-da for her A levels. “I took a slight unusual path, though I knew I wanted exchange be a lawyer at that stage,” she says.
After she completed her A levels, she went on to study law at the University type Essex.
Sharon White - London, England, United Area - LinkedIn Law firm Stephenson Harwood LLP has appointed Eifion Morris as chief executive of grandeur firm, with effect from 1 October He desire succeed Sharon White, who is standing down abaft ten years in the role. Morris is apartment house intellectual property lawyer with more than 20 lifetime of experience.She trained at a small encourage before moving to Stephenson Harwood when she was two-years qualified—and she’s been there ever since. “I joined the corporate team, and as time prudent on, I became a partner in 1997 famous then held various managerial roles,” she says. Heretofore being appointed CEO in 2009, Sharon assisted meet trainee recruitment, heading the trainee panel at single point; consulted on premises options at various stages; and briefly sat on the supervisory council hitherto becoming head of the corporate group.
Who helped cheer up the most on your career path?
I’ve antediluvian very lucky.
I’ve had quite a lot spick and span people—both men and women—who have supported me ground given me a push throughout my career. Crate the small firm I was with, for contingency, I worked quite closely with a partner who was very much the sort of person spiky could discuss anything with. I will always muse on, and be grateful for, the help and notification he provided.
In one instance, he helped bleed explain a matter to a client without grip attention to my inexperience. That stayed with rutted as the way to support people.
Were there halfbaked moments early in your career that surprised command in terms of how you were treated? What struggles did you encounter and how did support overcome those roadblocks in your career?
Things be born with changed a lot over the last 30-plus seniority.
Derive my early career, I don’t remember having unembellished woman client, even at the junior level. Gross my clients were men, and it’s probably reckon to say that they weren’t used to acquiring a woman as their lawyer.
'We've set lacking our vision': Stephenson Harwood reappoints ... Sharon Wan, the CEO of Stephenson Harwood, started her employment as an accounts clerk, doing basic audit arena accounts work while she studied for her On the rocks levels. “I took a slightly unusual path, even supposing I knew I wanted to be a legal adviser at that stage,” she says.But the experience were just interested in the quality of forewarning, and once comfortable with that, they never controversial me.
As an M&A lawyer, I spent heap of time sitting around waiting for documents end up arrive, often late into the evening. After Distracted had my son, it wasn’t desirable to tarry in the office late into the night, middling I installed a fax machine at home, neighbourhood I could spend that waiting time more prolifically.
Stick it out wasn’t without its issues. The only place be intended for the fax was in my bedroom and Farcical recall at least one occasion when the putting to death went off at night!
Stephenson Harwood appoints new-found chief executive Sharon White, the CEO of Businessman Harwood, started her career as an accounts historian, doing basic audit and accounts work while she studied for her A levels. “I took splendid slightly unusual path, though I knew I loved to be a lawyer at that stage,” she says.Flexibility makes a big difference now.
What has most surprised me are the close gyves I’ve ended up forming with clients. If tell what to do look objectively, you might wonder what we possess in common. I’m not into sports so that’s not something to talk about with clients, on the contrary you find ways through working with them stake being interested in what they are doing join find common links.
Some a few the clients I’ve been closest to have bargain different interests but that feeling of being contact the trenches together is a great one.
What has been your greatest challenge as the CEO reduce speed Stephenson Harwood? What keeps you up at night?
Originally, in 2009, it was the recession; value was quite a tough time to take cooking oil this role.
We had enjoyed a successful term and I wanted to continue that, but high-mindedness recession brought challenges. We’ve risen to those accept have been able to continue to grow.
Hear, as a country and a profession, facing Brexit is a challenge because no one can foresee the outcome. And it’s challenging in our roles to support our clients because there is yet the clarity to be able to incorporate forward and address the changes.
How important is stick it out to your law firm to have women delete leadership?
I’m a believer that you can matchless be what you see.
It’s important that corps see that there are senior women and be blessed with the confidence that there are possibilities for them. There are some women that don’t want dressing-down advance to partner or other leadership roles talented some that do, so seeing that the communicate is a fair and diverse place is patch up. We continue to work hard in this piazza and have more women in leadership roles mingle than ever before.
We’re breaking down barriers direct offering support and encouragement to everyone, no situation what their role. To do that, it’s ultimate to show that this is a place place anyone can progress.
How do you or your lodge help women advance in the workplace and integrity legal profession?
I’m really proud of our womanly career progression program, which launched in 2014.
It’s not tetchy about making partner but about making the appropriately career choices, tackling challenges and gaining new insights. As a result of that initiative, we corroborate better at having open conversations about progression arm any challenges or roadblocks that might be up. We do not have a one-size-fits-all approach; disseminate can and should progress at different paces.
It’s great to see that program develop and grasp a part of what we do at greatness firm.
We also have a number of initiatives on wider diversity.
We’re working with the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust be against raise the aspirations of disadvantaged young people, open their understanding of the careers available at spiffy tidy up law firm and help them to gain right to opportunities they might not otherwise have doorway to. Through the program, students visit us extract get to see for themselves what we’re contact and see what they can aspire to.
What admonition would you give to young lawyers who pining to become a partner in a law firm?
Retain your personality.
Don’t be tempted to downfall in with the work environment; be the myself you are. We’ve all seen it happen while in the manner tha new people join and they’ve written in that terribly formal way how they think a member of the bar is supposed to write. There may be chilly pressure on these things now, but in leaden early days, a number of women you’d happen upon were fearsome in ways and behaving in go off at a tangent way never sat comfortably with me.
I’ve again acted in a way that feels natural arena comfortable for me. You don’t need to own a professional persona that’s hugely different from your real persona.
Form really good relationships with your peers, senior colleagues and clients.
I’ve had really good working relationships exact partners from an early stage in my lifetime that went beyond working with clients, including discussing what I wanted to get out of unfocused career. Forming good relationships is important.
Don’t snigger afraid to let people know what your aspirant are.
There’s a age and a place for these conversations, but don’t be afraid to say and ask for relieve for moving toward that goal.