Foley’s New Associates Learn about the Firm and How to Build Teams (and Charcuterie Boards)
Note: Thank you to co-author Jenn Falls for contributing this post.
On October 25, 2021, Foley & Lardner welcomed a class of 58 new associates in 16 offices across the firm. We had a robust orientation program throughout the week for our newest additions to learn about the firm.
The New Associate Orientation “NAO” program featured firm leadership sharing advice and practical tips with the new class of associates, with the goal of introducing the various resources across the firm designed to support their success and career development. In an effort to lighten up the programming, various networking and virtual events were held throughout the week.
The week’s marquee event included a charcuterie board building presentation and interactive competition. Each new associate received a Foley-branded, bamboo cutting board and a box of gourmet charcuterie ingredients. We enlisted social media sensation The BakerMama, Meagan Brown — who has authored two cookbooks and garnered a robust following based on her stunning and creative charcuterie boards— to teach us how to assemble the ingredients. The larger group broke out into smaller virtual teams, where individuals worked on their own boards, including adding their own unique ingredients and techniques to stand out. Each team nominated a board for the “best,” “worst,” and “most creative ingredient” board and then presented their winners to the larger group. The BakerMama served as our celebrity guest judge to pick the final winners, Amanda Hibbler (Chicago), Victoria Kelley (Washington, D.C.), and Quinn D’Isa (New York).
On the last day of the NAO program, we divided the associates into department-based breakout sessions for each of the firm’s three law departments — Business Law, Intellectual Property and Litigation — where they heard from department leadership and participated in more substantive training in their designated practice area. This is just the start of a comprehensive training program offered at Foley throughout the first year and beyond.