This just in from Linklaters and all way can say is allebloodylujah and welcome back Bruna Pellicci:
Linklaters is driving diversification into technology and innovation roles within the firm, taking tangible steps to achieve equality and inclusion across all levels. Actions include a new global Women in Tech working group to focus efforts and a commitment to the Tech Talent Charter to share best practice and measure diversity across tech teams.
The Women in Tech working group aims to identify priorities and empower people to tackle the issue of gender imbalance. This involves auditing functions such as recruitment processes and ensuring language in tech job descriptions is attractive to both men and women.
New hires within recent senior technology and innovation roles underlines the firm’s commitment and the progress being made. Bruna Pellicci was appointed as the firm’s Chief Technology Officer last month and Shilpa Bhandarkar joined as Head of Innovation and Efficiency in July. Other senior tech positions held within the firm include Jas Mundae as Head of LegalTech and AR.
Linklaters has also become the first magic circle firm to join the Government supported Tech Talent Charter which aims to drive diversity and address gender imbalance in tech. The Charter encourages companies to share best practice on achieving a gender and age-balanced approach to recruitment and actively collaborate with other organisations to create meaningful change.
Through its membership Linklaters will pledge support to inclusive recruitment and retention practices, to measure and benchmark the diversity within its workforce and to work with other signatories to develop, improve and implement policies that will drive diversity within different tech functions.
Simon Hughes, Head of Technology Projects, said: “The steps we are taking demonstrate the tangible progress we are making in our efforts to be a best in class employer in tech with the aim of achieving greater gender balance across all our tech functions. Working with other industry players and changing how we approach recruitment and retention will play a key role in this.”
Bruna Pellicci, Chief Technology Officer, said: “Technology in law is an exciting and important space to work, and greater diversity in this function will drive innovation and performance. It’s promising to see work on diversity across our technology teams already in motion at Linklaters, and that diversity and inclusion is so embedded in the strategy here”.
Beyond these efforts, Linklaters also participates in community investment and pro bono work which contributes to increasing diversity and equality within the wider global tech industry. These include working with The Access Project to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds studying STEM subjects, and advising non-profit organisations which help refugees and displaced youth become digital pioneers