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Alexis Robertson is the next Woman Who Wows. I met Alexis through LinkedIn and have admired her thoughtful posts. It’s another reason why online networking is so important – she lives in Chicago and I live in NYC but I feel very connected to her.

She is currently the director of diversity & inclusion for Foley & Lardner LLP where she provides firm-wide strategic direction and oversight on all diversity and inclusion related matters.

Alexis joined Foley from Baker McKenzie, where she was North America manager of Diversity & Inclusion. Prior to joining Baker McKenzie, Alexis spent two years as a Legal Recruiting Director for The Partners Group where she focused on placing diverse attorneys with law firms and corporations.

Alexis earned her law degree from the University of Michigan Law School and practiced with Kirkland & Ellis and Seyfarth Shaw following graduation. She earned her undergraduate degree from the American University in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about her.

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I asked Orange County-based Gia Altreche to be part of the Women Who Wow series because she is a leader in the legal marketing industry and an advocate for the profession and diversity & inclusion. Gia is the Director of Business Development and Marketing at Newmeyer & Dillion LLP and serves as co-chair of the Legal Marketing Association’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee and Shared Interest Group. Learn more about her below.

Why did you choose your profession?

Technically it chose me. It was during a post-college adventure to find a marriage between the legal field (initially intending to go to law school), and human communication (a love I found in my last year in college, which slightly derailed the initial focus) that ended with my resume miraculously in the hands of my now mentor, who was the Head of Business Development & Marketing at a major law firm in Phoenix, AZ. Talk about the power of networking!

At the time, I didn’t know legal marketing existed, but quickly learned it offered access to both play a role in advocating for my community, while continuing to study and nurture the role of human connection in business. Plus, being surrounded by the crème of the crop legal minds across a variety of industries, seeking out continuous education on the ever evolving role and how I could support their efforts was greatly satisfying. Learn more about her and her career path below.

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Homework

When I speak at conferences or conduct client trainings, I usually end my presentations with “homework” for attendees. While not actually required, I always suggest that attendees take the time to do these to-do items, because I always want to leave attendees with actionable takeaways they can implement right away to enhance their business and brand.

I know so many of you feel out of sorts right now (that includes me). Our daily routines have been thrown a huge curveball and staying home is our job right now to keep ourselves and others safe against the spread of the coronavirus.

That being said, this is not the time to stop marketing yourself or your firm. In fact, you want to be top of mind, and you can easily do that through the many online channels available to us – with LinkedIn being the most powerful social platform to build professional relationships. The key is to be helpful, non-boastful and to provide value-added content and information.

I am seeing the lines between our personal and professional lives become blurrier by the day as many of us want to be more connected to people in general. This may result in you receiving friend requests on Facebook and follow requests on Instagram from colleagues and clients – it’s up to you how you want to handle these but please always exercise caution with what you post on any social media platform, and stay away from discussing politics and religion.

In case you are looking for some “homework” in the marketing and business development area, here are a few ideas to keep you busy. Reach out to me with any questions. …
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This is a very stressful and scary time for all of us, young and old, rich and poor, and all we can do right now is control how we react to what’s happening in the world and do our part to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

As with any misfortunes and difficult times, we…

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Is it the weekend? What day is it? I keep asking myself these questions because nothing feels normal. All of our daily routines have been majorly impacted by working from home and not being able to go out except for essentials.

One of the many group zoom happy hours I did…

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‪This photo was taken today in 2012 at the LMA conference when my dear friend and mentor Wendy Bernero was inducted into the hall of fame.

Wendy is a true leader and advocate for women. She’s the smartest and kindest person I know. She always believed in me and pushed me to become a better…

When it comes to content, being sensitive to current market conditions and disseminating content and programs that are designed to inform your clients and help them navigate this unprecedented time should be your only guiding principle. Here are a few things not to do right now during the coronavirus outbreak when it comes to content…

If you have anxiety or live with someone who does, this can be an incredibly stressful time to cope with and manage those feelings. It’s perfectly okay to not be okay right now.

Here are some reassuring things you can say to help someone with anxiety. Remember, this too shall pass. Stay safe everyone.

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Join me and Rob Kates starting today (not tomorrow) on Facebook Live at 2pm ET for Legal Marketing Coffee Talk, a video series we will be bringing to you in the afternoons during the coronavirus crisis.

The purpose of the video series is to maintain close contact with colleagues during social distancing while bringing …