Our Approach

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Plan

With the assistance of an outside resource, the Firm has launched a detailed and comprehensive D/E &I Plan to ensure that equity is promoted in the workplace.  The first phase of the Plan includes three focus areas:

(1)    Focus Area One: Development of an internal D/E & I resource infrastructure housed on the Firm’s intranet, which contains: (i) D/E & I resource recommendations; (ii) a portal allowing members of the firm to share any resources they have found that relate to the D/E & I conversations the firm is having (for example, book recommendations, articles, training videos, movies, TEDTalks, articles and news stories, case studies and white papers); and (iii)  a forum (similar to MS Teams) to “chat” about various topics and post questions to other participants in the group.

(2)    Focus Area Two: Creation of a D/E & I Committee comprised of employees, managers and attorneys throughout the Firm interested in doing the following:

  • Providing input for the Resource page
  • Recommending topics for, and participating in, learning and professional development opportunities (both internal and external) related to D/E & I
  • Participating in larger group meetings every 3-6 months to share content and experiences
  • Providing ongoing input on the Firm’s D/E & I written policies and plans as they are developed

(3)    Focus Area Three: Creation of an Employee Resource Group (ERG) known as the “IDEA” group, led by a partner and comprised of a diverse group of employees, managers, associates, and partners to coordinate and oversee the Firm’s overall D/E & I efforts, including:

  • Recommending, developing, scheduling and implementing both internal and external professional development opportunities for those within the Firm;
  • Working in conjunction with the Firm’s Marketing Committee to review and make recommendations with respect to the Firm’s donation and sponsorship activities;
  • Directing and developing ways for the Firm to deepen its involvement with existing community partners, as well as new community partners (e.g. organizations like Urban League of Greater Madison, Centro Hispano, Latino Professionals Association (LPA), Latino Workforce Academy, Madison Network of Black Professionals, Madison Black Chamber of Commerce, the Literacy Network, and Boys & Girls Club of Dane County)
  • Designating specific individuals to  serve as primary contacts for each of the Firm’s community partners, foster the firm’s relationship with that community partner, and identify ways for the firm to increase engagement with that community partner
  • Proposing and participating in meetings with representatives from outside organizations to share D/E & I best practices, including meetings at the executive level

Recruiting and Retention

In addition to the three focus areas described above, the Firm, with assistance from outside resources, has identified the following as ways of building and retaining a more diverse workforce:

  • Broadening the recruitment pipeline and lateral efforts to increase the Firm’s ability to attract diverse candidates at every level
  • Providing internal D/E&I training opportunities to members of the Firm involved in recruiting and hiring
  • Enhancing the role of Marketing in recruiting all New Attorney, Lateral Hires, and Non-Attorney hires, including review and approval of all print, website, broadcast, social media materials used in recruitment
  • Creating a small support team comprised of attorneys and staff to coordinate outreach efforts with both the UW Law School and Marquette University Law School and to develop programming and ongoing engagement with law students of color and other law students committed to D/E & I issues more broadly
  • Conducting a thorough review of the Firm’s onboarding, mentoring and evaluation processes

Partnership with the Broader Community

Boardman Clark supports a wide-range of community organizations communities through pro bono services, legal education, mentoring, event sponsorship and hosting at our physical space.  Organizations with which we have worked in these ways include: 

  • Boys and Girls Club of Dane County
  • Doyenne
  • City of Madison Public Market/Market Ready program
  • Latino Chamber of Commerce
  • UW Foundation – Women’s Philanthropy Council

Many Boardman Clark attorneys and employees serve on boards and make charitable donations to organizations focused on promoting diversity, inclusion and equity in the community, including:

  • Literacy Network
  • Omega School
  • Urban League of Madison
  • Wisconsin Equal Justice Fund
  • YWCA of Dane County
  • Community Shares
  • Working Capital for Community Fund (WCCF)

Boardman Clark encourages employees to volunteer with community organizations by providing hours of paid time for such activities.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Policy

The firm has established a D/E & I policy, which can be found here.