Commitee Co-Chairs

Paige Raleigh
Corporate Counsel, NEC Electronics America Inc.

Michael J. Shpizner
Vice President and General Counsel, Fujitsu America, Inc.

Provide resources to in-house counsel in the San Francisco Bay Area to develop skills, networks and personal promotional material to maximize career opportunities. Assist those in-transition to find their next job, as well as assist those currently working in-house to advance their careers. A committee will develop materials and interactive events to offer in-house attorneys guidance regarding specific topics. Anticipating one meeting a quarter during lunchtime at a South Bay or Peninsula location. Meetings open to non-members of ACC for a fee. Guest speakers to include legal executive search agencies, career development experts, law department hiring managers, and professionals from other disciplines, such as CEO, CFO, and HR. Some examples of services provided and meeting subject as follows: resume and cover letter writing; mock interviews; network development and use; conducting a career campaign; staying current in your field; defining yourself; performing contract work; using a professional coach; expanding substantive knowledge (ex: MBA subjects); how to grow your in-house legal department; and discounts with service providers.

The 2009
Career Development Committee Services Discount & Stipend Program
Sign Up Now !

The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter is very excited to tell you that we’re offering our Services Discount & Stipend Program again this year!  The Career Development Committee’s mission is to provide resources to help our members develop skills, networks, and personal promotional materials to maximize their career opportunities.  We hope to assist our in-transition members to find their next job, and to assist our currently-employed members to bullet-proof and advance their careers during these rough economic times. 

As many of you know from attending Career Development Committee luncheon meetings, we try to “think outside the box” so that we can bring you great programs with maximum relevance and impact to your career.  This program continues that proud tradition.

The bottom line:  What better way to serve our members than to offer you significant discounts on career-development services?  This professional development program is designed to motivate you to seek out assistance from a select few service providers.  Test out one of these services to fine-tune your resume, sharpen your interviewing skills, learn how to tackle that difficult and sometimes embarrassing challenge called “networking,” develop your leadership skills, target your career campaign and direct mailings, or just benefit from some career coaching (i.e., counseling, personal skills assessments, etc.). 

Act now!  Discounts from our selected service providers are valid through December 31, 2009.  You will be required to show your current 2009 ACC membership card to take advantage of the discounted rates or the stipend.   All current ACC members are eligible to receive the discounted rates; however, only those members who register in Thriva will be able to receive the benefit of the stipend contribution. 

The fine print regarding the ACC Stipend:  The ACC stipend is limited to $200 per participant and is available only to approximately 40 Chapter members on a FIRST COME/FIRST SERVED basis.  If you’re interested in receiving the ACC stipend, please use the Thriva registration link below to sign up.   Once you have received confirmation of your registration, please contact the service provider(s) directly.  You will be required to show your current 2009 ACC membership card, and a copy of your Thriva registration confirmation to the service provider upon retaining his/her services.  The service provider will also verify membership information with us before providing services.  The Chapter will pay the provider up to $200 for services delivered to you; you will be responsible for all service fees (at ACC’s negotiated discount rates) above and beyond the first $200.    As a participant in the Stipend Program, you must contact a service provider within one month of your Thriva registration date to arrange for services and/or schedule an appointment for your first session, or your name will be removed from the Thriva registration and your “seat” for the stipend program will be made available to another ACC member. 

Please see the details below for contact information regarding the service providers who are participating in this program, including the specially negotiated rates we have secured for participating members. 

If you have any questions, please contact either of the Co-Chairs of the Career Development Committee:

Michael Shpizner at michael.shpizner@us.fujitsu.com

Paige Raleigh at p.raleigh@comcast.net

Service Providers and Discount Rates:

Jean Fuller of Fuller Coaching:  Career Coaching, including executive development programs.
www.fullercoaching.com
650-366-2800
ACC corporate discounted rate = $250/hour
ACC working member discounted rate = $175/hour
ACC in-transition member discounted rate = $160/hour
Up to 1.5 hours initial introductory consultation provided at no cost (via telephone or at Jean Fuller’s office)

Barbara Neisendorf of Neisendorf & Associates:  Career Coaching, including career development and career transition plans.
www.neisendorf.com
415-497-7559
ACC member discounted rate = $175/hour
15 minute initial “interview” discussion at no cost (via telephone)

Jennifer Jefferies of Legal Authority:  Job-Search Campaign planning and implementation.
www.legalauthority.com
626-243-1895
ACC member 20% discount off services 

Jennifer Jefferies of Attorney Resume:  Resume and cover letter counseling, creation, and editing.
www.attorneyresume.com
626-243-1895
ACC member 20% discount off services

Register Now! We hope you get great value out of this program, and we look forward to hearing about your results!

Past Program Materials

9/25/09 - "Finding Your Passion, Finding Yourself: "How You Can Find an Alternative In-House Role and Re-Invent Your Career"
Are you worried that your company will be cutting costs?  (It probably already is!)  Are you concerned that one of those costs might be your salary?  (Duh!)  Is it time for a change?  Come to this interactive presentation and hear a panel of in-house attorneys and service-provider experts share their experiences, knowledge, and tips on how to generate the most satisfying next step on your career path.  You’ll hear three local in-house attorneys tell their personal stories about how they followed their hearts to law school, how they created and transformed their careers, and how they found their passion in their current in-house counsel roles.  You’ll hear from a legal recruiter and from an executive coach/career counselor/PR agent about how they work with job candidates to help them define their “dream job,” identify or create their most fulfilling in-house role, and make the connections to land that role. For further information on this program and program materials, click here.

6/12/09 - "Can You Pass the Workplace "Stress-Test"? Strategies for Managing "People Syles" & Communication Hot-Buttons in this Unnerving Economy"
Do you find yourself or others losing patience more often due to the stress of this challenging economy and recent layoffs happening around you?  Would you like to learn how to keep your cool -- even when other people can’t seem to keep theirs? 

If so, we’ve put together a panel of experts to help. This interactive, special expanded-length Career Development Committee meeting will feature Sam Horn, author of the critically-acclaimed Tongue Fu! ® and POP!, and Jean Fuller, a well known executive coach in Silicon Valley.  Our panelists will provide real-world approaches to challenges you encounter every day at work, while our moderator Diane Honda, Vice President and Associate General Counsel for Extreme Networks, will help tailor their insights into timely and relevant tips for in-house counsel. For further information on this program and program materials, click here.

12/12/08 - "Own the Room: Tips to Help You Present Advice so That it Will be Well Received"
In today’s ever-changing business climate, it is no longer enough simply to be a good attorney.  True success as an in-house attorney requires the ability to communicate your ideas and legal advice effectively –whether you’re briefing your general counsel, presenting to the executive team or to the Board of Directors, leading an extended contract discussion/negotiation, reviewing an important memo, or simply taking part in a meeting with several of your business clients.  Join us and our special guest, communication consultant and large-group speaker Steve Hughes, for a dynamic program that will show you how to position yourself, and your ideas, for maximum impact.  Using some of the latest psychological research, Steve will show you how your varying audiences want to receive and process information, so that they will be receptive to hearing it, will understand it, and will be motivated to act based on your recommendations.  You will walk away with actionable ideas and practical tips that you can apply right away.   This will be a fun, informative, practical, and thought-provoking program. For further information on this program and program materials, please click here.

3/16/07 - “The Job Hunt as Corporate Merger, Part I: Conducting Due Diligence in the Hiring Process” - This two-part luncheon series will examine the recruiting process as a merger, between the candidate and the new employer. Join us on March 16 for Part I of this series, focusing on the “Due Diligence” process -- that is, using the resume, cover letter, and interview to establish a foundation for future negotiations, from both the candidate’s and the hiring company’s perspectives. In this session, members of an attorney search management firm and a career consulting agency will offer practical tips about responding to job advertisements and writing your resume and cover letter. Watch (and maybe even participate in) a mock interview, covering some of the toughest questions that are commonly asked of candidates by recruiting agencies, in-house human resource recruiters, and legal department hiring managers. Listen as the responses are critiqued by a local general counsel and a local in-house human resources recruiter. The presentation included advice about how to maneuver through the hiring process to land that coveted interview directly with the legal department’s hiring manager. For further information on this program and program materials, please click here.

6/22/07 - “The Job Hunt as a Corporate Merger, Part II: How to Hit the Ground Running Without Breaking a Leg -- On Your Way to the Finish Line!” - Part I of this two-part career development luncheon seminar (held on March 16th) focused on what we called the due diligence of the job hunt and hiring process, namely tips for writing effective cover letters and resumes and suggestions for how to interview better. In this Part II, we will pick up from where we left off…You’ve accepted an in-house counsel job offer, and you start your first day at the company next Monday morning. What should you be thinking about before your first day? What information do you already know about your new employer? What other information should you be learning? What happens one month, six months, or a year into this job come performance review time, or if unfortunately, things should go sour? In this session, members of an attorney search management firm/career consulting agency will share their experiences from both the candidate and the hiring company’s points of view. An executive coach will discuss building your personal brand, including managing appropriate visibility, communication power in the organization, success metrics, and other important factors to consider, whether you are starting a new job, are looking to improve in your current role, or grooming yourself for your next career step. Another executive coach, who is also a licensed clinical psychologist with training in organizational behavior, will focus on accurate self-assessment, understanding and influencing others (from your boss to your co-workers to your business clients), organizational climate, and how this all interacts with real-life examples of conflict situations that some of you may have experienced (or may experience in the future) while serving as in-house counsel. Finally, the “critically acclaimed” general counsel of a leading technology company will share his thoughts, expectations, and experiences regarding all of these topics (and maybe more!). For further information on this program and program materials, please click here.

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR PROGRAM SPONSOR