At Rasmussen Dickey Moore, we are dedicated to our clients. With this dedication to our clients comes a dedication to diversity that promotes the employment and advancement of individuals with different backgrounds and experiences. Our people are our greatest asset at RDM.
RDM has dedicated its hiring processes to include seeking individuals with not only the talent and potential to best serve our clients, but ensuring those individuals also bring a variety of lifestyles, perspectives, and characteristics to our firm. RDM embraces a broad definition of diversity to include individuals of different races, ethnicities, national origins, religions, genders, sexual orientations, gender identities, ages, education, disabilities, economic statuses, and family or marital statuses. When our people reflect the clients and the communities our clients serve, we better serve our clients.
While hiring is the start to our dedication, we know our employees must be strengthened through efforts that promote equity and inclusion. RDM strives to create an environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing their culture and ethnicity which will allow each individuals’ characteristics to be valued and nourished. We do this through courageous conversations about career development, concentrated efforts to amplify our diverse voices to drive firm initiatives and promote cultural curiosity and competency within the firm.
RDM is also dedicated to continually evaluating and improving our commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion in every aspect of our operations, from recruiting and hiring, to professional development and mentoring, and to firm management and leadership.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee is chaired by Justin Ijei and Nate Lindsey. The committee relies on the diverse younger voices in the firm to help guide RDM’s actions toward equity and inclusion. The committee seeks buy-in at every level of the firm for its efforts and focuses on developing opportunities outside the firm to strengthen commitments to the firm’s values.
Professional Mentoring and New Business Development
RDM provides one-on-one and group mentoring on developing career and clients. RDM is committed to supporting and assisting its diverse attorneys, many of whom may be disadvantaged when it comes to networking and having prior connections, to build their own book of business. For this reason, mentors at RDM are tasked with reporting back on not only the facilitation of development of young diverse attorneys through client contact, but also the facilitation of a new business development plan for each associate at the firm. This was an effort called for by the firm’s associates and implemented as a result of that request.
Leading the Way in Diversity at Small and Mid-Sized Law Firms
Our firm knows first-hand the challenges of building a diverse and inclusive smaller law firm. Without the dedicated resources that the big firms have, many small and mid-sized firms either don’t know where to start or overlook the need to foster diversity in their organization.
We’ve taken up the challenge head-on. While there will always be much more work to be done, RDM knows the importance of starting the discussion, letting our young and diverse attorneys take the lead, and constantly striving to improve.
Our efforts are not taken up just to improve our own firm. We aim to lead other small and mid-sized firms to help build a more diverse legal industry for everyone. We’ve written about our process in hopes that other smaller firms will join us as we progress towards a more equitable and inclusive field of law. Additionally, our attorneys have led discussions on the subject of diversity at small firms for conferences and continuing legal education seminars.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion at small and mid-sized law firms.
RDM leads the way addressing the challenges of building a diverse small law firm and a more inclusive and equitable legal industry for attorneys, legal staff, and our clients.
