Chief Executives 2021 Virtual Retreat
Chief Executives – You won’t want to miss our annual retreat, taking place April 28 and April 29. This year’s Chief Executives Retreat (formerly known as the CSE Retreat) will take place entirely online, bringing you programming created specifically for executive directors, CEOs and other heads of staff. Learn more and register here.

2021 ABA Annual Meeting
The ABA Board of Governors recently voted to conduct the 2021 ABA Annual Meeting (August 5-10) in a virtual format, except that ABA governance meetings only may be conducted as hybrid sessions, subject to health and safety guidelines in effect at that time. If conditions permit, in-person governance meetings will take place in Chicago. All other aspects of the meeting will be conducted virtually. Watch for more information on what this will mean for your bar’s representative(s) in the ABA HOD, which is scheduled to meet August 9-10. NABE and NCBP will report soon as to timing of any virtual programming these organizations may host this summer. 

Planning Your Re-Opening Strategy
With more and more people getting vaccinated every day, a full return to our bar association offices seems imminent. In regard to a reopening strategy, consultant to boards and CEOs Dan Ciampa recently said, “Wise leaders will resist pressure to define a policy or make final decisions until it’s necessary to do so. We are getting nearer to the end of the pandemic each day, but we are not there yet. With uncertainty about what lies ahead, it is important to avoid steps that will either create unrealistic expectations or limit options.” He provides further guidance in this Harvard Business Review article.

Avoiding Digital Drama
Toxic work behavior can exist whether your team is working in the same office or is still working from home, though alleviating unproductive behavior may be harder in a remote environment. Associations Now offers advice on “How to Manage Toxic Behavior in a Remote Work Setting.”

Steal This Idea: Create or Refresh Your Diversity Pledge
The Iowa State Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division is leading the charge when it comes to the association’s new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Pledge. The new pledge consists of “voluntary, concrete action items that legal employers can take to be part of this important work” and asks participating companies and law firms for a year-long commitment. Learn more here.

Who Inspires You? Seeking Our Next Bolton Award and LexisNexis Award Winners
Which of your NABE peers is an all-star? Does your bar have an extraordinary education program? We are seeking our next Bolton Award and NABE/LexisNexis Community and Educational Outreach Award winners. The Bolton Award is NABE’s highest honor, awarded to a bar executive who epitomizes the highest standard of professional excellence. All NABE members in good standing are eligible for nomination. The NABE/LexisNexis Community and Educational Outreach Awards honor outstanding bar public service and law-related education programs. Learn more about the Bolton Award and submit a nomination here, and the NABE/LexisNexis Community and Educational Outreach Awards here. The deadline for submitting nominations for both awards is April 30.

Not-To-Be Missed NABE Events

• Small Bar Town Hall: Email Management - April 19
  York County Bar Association CEO Victoria Connor is not “fooling around” when it comes to discussing email management in our April Small Bar Town Hall. She will go over how to set up a few basic rules and filters to better manage the volume of email you receive each day.
   
• NABE Webinar: Rethinking Your (Hybrid) Office Space - April 20
  What will office spaces look like in a post-COVID-19 world and are you adapting your bar association space to meet staff and member needs? Samantha Julka of DORIS Research will lead us through a discussion on hybrid office space in our upcoming April webinar.
   
• D&I Town Hall: We Are Committed to Anti-Racism; Now What?! - April 27
  What next steps are needed to operationalize and live into our commitment in all facets of our work, from reviewing and shifting internal operations to providing technical assistance and support to our members? Executives from JustLead Washington and the Washington Race Equity & Justice Initiative will lead this important discussion.
   
• For You & Share with Your Members: Research Findings on Attorney Mental Health & Attrition - April 28
  Please join us on April 28 for an engaging discussion on groundbreaking new research commissioned by the California Lawyers Association and the D.C. Bar on lawyer mental health and attrition. This event is free for NABE members and also open to their association members.
   
• Chief Executives 2021 Virtual Retreat - April 28-29
  Registration is now open for the Chief Executives 2021 Virtual Retreat (formerly Chief Staff Executives). Designed specifically for executive directors, CEOs and other heads of staff, the event will cover topics including personal development, human resource issues, volunteer/management relationships and more.

Share with Your Members

• Giving Back is Good Marketing
  While there are many altruistic reasons to give your time to good causes, marketing may be an unexpected fringe benefit. In an article for Law Practice Today, lawyer Todd Smith and law firm communications coordinator Kristine Palkowetz advise getting involved in a local community service organization right now, saying, “If you’re not currently a member of a community service organization or nonprofit board, now is the time to join…the people in your community served by these organizations need you, now more than ever. Not only will you expand your professional network, but when a group of people are joined in a common cause, trust and admiration follow. And trust is the foundation of any referral.” Read more here.
   
• Four Legal Podcasts Focused on Women in the Law
  Podcast listeners: In honor of women’s history month in March, Above the Law compiled a list of four podcasts by and for female attorneys.  Access the list here.