January is National Mentoring Month. At MoFo, we understand that effective mentorship is critical to each attorney’s success. That is why we are thrilled to celebrate and recognize the one-year anniversary of MoFo Navigate.
MoFo Navigate is a global initiative which unifies the firm’s mentoring and sponsorship programs. It is through MoFo Navigate that we take a holistic approach to professional growth and strive to provide attorneys with the right kind of support and guidance at the right points in their careers.
MoFo Navigate is also uniquely and specifically designed to promote greater equity and inclusion. It is overseen by the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion (D+I) Group and trains both mentors and mentees on some of the common root causes of attrition and how to mentor more effectively across differences.
The five MoFo Navigate programs include:
- Welcome: Associate Liaison Program (Orientation to 6 months) ‒ Associate liaisons welcome new associates into the firm with regular and informal check-ins to make sure they are being introduced to attorneys and learning what it means to be part of the MoFo community.
- Integrate: Pathway Mentoring Program (6 to 24 months) – New associates are assigned Pathway mentors. As the associates become more comfortable with their mentors, their associate liaisons will gradually step back, allowing the formal mentorship relationship to take shape.
- Develop: Affinity Mentoring Programs (Year 2+) – We offer mentoring programs for our Black, Latinx, and AAPI associates, who are among the most underrepresented demographics in the legal profession. These cross-office mentoring programs help support the unique growth, integration, and development of our minority attorneys.
- Advance: Sponsorship Initiative (5th year and above) ‒ The Sponsorship Initiative is designed to support and expand upon the firm’s culture of sponsorship, paying particular attention to diverse and women talent.
- Support: New Diverse and Women Partner Liaison Program (1st year in the partnership) ‒ Even after attorneys are promoted or hired into the partnership, the firm takes an active approach to supporting their successful integration, growth, and development. Each new diverse and/or woman partner is assigned a partner liaison from the Diversity or Women’s Strategy Committee.
Beginning with the below kick-off message from our Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Natalie Kernisant, we will be sharing content throughout the month to delve deeper into each of the programs under MoFo Navigate. Stay tuned for additional insights and stories which will be featured on our MoFo+ Blog and in our social media posts.