OCBA UPDATE: Be the 'Nudge'

By Judith K. Cunningham If you are not yet familiar with--or haven't heard of--my "nudge, nurture, nag" theory of leadership, management, parenting, teaching and personal relationship dynamics, please allow me to introduce it--and me--to you in this and future columns. I have the distinct privilege and honor to serve as the OCBA's 80th president, not to mention its seventh female and first government in-house counsel. Thank you so very much for your confidence in allowing me to lead our bar for the next year. Now, about my "nudge, nurture" theory (I rarely get to the "nag" portion, so I will not elaborate on it this time). As many of you know, I have served in Oakland County government since the early 1980s, previously with the Circuit Court as Court Administrator/Judicial Assistant and, since late 1999, with County Executive L. Brooks Patterson as Corporation Counsel. My "nudge" theory has evolved over three decades as I've realized that things and projects get done, systems get improved, law departments become more productive, staff is enhanced and so on, by constant nudging--moving the ball, so to speak; encouraging the effort, nurturing the project, reminding the players and ultimately getting over the finish line. In short, I have become the constant nudge, and I will likely use this approach in my new role with the OCBA. I came to be your 80th president because I was nudged along by others. In my speech at the OCBA's Annual Meeting on June 6, I recognized several who encouraged and supported me over the years: Judges Fred Mester, Steven Andrews, Joan Young and Robert C. Anderson; and past presidents George Googasian and Don Tucker, to name a few. The point is, we all need to be nudged, encouraged, invited and asked to get active and get involved--and I will be asking many of you to please get actively engaged in our bar. I have a couple of projects in mind that I would like to nudge along and nurture in the coming months, both of which I believe mesh with the OCBA's strategic plan, summed up as the metaphorical safe harbor for Oakland County lawyers and the Oakland County community--that is, an organization dedicated to providing service and support. I propose to extend the safe harbor to its outermost limits. Let me start with a story concerning the early stages of one's legal education and career. Every fall our board of directors, together with our committee chairs, vice chairs and our Membership Committee, has a "phone-a-thon" to personally contact members who have, for whatever reason, not paid their OCBA dues. The reasons for not paying are many and varied, but our calls are designed to give the personal touch and a personal pitch--a nudge--for renewing. A few years ago as I was making my assigned calls, I happened to have on my list a student member who had not paid her dues. When I called her and delivered the pitch to renew, she hesitated and then somewhat reluctantly told me that she really wanted to keep her OCBA membership but she just couldn't afford to pay the $25 student membership fee. Now, I'd never met this young woman and to this day I don't remember her name, but I felt compelled to encourage her to stick with us. After chatting with her for a few more minutes, I said, "Look, I really want you to renew, so tell you what, I'll pay the $25 for you." Again, she hesitated and asked, "Can I get back to you in a day or two?" Of course, I said that would be fine. A couple of days later, she called me, thanked me for encouraging her, and told me she'd found a way to pay the $25.00 herself and she was sending her check. But I really wanted to pay her dues if she was not able to do it herself--and IF she would allow me to pay for her. Now ... fast forward a year or two later, and my son Jacob is in law school and I've had the pleasure of meeting some of his classmates. One of his friends, Molly, a young woman from Kentucky, had no family here in Michigan and was living on her own in a small apartment. Jacob brought her over to meet me and eventually--for lack of a better description--I took her under my wing: I had her over for dinner a few times, helped her with her résumé and encouraged her to get an internship with the Circuit Court. Molly finished law school and moved back to Kentucky but we are still in contact with each other. As I thought about my experiences with these two young women, it occurred to me that we, as a bar association, could help students and be that metaphorical safe harbor even during their law school years. I thought, why couldn't we get some of our large firms, past presidents and other bar leaders to sponsor and pay for a student's $25 membership dues and then be an occasional resource for him or her during law school? What better way to nurture and initiate future lawyers into our fold early-on in their careers and, at the same time, create goodwill and promote our relationships with the law schools? I have asked some of our major law firms in the county, as well as some of our past presidents, if they would sponsor a student--pay his/her $25 dues and make themselves or a liaison in their firm available to assist, answer questions, and offer advice on resumes, internships, interviewing, clerking jobs and the like. No one has turned me down. In fact, at this year's Past Presidents' Dinner, with a nudge from two of our former presidents--George Googasian and Circuit Court Judge Wendy Potts--we have already garnered enough support to sponsor, pay for and nurture about 100 students--ostensibly future OCBA members. This will, of course, be a collaborative effort with the law schools. I already have the buy-in from two of the schools and will continue to work out the details with help from our executive director, Lisa Stadig Elliot. So much for our students and youngest members. Now for the other side--at least chronologically speaking--of our safe harbor metaphor: specifically, what have we done lately for our more seasoned attorneys? And just as important, how can this group best continue to serve the OCBA and the Oakland County community we refer to in our strategic plan? First, a statistic about our senior population in general: According to economists from the University of Michigan, the share of the Oakland County population aged 65 or older is forecast to increase from 13.2 percent in 2010--roughly one person in eight--to 24.5 percent in 2040, about one person in four. This general population statistic is likely to be mirrored in our OCBA membership. Many of our distinguished colleagues have reached the age of Social Security but they still work, they still contribute, they still lead, and they are still part of the lifeblood of the OCBA. Other bar associations have created senior attorney committees and councils, master lawyer programs and the like--not only to address the needs of these professionals but also to draw upon their abundant skills, their rich expertise, and their desire to share and stay involved. I affectionately refer to this group as our "Lawyers of a Certain Age," the acronym for which, "LOCA," means "a little bit crazy" in Spanish. At my request our board of directors has approved the creation of a focus group to study the needs of our Lawyers of a Certain Age, as well as to consider the unique role these experienced colleagues can play in furthering our strategic vision and serving the Oakland County community at large. I have asked my good friend Judge Edward Sosnick to help, and he has generously agreed to be my co-chair in this effort. I'm sure I'll have more to say about the student membership and LOCA programs in the coming months. So please stay tuned for updates on these and other initiatives that will likely materialize as this new bar year gets into full swing. And please be prepared to hear from me, inviting you, asking you--yes, nudging you--to be actively engaged in our bar. Until next month ... ------------ Oakland County Corporation Counsel Judith K. Cunningham is the 80th president of the Oakland County Bar Association. Published: Thu, Aug 16, 2012

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