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ILTA Unlocked: My Leadership Development Story

By Barbara Gondim da Rocha posted 04-28-2021 12:14

  

When I first heard about ILTA, I thought that, as a Legal Technology Association, it would only showcase fancy technology or feature expensive products. How surprised I was to find out that ILTA had a lot of interesting content available, which ranged from leadership development and soft skills to core IT. 

Before my firm became a member, back in 2019, I was a lawyer who wanted to transition to a different role and didn’t how to do it. I’ve read books, attended some conferences, but I still needed some guidance on how to pursue this new career. And all the role models that I had so far were also lawyers, so my options were very limited.

But then I found out ILTA is an organization that provides opportunities for its members to develop themselves personally and professionally, and that being in a country as distant as Brazil wouldn't preclude me from getting involved and grabbing some of these opportunities.

I met tough leaders in the industry, reached out to some of them, got introduced to others and, because of what I learned through my new connections, I started feeling more confident when giving my opinion and making decisions on my day job. 

Having my firm to acknowledge the importance of Knowledge Management and to formalize my role as Head of Knowledge Management and Innovation just a few weeks after we had joined ILTA was a huge demonstration of their recognition and incentive to this path, so I started to grab every opportunity to get involved with ILTA initiatives: speaking in conferences, collaborating virtually with other members across the globe, working on educational sessions, preparing content with the Practice Member CCT, participating in podcasts and panel discussions. 

I’m genuinely grateful for how ILTA transformed my life and helped me become a better leader.

I believe ILTA provides the leadership skills that legal industry professionals don’t usually learn in their technical training (law school or business-related areas such as HR, IT or Finance) or even in their day jobs. While law and regulations vary from every jurisdiction, impacting on the use of technology and even on the way each organization delivers their services, leadership is universal and the diversity of ILTA’s community brings a qualified perspective on this matter. 


#Leadership
#ILTAUnlocked
#DiversityEquityandInclusion
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