Management at Baker McKenzie

Yes, highly satisfied. Wonderful mentors, people genuinely care about you and your learning. I feel like every partner has an open door policy, which I think is rare in our industry.

Managers are generally forthcoming with feedback and cognisant of workloads. Due to their position, managers can be very busy and it can sometimes be difficult to communicate with them.

Partners and senior members of the firm are very accessible. There are structured check in points in the graduate program to ensure that there is an opportunity to get feedback. Beyond this, senior members are also open to and regularly do give feedback and mentorship informally.

Partners are very available and generally very generous with giving feedback. All partners I have worked with have taken time out of their schedule to assist and give feedback whenever I have asked for it or whenever there has been an opportunity. Regular performance reviews during graduate rotations. Internal communication is clear and effective.

In my experience senior lawyers are very friendly, approachable and patient and keen to give feedback so you can improve.

I think that the quality of managers is mixed. Some partners and managers have excellent management skills and are excellent mentors. A more stringent performance feedback process would be useful and should be followed strictly (re day to day work).

I think this is team dependent, but across the board they are quite approachable, down to earth, willing to share and good at giving feedback. Good at praise when you have done something well. Sometimes there can be lack of feedback but I think when you seek it out and prompt them it is received well.

My supervisors have always been approachable, helpful and willing to provide feedback.

In my team, the partners are approachable and provide excellent feedback and mentorship. I often am given the opportunity to work with them one on one and then often am provided praise, have acknowledgement of good work, and they communicate well where there are areas to improve.

Most partners I have worked for have been accessible and good mentors, although it depends on the team and the dynamic. I think the rotation feedback sessions are good to get feedback, praise and recognition - otherwise it is generally through email.

Very satisfied - always helpful, communicate well and provide useful feedback.

My mentors / supervisors are great. They are part of the reason I settled in the team I did. They push me to take on more responsibilities and are always there when I need another opinion.

Your supervising partner also acts as your manager. Therefore, the quality of your manager depends on the managerial abilities of your supervising partner and how well you both get along. With that being said, I think mentoring more generally is abundantly available if sought out. Senior lawyers are more than willing to offer their time to explain concepts and help you through challenging tasks, as ultimately this will make you a better lawyer capable of helping them in the future.

Work very closely with my managers in the team

It depends on the team/manager. Most are more than happy to give feedback etc. but you will often need to seek it out.

There are good systems in place to make sure there are opportunities for feedback. Like anywhere, each manager has a different style so it's about getting to know how they work.

My supervisors / managers are exceptional. They are incredibly accessible and I work directly with them on a daily basis. They are good with technology and very accessible via Skype / Zoom (which makes working from home very easy). They are very generous with their time and provide constructive feedback to improve my performance. Finally, they are always very appreciative of my work.

Immediate supervisors are excellent mentors, taking time to explain context and provide feedback. Partners open for the same but require more prompting.

The terms "managers" and "management" are not defined in this survey, so it is difficult to respond to this query without making some assumptions. I am expecting that this query relates to more senior lawyers who generally occupy a more managerial function at the Firm, and / or HR. Managers are, overall, good I think. These persons are (I understand) accessible to staff, although I have never reached out to the senior lawyers occupying positions like Melbourne or National Managing Partner. I can therefore not comment on whether they make good mentors etc. However, they do generally provide good internal communication to the entire office / Firm on key issues, and I think they navigated and communicated about COVID in a good way, all things considered.

Managers take a keen interest in the development of juniors, including encouraging knowledge and business development skills.