Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
NAM is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive work environment that offers all employees the opportunity and support to succeed. We believe that a culture that prioritizes diversity and inclusion drives innovation and fosters solutions for all stakeholders, the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) industry, and the legal community at large. NAM is proud to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within our organization. Today, 56% of our management team and 67% of all employees within the company identify with diverse categories as defined in ABA Resolution 105 (minorities, women, persons with disabilities and persons of differing sexual orientations and gender identities).
NAM recognizes the benefits of retaining the top ADR professionals in the industry, inclusive of varied backgrounds and perspectives. To that end, we are committed to continuing to focus on further increasing diversity among our roster of neutrals, nationwide. Currently, approximately 25% of our panel of neutrals represent diverse groups. Our goal is to increase this percentage to 50% within the next 2-3 years. We also believe that our efforts can help enhance the profile and increase the volume of dispute resolution matters for both existing and new neutrals representing diverse categories.
Key diversity initiatives in place for this year include the following:
- NAM’s “Diversity Recruitment Program” – consisting of an internal team focused on reaching out to diverse neutrals in key cities nationally, by expanding relationships with local, minority bar associations and soliciting input from clients on direct recruiting efforts;
- Promoting neutrals of diverse backgrounds by featuring them on the NAM website;
- Leveraging the content we have accumulated as a top CLE provider to sponsor free training sessions for targeted groups of diverse neutrals.
NAM also supports a variety of diverse organizations, both locally and nationally, through sponsorships, donations and collaborative events. The list of organizations that we partner with includes:
- National Association of Women Judges
- National Hispanic Bar Association
- National Association of Women Lawyers
- National LGBT Bar Association
- National Bar Association
- Association of Corporate Counsel
- NY Women’s Bar Association
- NYC Association of Insurance Women
- Autism Speaks
- UJA Federation
- Long Island Hispanic Bar Association
- Caterina Grace Foundation