No Participation Trophies: The Challenges (and Benefits) of Hiring and Managing Millennials

Caroline LaPorte is the Senior Policy Advisor on Native Affairs at the National Indigenous Woman's Resource Center.

Patrick Wright founded The Wright Firm, L.L.P. with his twin brother Paul Wright. Patrick is a licensed attorney and is Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He has also been trained in collaborative law, and is a certified Family Law Mediator. Patrick attended South Texas College of Law, where he received his J.D. Prior to this, Patrick attended the University of North Texas and obtained a degree in Political Science. He has been named a Super Lawyer since 2008 and has been named to the 2015 Best Lawyers in America list.

Before beginning his family law practice, Patrick served as the City Attorney for the City of Krum, Texas, a position he held for approximately eight years. He has also served as the City Prosecutor for the City of Corinth, Texas and as the City Attorney for the City of Hackberry, Texas. Patrick is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court and the United States District Courts for the Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas and is a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas.

David Sterling is the Chief Counsel at the Arkansas Department of Human Services.

Lauren Stiller Rikleen is a nationally recognized expert on developing a thriving, diverse and multigenerational workforce. As President of the Rikleen Institute for Strategic Leadership, Lauren conducts workshops, speaks at conferences, retreats, and professional events, and provides training programs focusing on: strengthening multigenerational relationships in the workplace; women’s leadership and advancement; and strategies for minimizing the impacts of unconscious bias.

Lauren is the author of You Raised Us - Now Work With Us: Millennials, Career Success, and Building Strong Workplace Teams. This widely acclaimed book provides a nuanced perspective and rebuts old stereotypes about Millennials, offering practical recommendations for all generations to strengthen workplace relationships and promote organizational excellence. Lauren has been invited to speak throughout the country about her insights into today’s multi-generational workplace.

Her most recent book is Ladder Down: Success Strategies For Lawyers From Women Who Will Be Hiring, Reviewing, And Promoting You. Ladder Down offers lawyers – and law students – a guidepost for meeting the challenges of law practice with enthusiasm. It is written for both women and men who seek a satisfying career in the law.

The advice and strategies offered in Ladder Down evolved from the challenges identified in Lauren’s first book. Ending the Gauntlet: Removing Barriers to Women’s Success in the Law, a ground-breaking book that details institutional impediments to women’s advancement in the legal profession and offers concrete recommendations for change.

Lauren is also a Visiting Scholar at the Boston College Center for Work & Family in the Carroll School of Management. Established in 1990, the Center links academic research and corporate practice to create workplace cultures that support individual and organizational success.

She is the author of more than 150 articles, including topical commentary and op-ed pieces. Lauren is a contributor to Fortune.com, including its Most Powerful Women Insiders Network and its Leadership Insiders Network, sections that offers business and career advice from influential thought leaders in business.

Lauren has written for or been interviewed by such publications and media outlets as: the Harvard Business Review Blog Network; Public Media’s Next Avenue; Cognoscenti (the blog for National Public Radio affiliate WBUR); The Washington Post; The Boston Globe; The New York Times; MSNBC; National Public Radio; The National Law Journal; Forbes Woman; the Careerist; WBZ Radio; New England Cable News Network; The Boston Business Journal; the New York Lawyer; Glass Hammer; Monster’s Legal Career Center; and Know Magazine.

Lauren brings an extraordinary background of leadership positions in professional and community organizations to her work at the Rikleen Institute. Within the American Bar Association, Lauren is the immediate past Chair of the Section of Civil Rights & Social Justice; Co-Chair, of the Women’s Caucus; and a member of the Standing Committee on Bar Services & Activities. She is also a member of the Board of Editors of the ABA Journal and is a Co-Chair of the American Bar Foundation Massachusetts Fellows. Among other roles, Lauren previously served as a member of the ABA Board of Governors, as a Special Advisor to the American Bar Foundation Board, and as a former president of the Boston Bar Association President.

Lauren’s current community leadership roles include serving as a Trustee of Middlesex Savings Bank, a member of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus, a founding member of the Council for Women of Boston College, and a National Delegate to Vision 2020. She is also a former trustee of Clark University and helped create and served as president of two local charities; one involved in providing services for victims of domestic violence and the other transporting food and personal care items to local shelters and pantries.

As a former law firm equity partner, Lauren managed a diverse environmental law practice, bringing her strategic and negotiating skills to her clients’ enforcement and compliance problems. She is also an experienced mediator. For two decades, Lauren was selected by her peers to be listed in Best Lawyers in America. She has also been included in Chambers USA America’s Leading Business Lawyers and Massachusetts Super Lawyers.

Lauren is the recipient of numerous awards. Most recently, she was selected by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly to its Circle of Excellence, Top Women of Law, and was named by Public Media’s Next Avenue as one of the 50 most influential people in aging. In 2011, she received the “Friend of the Division” Award from the Law Student Division of the American Bar Association for her guidance, support, and mentorship, and was honored by the Boston College Law School Women’s Law Center as its Woman of the Year. Among her other honors, Lauren was a 2010 Leading Women Award recipient from the Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts, a recipient of the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly 2009 Women of Justice Award, the 2007 Barbara Gray Humanitarian Award from Voices Against Violence, the 2005 Lelia J. Robinson Award from the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts, the Boston College 2004 Alumni Award for Excellence in Law, and the Boston College Law School 75th Anniversary Alumni Medal. In 1997, the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce named her Business Leader of the Year, and she was the 2001 winner of its Athena Award.