As educators, we hold enormous power in our hands; power to change destinations and shape destinies.
Last fall, at the AccessLex Legal Education Research Symposium, Dr. Paola Cecchi-Dimeglio – Chair of the Executive Leadership Research Initiative for Women and Minority Attorneys at Harvard Law School – changed the way that I think when giving "performance reviews" to my students, whether in formal feedback, informally during class discussions, or during individual student meetings.
The best way to express what I learned is to hear directly from Dr. Checchi-Dimeglio as she describes her research on the power of performance reviews to shape career destinies: "Let me give you an example: the annual performance review. We’ve all been through it, either as a reviewer or as a reviewee. It can be dreadful because it's time-consuming and nerve-racking. What I found is women and minorities overall, were more likely to receive different types of feedback–more critical. Their successes were oftentimes attributed to luck. Based off of that, working with an organization, we came out with a new system that required more frequent performance reviews that would take less than fifteen minutes, where four to six people could be reviewed at the same time. The result was amazing." https://mgte.thefemalequotient.com
As I recall from her keynote address (with apologies if I don't remember precisely), Dr. Checchi-Dimeglio explained that she observed the interactions between supervisors (partners) and employees (junior associates) during performance reviews. Overall, Dr. Checchi-Dimeglio observed that performance review comments differed between male and females associates. In general, partners provided women with feedback focused on the past (leaving recipients with the message that this law firm wasn't the place for them); while, in contrast, partners provided men with feedback that was forward-looking (suggesting to recipients that there was work to do to improve performance but that the firm was in it for the long-haul with them, as exemplified by supervisory comments such as "you might try this to better persuade the court next time," etc). Based on these findings, Dr. Checchi-Dimeglio empowered supervisors with ways to retool their comments for all associates by focusing on the future rather than the past, regardless of gender. The results…retention significantly improved for women associates.
That brings me back to my role (our roles) as educators. Our comments can make a difference; our feedback can change paths. I often recall that I had a law professor who told me, point blank, that I would never be a litigator. I just didn't have what it took. That feedback stuck (and still sticks) to the heart. But, I had others who encouraged me, believed in me, and supported me. In short, their constructive feedback – focused on improving my performance with an eye to the future – won the day. I became a litigator. As a result of those experiences and in light of Dr. Checchi-Dimeglio's research as a behavioral scientist, my comments can make a truly positive difference for my students. Do I do it well? Not yet. But, I'm learning, one comment at a time…with an eye on my students' futures. (Scott Johns).
