Eversheds Sutherland hosts first global human resources convention in Madrid
The international law firm Eversheds Sutherland has hosted the firm’s first global HR convention at its Madrid headquarters, bringing together HR managers from a total of eleven of the firm’s offices across Europe.
The purpose of the convention is to implement the basic lines of the Human Resources (HR) strategic plan at international level, defining the guidelines and guiding principles to ensure a global and common alignment of the firm in this area.
Thus, Madrid leads the implementation of this global plan after the appointment last January of Jacobo Martínez, managing partner of the firm in Spain, as a member of the firm’s European Executive Committee to lead the HR area and the development programs for partners and associates.
During the meeting, the 5 key pillars or objectives on which the European HR strategy is based were discussed. Firstly, the ‘Development of talent’, setting the basic training standards for lawyers and specific training for partners to ensure the highest levels of technical and homogeneous quality in the firm.
Secondly, the ‘Career Path’, addressing a career plan for professionals to ensure a meritocratic/global progression. Then the ‘Secondments’ of lawyers in other offices that allow them to develop an international and more transversal vision of practices and clients.
The fourth pillar has been ‘Flexibility and D&I’ to establish a working environment that responds to the needs of professionals, clients and society, following the firm’s compliance standards. Finally, ‘Engagement with professionals’ establishing communication systems between the firm and professionals; and, lastly, ‘Innovation’, rewarding the most innovative HR ideas that will be incorporated into the firm’s annual report.
According to Jacobo Martínez, “the convention aims to align common basic HR principles and values in the different European jurisdictions, although with flexibility, depending on the local idiosyncrasies of each country. It is a great satisfaction to see how offices in different countries participate with great ambition and enthusiasm in a global HR policy that is adapted to the local circumstances of the offices that make up Eversheds Sutherland based on common principles as a collaborative, creative, professional, open and inclusive firm”.
In this way, he added, “although the different offices can set different levels or objectives, it will always be done within a common and global strategy that guarantees a brand management that attracts, develops and retains the best talent”.
For her part, Beatriz Alba Bascones, HR director of Eversheds Sutherland Spain, explains that “it is about setting a series of common objectives based on the most optimal and benchmark strategies that should govern labor relations in order to be able to maximize the potential of the best and most diverse talent to build the workplace of the future.”
SPANISH MOMENTUM
The meeting follows the appointment of Jacobo Martinez, the firm’s managing partner in Spain, as a member of the firm’s European Executive Committee at the global level.
In his new position, which will last two years, he will lead the Human Resources area and the partner and associate development programs, one of the firm’s strategic pillars for 2023. His duties will include attracting, retaining and maximizing the potential of the best and most diverse talent; driving brand clarity, consistency and trust; building a diverse and inclusive global community; and fostering the firm’s growth.
