The latest ‘Power Part Time List’ showcased 50 of the top business leaders working fewer than 5 full days a week. The people featured were chosen based on criteria such as seniority, inspiration and outstanding success in their part time roles.
The Power Part Time List aims to demonstrate that not only is it possible to be successful in business and work part time but that it can carry a variety of benefits. Here we consider the significance of the list and weigh up some of the pros and cons for part time lawyers.
A positive message about part time legal roles
The most recent publication of the list, which is now in its 3rd installment, featured 9 female lawyers among its many business leaders. This is particularly encouraging for women wanting to enter a demanding and competitive field such as law who may feel reluctant because of the time pressures.
Jobs in the legal and finance sectors are known for being particularly time demanding, making them intimidating for employees hoping to match a successful career with having a family or for those seeking to maintain a healthy work-life balance. The positive message it sends out, that people are able to do part time work and be successful in these industries, will hopefully mean that fewer women in particular are discouraged from pursuing jobs in these sectors or leaving entirely when they start a family.
The pros of working part time
The Power Part Time List is particularly significant for women with children or for women wishing to start a family; however, the healthier work-life balance that working part time provides applies as much to men as it does to women. It can offer employees the freedom to pursue leisure, social and other meaningful activities that they would not be able to do in full time roles. These might range from simple hobbies to charitable work or looking after elderly relatives. Clearly though, one of the main benefits of part time roles is that they offer women pursuing careers in law an opportunity to continue to do so without compromising their roles as mothers.
The cons of working part time
The Power Part Time List celebrates those who have been successful in business while working part time but there are obvious downsides that the list does not highlight. For instance, it can often be harder and take much longer to achieve career success when working part time because of the simple fact that an employee is perceived by their peers to be putting in fewer working hours compared with other full time employees, although in reality they may well be doing the same amount but in different ways, perhaps working smarter?
There is also the risk that part-time excludes an individual from particular types of legal work. Clients in the closing stages of a major corporate transaction, for example, may want their advisers contactable 24/7 until the deal completes – such client demands may be incompatible with some.
Comment
The Power Part Time List presents an excellent case for the possibility of achieving success while working part time; however, lawyers considering this option will need to go the extra mile in other ways such as having a results-focus approach to their work. They should also be prepared for the likelihood that certain legal disciplines will be much harder to reconcile with part time working and therefore it may be harder to find suitable roles.
