Seyfarth Shaw LLP has welcomed Kori S. Carew, Esq. as Chief Inclusion & Diversity Officer, who joins from Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP, where she was the Director of Strategic Diversity Initiatives for the past seven years.
In this newly created role, Carew is responsible for advancing Seyfarth’s inclusion and diversity strategy, and accelerating its existing portfolio of award-winning programs and external partnerships.
“We are thrilled to welcome Kori to the Seyfarth family,” said Pete Miller, Seyfarth’s chair and managing partner. “Kori is an impactful leader who will bring even greater focus to our efforts and drive our continued success in creating a more inclusive and diverse culture—which is critically important to our people, our clients, and the firm at large.”
Over her career, Carew has become a sought-after authority on inclusive leadership, cultural fluency, having courageous discussions on difficult topics, and how best to empower and equip diverse talent for success. Under Kori’s leadership, her prior firm earned over 40 top accolades such as 100% scores on the Human Rights Council’s Corporate Equality Index, successive Gold Standard recognitions from the Women in Law Empowerment Forum, and inclusion in the “Best Law Firms for Women” from Working Mother magazine, as well as top diversity awards from clients like The Coca-Cola Company.
“Every belonging, inclusion and diversity professional desires to work with a committed team, leadership that has their back, and a culture willing to lean in to discomfort if that’s what it takes to move forward. For me, Seyfarth checks all the boxes,” said Carew.
Earlier in her career, Carew was a trial attorney and law firm partner where she was actively engaged in diversity and inclusion initiatives. This included serving an integral role in designing and implementing diversity strategies. Known for her bold and creative approach to problem solving, insightful voice, thought leadership on belonging, inclusion, diversity and courage, Carew has over 25 years of experience facilitating solutions to difficult diversity and inclusion obstacles.
“With her deep experience, credentials and successful track record in the legal industry, Kori is extremely well-prepared to collaborate with our clients on the many diversity and inclusion initiatives we pursue together,” said Laura Maechtlen, co-chair of Seyfarth’s Diversity & Inclusion Action Team.
“Kori is exactly the leader we envisioned for this important role. We’re excited to see her leadership displayed in diversity initiatives and events throughout the country,” said Gerald Pauling, co-chair of Seyfarth’s Diversity & Inclusion Action Team.
A recognized industry leader in law firm diversity, Seyfarth was recently shortlisted for the 2019 Chambers USA Diversity & Inclusion Awards. Notably, the firm was nominated for Outstanding Diversity & Inclusion Program in recognition of Seyfarth’s “Rooney Rule” initiative which, inspired by the NFL, has helped improve the hiring of diverse candidates across the firm.
A Celebrated Leader and Dynamic Champion for Workplace Diversity and Inclusion
Recently, Carew spent time with Dr. Brené Brown, renowned professor and five-time #1 New York Times bestselling author, completing the Dare to Lead™ Facilitator Certification Program for leadership and organizational development professionals. Notably, in an article discussing why leaders should choose courage over comfort, Dr. Brown praised Carew’s 2017 Tedx Talk, “Just belonging: finding the courage to interrupt bias.”
“Kori is an inspirational, motivational, dynamic, and powerful champion of diversity and inclusion. For years I have watched with admiration as she leans forward—and even pulls forward—international firms, and a broad array of other industries, towards achieving aggressive D&I objectives,” remarked Carew’s former client Andrew Cooper, Vice President, Chief Legal Officer for UPS Airlines.
Active in a number of industry organizations, Carew also chairs the Defense Research Institute’s Diversity Subcommittee of the Women in the Law Committee. She received her J.D., order of the barristers, from Drake University Law School and earned her B.A. from Westmar University.
About Seyfarth Shaw LLP
Seyfarth Shaw has more than 850 attorneys in 15 offices providing a broad range of legal services in the areas of labor and employment, employee benefits, litigation, corporate and real estate. Seyfarth’s clients include over 300 of the Fortune 500 companies and reflect virtually every industry and segment of the economy. A recognized leader in delivering value and innovation for legal services, Seyfarth has earned numerous accolades from a variety of highly respected industry associations, consulting firms and media
