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I finally found a story that’s right in my wheelhouse. Law, recruiting, a “leave of absence,” and head-scratching rant are all terms that piqued my interest. I’d include meltdown too, but from what Above The Law tells us, Harrison Barnes of BCG Attorney Search is no stranger to doling out the habanero takes.
Barnes, managing director for BCG Attorney Search’s Los Angeles office and not the lone bright spot from your 2016 Dallas Mavericks, recently dropped a few paragraphs into a column entitled “What Does Silence Mean When a Law Firm Fails to Respond to Your Application, or Interviews You and Then Goes Dark?” that, uh, seem a bit odd.
“If you have not noticed by now, most legal recruiters are women, and most are quite attractive and fit. This is because they are in positions that involve public relations—sort of like an on-air television newscaster. There is nothing wrong with the fact that most law firms put people like this in these positions because they are the public face of the law firm. What is problematical, though, is that some of these people can also—occasionally—be a little ditzy and not have the other sorts of qualifications that would make them qualified for the job. Not only do they sometimes have more beauty and fewer brains, but they also may have more beauty and less interest in people, less ability to connect with people, and similar negative characteristics. This means they expect people to treat them as if they are special and sometimes are more focused on themselves than their jobs.
It is not uncommon for recruiting coordinators to use their workspaces as a hunting ground for mates—and it works. Many recruiting coordinators marry (or get married to) associates and partners inside of the law firm. This is what happens when attractive and successful people are put in confined spaces 10 hours a day. Once a legal recruiting coordinator gets close to an associate or partner in the firm, the recruiting coordinator may start playing favorites—and often does. People who are close to the associate or partner may get special treatment when applying to the firm, for example. If there is tension in the job of the associate or partner (i.e., getting fired, getting a bad performance review, or leaving), this can affect the performance of the recruiting coordinator a great deal.”
Huh. Hey Harrison, I came for the life changing career advice, not the steel beam melting lady rant. I mean, what was that? Who hurt you, Harrison?
It’s really not a secret that recruiting, in general, is an attractive industry. I dabbled in that game before devoting myself to the law/blogger/podcaster guy lifestyle. At 23, I was probably a hard 7 in an office littered with 8s and 9s. I’m not afraid to admit that. Everywhere you turned it was ex-minor leaguers and washed high school QBs. I’m still not sure how I got hired. For this guy to focus solely on the “occasionally ditzy” female recruiters (HIS WORDS Y’ALL CHILL), well, was probably not the move.
My personal favorite was the whole “hunting ground for mates” thing. What the fuck is that? Maybe just make your argument about office romances being a bad thing for job seekers and move on. Yeah, it’s a stretch, but it’s better than calling out all the ladies out there for “hunting for mates.” Not even considering any of his arguments on the merits, this is just a bad business move. How do you just flame big law firms like that?
Barnes told The American Lawyer, “My point with the article is to help attorneys understand why they’re not hearing back from law firms,” Barnes said. “It wasn’t to attack anybody, it wasn’t to be sexist, it was to make sure that people understand different reasons.”
Oh, okay. If you don’t hear back from a big firm after an interview, it could be because there are a bunch of incompetent in-house recruiters hunting for husbands and stuff.
Barnes did issue an apology noting that he will be taking a leave of absence to reflect and will no longer be making submissions on behalf of BCG’s candidates. Revoke WordPress credentials immediately. .
[via Above The Law]
Image via Shutterstock
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Dave
Lawyer. Writer. Dude doing business. I'm the meatloaf guy from tv.
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Calling yourself a “hard 7.” PGPM
This guy just put himself in the dirt. These women are successful, fit, and beautiful because the same characteristics that allow someone to finish school, land a job, succeeded, and so on also bring about the same results in personal hygiene, fitness, beauty care, etc. and quite frankly…a women who flourishes mentally and physically turns a confident man on and scares the shit out of a pathetic man (we all know what kind of man this guy is)
This guy is a managing director of a national lawyer placement firm. I’m sure he isn’t lacking in confidence. I’m not defending his actions at all cause they suck.
Also, ironically he met his wife when she came to his firm looking for a job.
Just because he had a big position doesn’t mean he has confidence. If I’ve learned anything in life, people don’t usually go out d their way to be dicks unless they’ve got a big insecurity rearing its ugly head.
He is asshole confident. I went and read up a few other things as Dave alluded to. This guy is a huge douche.
The legal field has always been a bit… old-fashioned. My girlfriend interviewed with a few firms where she kept getting questions and remarks relating to “this is a lot of hours of work a week, are you sure you can do this,” which isn’t something that the guys from her law school seem to hear during an interview.
Seems like maybe Harrison should have kept these thoughts to himself.
He should have plenty of time to write them down during unemployment.
My fiancé thinks you’re a 12/10, Dave. You’re the man.
Glad you found yourself a nice young gal. Always appreciate #davesdimes’ support.
Is 12/10 the ratio of Dave’s scalp to his hair? HEYOOOOO.
Just playing, Dave, I really enjoy your content and as a dude also losing his hair you pull it off.
Very on-brand article for you, Davey.
“This is what happens when attractive and successful people are put in confined spaces 10 hours a day.”
It’s just nature y’all. No other outcome is possible.
“life, uh, finds a way”
In general, Harrison Barnes’s articles are some of the most alarmist, awful and fear-mongering pieces of writing I’ve ever read. You could probably have a series with some of the doozies he’s written.
Hate to be that guy but it is “piqued my interest” not “peaked”
Good eye.
I work at an AM10 firm and can confirm that my co-workers are significantly more attractive than the average professional. That said, I haven’t noticed any correlation between physical qualities and work product.