In my line of work, I have the opportunity to get to know a lot of very smart people, both women and men. Many of them are gifted with multiple intelligences, ranging from book-smarts to emotional intelligence. In the legal industry, degrees, titles and other such accomplishments are not the only credentials that lead to professional success, however you define it. There are many attorneys who demonstrate the connection between intelligence and success. But fewer can combine the precepts of emotional and critical intelligence to go a step beyond where they need to. Two women who embody this ideal are Megan Belcher and Angela Spivey.
Belcher, vice president and chief employment counsel for ConAgra Foods, took inspiration from last fall’s Women, Influence & Power in Law (WIPL) conference. She took that extra step to keep the momentum of the event going back home in Omaha, Neb. There, Belcher launched a group called “Drinks Among Friends” (DAF), a networking coalition of women aimed at helping other women advance in their careers by “sharing the power” through female in-house counsel giving work to female outside counsel.
