Tag Archives: Jennifer Forester

“Hotter than July.” The Legal Marketing Association is fired up this summer ― plus more playlists! #lmamkt #lma23

11 July 2023

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“Hotter than July.” That’s not just a kickass Stevie Wonder album, but is a phrase that could also be used to describe all of YOU! LMA is en fuego this summer. I’m inspired by all of the amazing content you are generating these days: thought leadership, webinars, social media, in-person presentations, social outings, conference planning, on and on. I try like the Dickens to keep up with it all, and am happy to report that is humanly IMPOSSIBLE. So kudos to y’all!

I was fortunate enough to make a trip to Toronto in June to join one of the Canada Region’s summer socials. And it was off the chain. Eighty attendees, vibrant dialogue, so much connection and just great fun. Kudos to Jessica Horowitz and team for all the hard work and planning! Thank you to Canada President Hans Chang for extending the invite AND for treating me to an incredible lunch the next day. You may or may not know this, but Hans was tapped as president-elect this year, but stepped up to the prez role in quick fashion when this year’s original president left our wonderful industry for another great opportunity. (A testament to how in demand you all are BTW!) Hans pivoted like the champ he is and quickly immersed himself. Didn’t skip a beat. He has led with heart and authenticity, and he shared with me that he sees himself as a steward, adding to what has come before and simply hoping to leave things a bit better than he found them. I’d say he’s doing very well at that mission! That’s all we can ask of ourselves as leaders.

While I was there, Canada Board Member Sara Short (communications) said these magical words: “I love your playlists! I’m going to miss those!” So you can blame her for this…another playlist to round out your summer fun. Hopefully as good for a glass of wine on the patio as a raging house party. You’re welcome! Here on iTunes and Spotify 🎵. And, yes, my beloved theater peeps Idina Menzel and Billy Porter are well-represented…but these ain’t no show tunes. You’ll see!

 

Roy July Pres mssg_canada 2 photo
Roy July Prez mssg_canada 1 photo

Shout out to the Midwest Region who is killing it with a series of meet-ups across the region. I was able to join the Michigan Architecture tour here in Detroit – thanks to John Reed and Andrea Oleszczak and team for planning such a thoughtful, inspiring, engaging afternoon. And I see you Kate Shipham, Amie Allison, Jason Klika, Rich Marsolais, Jennifer Shankleton, Tanya Riggan and other Midwest Board members getting your miles (and steps) in touring our Midwest LSCs. 

Midwest Michigan Architecture

 

The photos of these meet-ups are such great fun to see!

Kudos to our Northeast Region and Mid-Atlantic Region for following a similar model on socials AND launching some incredible educational content this summer. I know a recent client-service education event in the Northeast had over 115 attendees! Way to go, Northeast President Jay Linder, Mid-Atlantic President Kathryn Burke and respective teams!

(Sidenote: I worry when I start going down this path of shout-outs that I’m leaving someone out. Please know that this is all offered just in the spirit of celebration and that we are grateful for ALL of the efforts at play this summer!)

Speaking of the Midwest – thank you to Ashley Defay, Kate Harry Shipham, Lauren McNee, Sara Pierson and Rob Kates for this opportunity to reflect on being a gay man in this industry, my mid-year reflections on this wonderful role I get to carry, leadership lessons generally, and…The Little Mermaid. If you missed the interview, you can catch it here. It’s a pretty candid chat and all comes from the heart.

21DAY SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGE

Kudos to Jennifer Forester, Jacob Eidinger, Erika Galarneau and the Social and Digital Media SIG team for their exceptional work on June’s “21-Day Social Media Challenge,” (login to view) in its second year. 

I didn’t think they could top themselves from last year…but they did. The conversations were robust and provocative and actionable. If you missed it this year, do NOT miss it in the future. It exemplifies what is so incredible about LMA: community: sharing knowledge and insight and connecting through learning. 

And as robust as our LMA community is, I must admit that we had a “shoot for the moon” goal of 4,500 members in 2023 as an International Board. Truth be told, the eddies of a shifting economy among other issues have conspired and we’re more likely to hit 4,100. Still growth from last year, but not as big as we’d hoped. And that’s ok. (For those ready to hit the “I told you so” button, I’m pre-empting you!) That said, the International Board is hard at work in a series of sub-teams looking at membership, regional growth, education and revenue diversification toward the end of yielding nuanced, achievable goals for next year. More to come on that. But that’s the job we signed up and we’re happy to support the continued evolution of this marvelous association. (Know someone who should be a member? Invite them to join LMA with our special Mid-Year Membership Offer!)

We’re halfway through this year and already we’ve had so many great events and impactful educational offerings. To date across HQ and regions, we have offered 100+ educational opportunities with thousands of attendees — in addition to the 1,100+ attendees at the 2023 Annual Conference (recordings available here)! And there are many more events happening now and planned for this year.

As you have likely seen on social media and beyond, we have a number of great regional conference offerings in the queue for this fall. Check out the schedule for your region and make sure to join one (or more!) to continue your growth and development as professionals. One last shout-out to our Southeast Region and President Laura Hudson. Not only are they planning a fab conference for THIS fall, but they are also already ahead of the curve, securing NEXT YEAR’S dates with a very thoughtful approach. Love seeing that collaboration, hard work and embracing of best practices. Go, team!

And while you may have a little downtime, consider sharing your expertise and submitting an educational session idea for the LMA 2024 Annual Conference Call for Content which is open only through July 17. You can alternately submit your name for consideration as a possible speaker or panelist.

Keep taking time for you where you can – and keep connecting meaningfully with each other! That’s why we joined this LMA club and what makes it all worthwhile!

Love you,

Roy

President, 2023 LMA International Board of Directors

Roy E. Sexton
Director of Marketing
Clark Hill

 

Save the Date! #LMA24 I April 3-5 I San Diego

Add Your Expertise! Call for Content Open Through July 17

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Year-end Legal Marketing Coffee Talk holiday extravaganza 2021: zany costumes, beloved pups, heartfelt sentiments, plentiful laughs, and maybe a show tune or two

17 December 2021

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View on …

Facebook: https://fb.watch/9XP8lzXK6-/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/robkates_legalmarketingcoffeetalk-legalmarketing-lmct-activity-6875147102234648576-j7aF

YouTube: https://youtu.be/GVE6T6Ye32k

We had a ball this afternoon with our year-end holiday broadcast. Yes, there were zany costumes, beloved pups, heartfelt sentiments, plentiful laughs, and maybe a show tune or two. (Yes, I sang – about midway – WITH prerecorded accompaniment because I’m fancy like that.) So grateful to be part of this fab Legal Marketing Coffee Talk crew: our fearless leader Rob Kates and fellow hosts Tahisha Fugate, Jessica Aries, and Andrew Laver. The kind words offered during the show about my late mom Susie Sexton, our honorary sixth cast member, were so appreciated and healing.

Thanks to today’s incredibly brilliant special guest stars, including Gina Furia Rubel, Amy Payton Verhulst, Nancy Leyes Myrland, Brenda Pontiff. You are such beautifully authentic souls.

Shout outs aplenty during today’s show: Heather Morse-Geller, Gail Porter Lamarche, Terry Isner, Nikki Girard Sherrill, Toni Wells, James Barclay, Ed Lovatt, Marcia Delgadillo, Nikki Bagdady Horn, Scott Lawrence, Nathalie M. Daum, Jay Harrington, Heather Harrington, Jennifer Forester, Cyndy McCollough, Timothy Corcoran, Jenna Green, Rachel Shields Williams, Shade Vaughn, Jennifer Simpson Carr, Trish Desilets Lilley, and likely many more I won’t remember until I watch again tonight! 🤣

Thank you to Kates Media: Video Production and By Aries for supporting this show and to amazing Katelynn Audrey Wynn McGuire and Clarita Bonilla for the exceptional promotional work on our collective behalf.

See you in 2022! #LMAMKT

Postscript … I am truly lucky to have a wonderful friend with whom I also happen to work. I’ve known Megan McKeon maybe about 10 years now? But we first actually collaborated in 2015 on a Legal Marketing Association – LMA International annual conference quick start panel. Fellow panelists Heather Morse-Geller and Gina Furia Rubel said, “We gotta get Megan to join us!” They were absolutely right. Few people are as devoted, as hard-working, as caring as Megan.

Flash forward a few years later, and Megan introduced me to Clark Hill. Heather told me that I MUST take the job – as she saw it as the right next step for me. Don’t tell Heather I said this, but she’s darn right 99% of the time! 😉

This community blesses us with guardian angels at every turn, and three years ago when I received the distinct privilege to work with Megan my life improved for the better. I’ve never worked harder in my life, been challenged to be a better professional, or had someone so consistently in my corner as I have had with Megan, and our wonderful boss Susan Ahern, and our incredible colleagues.

Why am I telling you all this? Well, it’s late. And I’m in a reflective mood. And this magical surprise (pictured) appeared on our front doorstep today. Admittedly, one can argue it’s a year early as I will be president elect of the international association next year and president the following. Nonetheless, when my husband opened this, thinking he was going to find new floor mats for his Jeep 😅, we both squealed with delight. Of course, being me, I couldn’t get this on our movie poster wall fast enough.

This gift puts such a big smile on my face after one hell of a year, and I won’t lie that it tickles me to be side-by-side with fellow Hoosier James Dean here. Everyone knows I love movies obsessively, but Megan has a distinct giftgiving prowess and somehow she found somebody who could turn me into my own movie poster. The tagline is hysterical: “Only the marketing is legal.” 🤣

Fun fact, Megan took this picture of me – and it is one of my favorites. We were in Chicago, on a sidewalk patio, shortly after I had started with the firm (halfway between a couple of my quarterly nervous breakdowns 😂), waiting for Ray Koenig and Susan to join us for drinks. Little did that naive Roy know what incredible adventures were ahead. But I’m looking at this poster, reflecting on the past year, the past three years, the past 10 years, incredibly grateful for what our legal marketing community has given all of us and for this friendship with dear Megan. Love you, Megan.