Katten Named One of Working Mother’s 100 Best Companies for Second Consecutive Year by Working Mother Magazine

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP is pleased to announce that for the second consecutive year, Working Mother magazine today named it one of the 100 Best Companies.  Katten is one of only four law firms in the country to make the 100 Best Companies list, the only Chicago-based firm, and one of only seven Chicago-area companies.  This recognition comes on the heels of Working Mother magazine’s August 2008 issue, which listed Katten as one of the nation’s 50 Best Law Firms for Women for the second straight year. 

“We are proud to be one of only a handful of law firms in the country named on both the Best Law Firms for Women and the 100 Best Companies lists by Working Mother,” said Vincent A.F. Sergi, Katten’s national Managing Partner.  “We work diligently each day to create a supportive work environment for all of our attorneys and are extremely honored to receive these recognitions, which validate the success of our ongoing efforts.”

Profiled in Working Mother’s October 2008 issue, Katten is honored for helping women thrive at the firm by offering a variety of scheduling options to help employees balance both their family and work commitments, including part-time, flex-time, compressed work week and telecommuting.  Working Mother also praised the efforts and success of the firm’s Women’s Leadership Forum (WLF), which is dedicated to helping Katten’s female attorneys advance and achieve both their professional and personal goals.  Evidence of the WLF’s success lies in the fact that 25 percent of the firm’s partners are women, including the co-managing partner of its Los Angeles office.  In addition, Working Mother recognized Katten’s 12 weeks of fully paid maternity leave granted to all new mothers, and a sabbatical program in which, after five years of service, any attorney may take a month-long paid sabbatical to travel, pursue a personal goal or just relax.

“The economy is not going to alter Katten’s commitment to working mothers, because they've made family-friendly policies a part of their corporate DNA,” said Carol Evans, CEO, Working Mother Media.  “Supporting families is a vital part of their culture and not just an added benefit.”

Added Suzanne Riss, Editor in Chief, Working Mother magazine, “Katten knows that their investment pays for itself through employee loyalty and they realize that productivity depends as much on satisfied staffers as on smart processes.  By helping employees manage their work/life demands, Katten is creating a highly motivated workforce.”

Methodology: 

Katten was selected for the 2008 Working Mother 100 Best Companies based on an extensive application with more than 500 questions.  The application included detailed questions about workforce, compensation, child care, flexibility programs, leave policies and more.  It also checked the usage, availability and tracking of programs, as well as the accountability of managers who oversee them.  Seven areas were measured and scored:  workforce profile, compensation, child care, flexibility, time off and leaves, family-friendly programs, and company culture.  For this year’s 100 Best, particular weight was given to family-friendly policies, flexibility, leave policies and benefits for part-timers. 

A complete list of the 2008 Working Mother 100 Best Companies can be found at www.workingmother.com.  For more information about Katten or its women’s initiatives, visit www.katten.com or www.kattenwomen.com.

About Working Mother

Founded in 1979, Working Mother magazine reaches 2 million readers and is the only national magazine for career-committed mothers.  Its 22-year signature initiative, Working Mother 100 Best Companies, is the most important benchmark for work/life practices in corporate America.  Working Mother is published by Working Mother Media, which was founded in 2001.  Working Mother Media includes the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), Diversity Best Practices, the WorkLife Congress, the Multicultural Women's Conference and Town Halls.  Working Mother Media's mission is to champion culture change. For more information, please visit www.workingmother.com.