Carlos Méndez-Peñate, NY Office Managing Partner, Akerman

What are some of your proudest recent achievements? From a professional perspective, serving in my role as Akerman's office managing partner for New York and serving as the leader in recruiting, I am extremely gratified by the success in our efforts to grow Akerman's New York office from 35 lawyers to 125. We have built a balanced, diverse office in the most competitive legal market in the country featuring world-class talent who embrace the firm's collaborative culture. And our work continues. From a philanthropic perspective, I am proud of contributing to improving the lives of children in the foster care system in New York and nationally through CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates). We make a real difference in the lives of children, which is incredibly rewarding.

What does it mean to be a leader? Being leader means having a clear vision of the future, articulating that vision, and rallying the stakeholders to not only buy in to the vision but to fully embrace it and take ownership in making it a reality. The key is clarity on the future path: You have to know where you are going for people to follow you. This applies to counseling clients as well. In many respects, they have the vision, but they need lawyers to help them chart a path to achieving it.

Name a lawyer or mentor whose leadership inspired you. I have had the privilege of working with—and learning from—some of the most talented lawyers in the business, including David Boies, Evan Chesler (current chairman of Cravath, Swaine and Moore), and Thomas Barr, a legendary partner at Cravath. Tom was a force with his combination of superior legal intellect and project management skills. This was best exemplified when he led a team I was on at the beginning of my career in the mid-1970s, of 35 lawyers in U.S. v. IBM. Tom was masterful in running a very large team in a high stakes, publicly scrutinized, complex, and fast paced litigation in which IBM ultimately prevailed. It was an inspiring demonstration of strategic vision, litigation prowess, and management expertise.

How are the business and profession of law changing, and how should lawyers adapt for the future? In important ways, law has not changed. It is still a demanding, intense profession requiring intellectual rigor and discipline. The challenge for the future lies in the appropriate use of technology, which offers tremendous efficiencies and opportunities for our profession. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, online doc services—these are great tools for lawyers. But they are just tools. To put them in proper perspective, technology adds arrows in the quiver of a lawyer, but our challenge is not to rely on them as a crutch. We must still exercise all the traditional traits of lawyers on behalf of our clients: judgment, probity, critical thinking, empathy, communication, leadership, and vision. Technology enhances our ability to advise clients, but does not supplant our role. Law will always require a real exchange between experienced lawyers who understand the facts, the precedent, the emotions, and the context to deliver results to clients.

What is the best advice for someone considering a career in law, or someone already in the profession who is seeking to make a greater impact? Law is a profession requiring an innate passion. You need an insatiable curiosity because there is much to learn—about the law, about business, about people. It is a serious commitment of time, intensity, and dedication to helping clients achieve goals—because that is, at the end of the day, the measure of success: is your client satisfied. If you do not have the proverbial "fire in the belly," this can be a tough industry. But the rewards for those who do? Law has allowed me to guide transformative transactions for my clients, to become acquainted with a diversity of people, cultures, and businesses, and it has taken me around the world. I cannot imagine doing anything else.