Stellar Women

“Mentors are so important! Find one as soon as you can; you won’t be sorry.” I think a lot of us have heard this advice, and while it’s a good nugget of wisdom, it also exemplifies the phrase easier said than done . A good mentor can be invaluable to an ambitious career, but building that relationship is far from simple. And for those already far along in their career, turning around to help the n...

Lynn Tubalinal, director of litigation support at Dykema, has worked hard to build a fulfilling, impressive career in litigation and legal work. And she’s balanced it all with managing the sometimes-intense needs of two children (one of whom is neurodivergent), her marriage, and advancing her own education.  In this episode of Stellar Women, Blair Cohen interviewed Lynn about managing the hard wor...

Shortly after she took the stage during our keynote at Relativity Fest 2023 in Chicago, Martha Louks—director of technology services at McDermott Will & Emery—sat down with me for a Stellar Women podcast. And wow, did Martha have a wealth of insight to share with us. During our conversation, you’ll hear this superstar’s thoughts on short message data and the e-discovery challenges it presents; the...

The Stellar Women community empowers women in the legal technology field to harness the power of technology to thrive—both at work and in life, and Monica Harris is doing just that. My chat with Monica left me felling inspired and ready to tackle the next challenge, and I hope it does the same for you—because, as Monica says, anything is possible and everything will work out 

When it comes to living and working to your fullest potential, authenticity is key. It's also essential for overcoming the negative self-talk and catastrophic assumptions that can sometimes dominate our thinking in a high-pressure working world. In this episode of Stellar Women, Blair Cohen interviews Erin Coupe of Authentically EC to talk about how to connect with your truest self to be more inte...

This episode of Stellar Women features Farrah Pepper—chief legal innovation counsel at Marsh McLennan, a 2023 AI Visionary, and "the Mary Poppins of e-Discovery"—discussing the modern demands of leaders, change management, and more. Farrah and our host, Blair Cohen, also chat about the necessity of tech in the current practice of law, why e-discovery pros are basically superheroes, and what it tru...

We all know that feeling. You know the exact solution for a problem that has been a pain in your ... side for what feels like forever. But your solution costs money or time or needs sign-off from a boss or maybe even a CFO.  What is that secret to getting that buy in from the top? Well, if you listen to a conversation with Corinne Cartwright, a senior manager and solutions architect at BDO USA, yo...

For those of you who already know Kelly as a thought leader in e-discovery, buckle up to hear from a side of her you may not have heard before. Simply put, Kelly is an all-star and a problem solver in every aspect of her life—and she has some important, honest stories to share about starting out as a young woman in the law and technology, carrying on in the face of doubt, and building relationship...

So many of us have that go-to person at work—the one who completes our dynamic duo. At McGuire Woods, one such duo is Cristin Traylor and Sara Skeens. In this episode of Stellar Women, learn more about how they work together to help move the needle for their clients and their careers. 

In this episode of Stellar Women, leadership coach Emma B-F demystifies what it takes to be a senior leader and shares some tips on identifying your ideal leadership style. Find Emma on  social media or check out her group coaching program,  Rise Up .

What does it mean to be a good leader? It isn’t just authoritativeness, or being adaptive, or getting creative—it’s all of that and more. In this episode of Stellar Women, Mary Rechtoris and Mila Taylor discuss flexible leadership styles, making space for diversity and inclusion, and setting realistic goals with Bishu Solomon Girma—head of customer success at Access Legal. 

In the latest episode of Stellar Women, Mary Rechtoris and Mila Taylor sit down with Nicole Kelsey—chief legal officer at Amyris and an inclusion, diversity, and belonging advocate. Nicole shares her thoughts on allyship, combating burnout, making mistakes, taking accountability, and the importance of language as we create a dialogue in the DEI space.

Stellar Women is delighted to launch our first crossover podcast of 2022 with our friends and partner, EDRM. In this episode, Blair and I joined Mary Mack and Kaylee Walstad to share how we have been faring the last few months (spoiler alert: we are in good spirits)! We also dove into why we are focusing on small acts of kindness this year, and shared personal examples of how these acts have manif...

This month’s Stellar Women guest—Julia Hasenzahl—kept it real, allowing for an engaging and substantial conversation with hosts Mary Rechtoris and Mila Taylor. Throughout the episode, Julia shares how leadership polls their employees each week to gauge happiness, in hopes to identify areas for improvement. Interestingly, Julia notes the goal is to not get a 100 percent happiness score nor is the g...

As per Stellar Women tradition, Mila and I had this past year’s Stellar Women Innovation Award winner on the podcast—Heena Bhambhlani. I always leave our conversations with Heena feeling so inspired, and this one was no different. Heena shares her story into e-discovery, her leadership style, and what the Stellar Women community means to her. And, to close out the month, Heena shares her goals for...

Love it or hate it, networking is a crucial aspect to navigating and advancing your career. We all need to do it, so why not be a pro at it? For Stellar Women, we’re providing listeners a preview of what’s to come in our next workshop. On December 8, Nikki MacCallum will share what she’s about successfully networking and provide tangible next actions for you to try. In this episode, Nikki talks ab...

Deeanna Fleener joined Mila and I on Stellar Women to talk about a recent project where she took a stand. After other project participants continually talked over her, she decided to take herself off the call. From there, she strategized on how she could participant in a way that felt right for her.

Mila and I had a much-anticipated guest on this episode of Stellar Women—Shannon Brayton. After hearing Shannon speak with our CEO Mike Gamson at a company event, we knew we had to have her on the podcast due to her energy, authenticity, and wealth of experience in both marketing and the world of tech. Shannon brought that same energy to the podcast. During this episode, we discuss why innovative...

We are counting down the days until next Wednesday for our Innovation Awards ceremony. Our Innovation Awards are an opportunity to celebrate the individuals who make our community stronger. These are individuals dedicated to innovation, elevating emerging leaders, and making our industry a better place. The Stellar Women Innovation Award is one that is dear to my heart. This year will mark the fou...

Stellar Women had the great opportunity to connect with Tiffany Graves this week on the podcast. Tiffany discusses how a dedicated guidance counselor helped start her path in the law, and how her career has evolved since earning her law degree. During the conversation, Tiffany also discusses her transition from the private to public sector, and how her time in both areas prepared her for her curre...

1 https://www.relativity.com/blog/prioritizing-mental-health-pandemic-stellar-women-mary-mack-kaylee-walstad/ 2  https://edrm.net/2021/05/stellar-women-edrm-crossover-mental-health-podcast/

Oftentimes, our careers don’t follow a linear path. Opportunities may arise that may be completely different than what we expected but may serve us and our goals. This was true for Judge Kimberly Johnson, who went to graduate school to study psychology. Her path changed and led her to law school, ultimately becoming a trial attorney and a judge. In this episode, Mila and I chatted with Judge Johns...

For Stellar Women, Mila and I had the great privilege of sitting down with Reade Heredia. Reader shares her tips for success as a leader including gathering feedback from her team on presentations in addition to praising in public and coaching in private. When it comes to imposter syndrome, Reade quoted Maya Angelou and said, “when you know better, you do better.” The best way for Reade to overcom...

Stellar Women had not one, but two special guests on the podcast this month. Exiger’s Global Head of Marketing Kody Gurfein co-hosted with me as we chatted with Meredith Fineman about her book "Brag Better." During our conversation, Meredith details her writing process, how to brag strategically to advance your career, and why we should talk positively about our professional accomplishments. And,...

When entering the legal field, Krista Deurmeier had a set plan. She planned to work as a paralegal and then go to law school. That plan changed when she realized the many opportunities that existed in the paralegal profession. In this Stellar Women episode, Mila and I chat with Krista about the opportunities within the field and why we need to stop apologizing.