Training
The firm's cultural commitments to our clients and our people, recognized practice and sector expertise, and our culture of apprenticeship, have been central to the firm's success over our nearly two centuries of proud history and continue to be a guiding force as we partner with and support our clients through the evolving market and legal landscape. The driving force behind the firm's strength and success is our talent, and supporting the continuous learning and professional development of this critical asset is the single greatest investment the firm can make. Now, more than ever, lawyers require timely, targeted learning opportunities in addition to strong foundational knowledge.
BBU, the firm's internal training and development experience, is a direct reflection of that investment. Offering a multidisciplinary and dynamic curriculum, BBU is a key resource to our lawyers as they hone and deepen their knowledge and skills, as well as remain on the cutting edge of new and evolving areas of our practice. From introductory courses to topical, specialized programming, from substantive legal matters to business development, the BBU curriculum supports lawyers and their professional development goals.
In recognition of the unique professional development needs and goals of each individual lawyer, BBU provides an on-demand, self-directed approach to continuous learning, structured around the Associate Attributes model. Each lawyer has an individualized BBU dashboard where they can monitor a calendar of upcoming programs, pursue mastery of various disciplines through the use of learning tracks, and access just-in-time learning and development resources on demand. In order to make locating courses quick and intuitive, programs within BBU are arranged by department and series and use an academic numbering system.
BBU begins with summer associates, who are invited to attend a variety of training programs and workshops in order to acquaint them with the firm's practice and lawyers. The summer program includes presentations on basic skills such as legal writing, as well as the substantive areas in which the firm practices. Summer associates also have the opportunity to practice their deposition and negotiation skills in workshops, with current Baker Botts lawyers serving as coaches.
New associates starting at the firm participate in an intensive New Associate Orientation designed to integrate them into the culture of the firm and orient them to best practices for success in a logical, consistent, and thoughtful manner. Over the course of this program, new associates receive basic substantive and skills training that accelerates their learning as they prepare for their first work assignments. To help promote another one of our core values, teamwork and collegiality, they also have a number of networking opportunities to get to know colleagues from across offices and departments. We believe these skills and relationships are vital to allow new lawyers to grow and advance within the firm.
The BBU curriculum continues throughout each lawyer's career with department-specific programming, including our Fundamentals series for junior associates, as well as advanced programming geared towards mid-level and senior associates and partners. Programming focuses on a variety of substantive and skills areas, including the energy and technology sectors, hot topics and emerging legal and market developments, and key ethics issues.
The firm values collaboration and provides training opportunities to bring associates together across offices and departments. The firm offers intensive training on leadership and business skills to mid-level and senior associates. The firm also offers practice-specific workshops to allow associates to develop their substantive skills, including deposition, trial, and negotiation skills. These multi-day programs also include social events to supplement the learning with opportunities to network and develop relationships across the firm.
To supplement BBU, lawyers also have access to a variety of external training resources, including through Practising Law Institute, Attorney's Liability Assurance Society, Lex Mundi, and legal and industry conferences.