A Publication of The New Orleans Chapter of Legal Administrators
A’LA Carte 1ST QUARTER 2020
CONTENTS
President’s Message 2
Chapter Board 3
Chapter Committee Chairs
5
Calendar of Events 7
ALA National 2020 Events
8
Business Partner Level Sponsorships
9
January Educational Luncheon
10
February Educational Luncheon
12
ARTICLES
3 Simple Ways to Keep Remote Employees Engaged
13
Beyond the Bubble Bath: To the Heart of Self-Care
16
Future Business Trend 19
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
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As my Presidential journey comes to the end, it’s time to say good-bye and pass the torch to our
incoming President, Daniel Simpson. Usually at this time we would all be gathered at Ruth Chris
celebrating with cocktails and a great lunch with wonderful company. BUT, unfortunately under the
current situation attributed to COVID-19 our celebration had to be rescheduled to a future date (TBD).
Therefore, I would like to continue by saying THANK YOU to all of our members for allowing me to
be your President. Thank you to the committees and committee chairs for volunteering your time
helping to organize the many areas of our Chapter. I would also like to thank the Board of Directors
who committed to monthly board meetings and facilitated in all the decision making. To all of you
members who volunteered your time, please know I could not have accomplished the many goals that
this position entails without each and every one of you.
Last, but definitely not least, a “Huge Shout-Out” to our Business Partners! Thank you for your
sponsorships and being a part of the New Orleans Chapter of the ALA. Your sponsorships provide us
many opportunities, from obtaining exceptional and interesting speakers for our monthly luncheons/
seminars to handing out scholarships for members to attend National & Regional Conferences. The
NOLA Chapter is committed to building a solid working relationship with our Business Partners based
on trust, confidence and respect.
Before I say, “Farewell” you need to know that getting involved or stepping out of your comfort
zone can feel like being on an emotional Roller-Coaster; exciting, frightening, unknowing,
overwhelming and rewarding all wrapped up into one. You ask, “Why is she telling me this?” The
reason is, do not be afraid to get involved. Take the leap and become a part of your chapter; it’s what
you make it!
President Vickie Generose
Silbert, Pitre & Friedman [email protected]
Sincerely, Vickie T. Generose President, New Orleans Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators
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2019-2020 NEW ORLEANS CHAPTER BOARD MEMBERS
Past-President Melissa G. Tokar
Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC
President Vickie Generose
Silbert, Pitre & Friedman [email protected]
At-Large Director Gerri Walters
Usry Weeks & Matthews [email protected]
Secretary Lynn M. Johnston
Frilot L.L.C. [email protected]
President-Elect Daniel Simpson
Galloway Johnson Tompkins Burr & Smith
Treasurer Patricia Hennessey, CLM
Lugenbuhl, Wheaton, Peck, Rankin & Hubbard
At-Large Director Stephen Wolf, CLM
Deutsch, Kerrigan & Stiles [email protected]
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CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2020-2021 NEW ORLEANS CHAPTER BOARD MEMBERS
Past-President Vickie Generose
Silbert, Pitre & Friedman [email protected]
Secretary Gerri Walters
Usry Weeks & Matthews [email protected]
At-Large Director Denise Abadie Johnson Yacoubian & Paysse [email protected]
President Daniel Simpson
Galloway Johnson Tompkins Burr & Smith
President-Elect Patricia Hennessey, CLM
Lugenbuhl, Wheaton, Peck, Rankin & Hubbard
Treasurer Stephen Wolf, CLM
Deutsch, Kerrigan & Stiles [email protected]
At-Large Director Ginnie Blake Jones Walker
2020-2021 NEW ORLEANS CHAPTER COMMITTEE CHAIRS
Business Partner
Melissa G. Tokar [email protected]
By-Laws Committee
Vickie Generose Linda Soileau, SHRM-SCP Past-President [email protected]
Communications & Marketing
Lynn Johnston, Chair [email protected]
Community Connections
Shanon Chehardy, Chair [email protected]
Diversity & Inclusion
Legal Community Outreach Program
Meetings & Special Events
Janet Dotson, [email protected]
Membership
Bonnie Aucoin, Co-Chair Darlene Cook, Co-Chair [email protected] [email protected]
Nominating
Vickie Generose Past-President
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Professional Development
Ginnie Blake, Chair [email protected]
Retreat
Denise Abadie
Salary Survey
Ray Lightell, CPA, CLM [email protected]
Website & Social Media
Gerri Walters [email protected]
Chapter Representative—Region 4
Daniel Simpson President
2020-2021 NEW ORLEANS CHAPTER COMMITTEE CHAIRS (Continued)
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ALA VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
In addition to involvement in our local chapter, have you considered becoming more involved at the Association level? Throughout the year, ALA issues calls for volunteers for various ALA committees and leadership opportunities. Visit the ALA Website at http://www.alanet.org/volunteer/
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2020 Calendar of Events
January Chapter Board Meeting
January 20 Membership Educational Luncheon
February Chapter Board Meeting
February 20 Membership Educational Luncheon—Ralph’s on the Park
February 25 Mardi Gras Holiday
March 11 Chapter Board Meeting
April 8 Chapter Board Meeting
April 17 Membership Educational Zoon Meeting
May 13 Chapter Board Meeting
May 21 Membership Educational Zoom Meeting
June 10 Chapter Board Meeting
June 25 Membership Educational Meeting via Zoom
July 8 Chapter Board Meeting
July 16 Membership Educational Meeting
August 12 Chapter Board Meeting
August 20 Membership Educational Meeting
September 9 Chapter Board Meeting
September 17 Membership Educational Meeting
October 13 Business Partner Expo, Mardi Gras World
October 14 Chapter Board Meeting
October 15 Membership Educational Meeting
November 11 Chapter Board Meeting
November TBA Membership Educational Meeting—Half Day Seminar
December 9 Chapter Board Meeting
December TBA Chapter Holiday Luncheon
Amber N. Rodas Murray Law Firm
The Membership Committee is actively
recruiting new members!
If you know of someone in legal management who is not a
member of the Association of Legal Administrators, please
email Bonnie Aucoin, Co-Chair, at [email protected]
or Darlene Cook, Co-Chair at [email protected].
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New Orleans Chapter 2020 Level Sponsors
ROYAL PRINTER/ROYAL NEWSLETTER SPONSOR Southern Imaging Solutions, Inc.
QUEEN OF MARDI GRAS
Hub International
MultiTech Office Machines
Ricoh USA Inc.
JESTERS OF MARDI GRAS
ABA Retirement Funds Lexis Nexus Ameriprise Financial Mason de la Luz Brooke Companies Prosource Insurance Services, LLC Coyote Analytics LLC Restech Executone Systems Co. of LA Inc. Rippe & Kingston Le Pavillon Hotel Shuart & Associates Strategic Recruitment Solutions
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KING OF MARDI GRAS
The Quality Group
ROYAL COURT OF MARDI GRAS
FlexManage iSolved Gilsbar, Inc. Thomson Reuters
JANUARY 2020 EDUCATIONAL LUNCHEON LAW FIRMS AND MONEY LAUNDERING—DETECTING AND PREVENTING
Gordon Biersch January 16, 2020
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Speaker, Melissa Lessell of Deutsch Kerrigan,
with Stephen Wolf, CLM
Sal Cannatella of Southern Imaging, Chapter’s Royal Printer Sponsor, with Gerri Walters,
Melissa Tokar and Debbie Rivolo
Samantha Kiker and the Chapter’s new member, Amber Rodas
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Relocate your entire practice without losing a single billable hour.
FEBRUARY 2020 EDUCATIONAL LUNCHEON
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE INTEGRITY MATTERS — OVERVIEW OF UI BASICS Ralph’s on the Park February 20, 2020
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Tricia Hennessey, Vickie Generose, 2019 Chapter President, speaker, Stephen Harris, Louisiana
Workforce Commission, and Ginnie Blake
Vickie Generose, 2019 Chapter President, with Chris DeSoto and Octavian Pasa of
MultiTech Office Machines, Queen of Mardi Gras Sponsor
MARCH 2020 LUNCHEON
The Chapter 2020-2021 Installation of Board Luncheon has been
postponed until a later date to be determined.
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3 Simple Ways to Keep Remote Employees Engaged By: Chris Cabos
Facilitate virtual company-wide meetings Company culture is key to the identity of your brand, and it can be impacted when team members are geographically separated. It's also important to sponsor occasional fun virtual hangouts to make sure all workers feel included and a part of the organization's culture. Your virtual hangouts can include open Q&A sessions, leadership office hours, team meet and greets, and spontaneous one-on-one coffee chats. While workers may be teleconferencing with their own team members on a frequent basis, they probably have minimal face time with people in other departments. Setting up a culture initiative such as virtual one-on-one coffee chats gives employees the opportunity to meet team members outside of their direct department. This encourages employees to build relationships with employees across departments and geographic locations. Invest in professional development Offering professional training and development to your remote workers is a substantive way to recognize the value of their contributions, and to keep them engaged and enthusiastic about working for you. Whether through individual mentorships, the chance to attend remote webinars, or tuition assistance for in-depth online education, you can keep your telecommuting staff on a solid path to career advancement.
Remote work is becoming a norm and there are many positives that come with remote work. As an HR professional, it's important to motivate, align, and engage your remote employees. You may wonder what happens to team morale and employee engagement if your workers don't have face-to-face interaction in a shared office space.
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Did you know 40 percent of employees who receive poor job training leave their positions within the first year? Avoid high turnover from remote and non-remote employees by offering valuable professional development and online training programs. Also, with a company culture of promotion from within adds power to your employer brand. Keep remote employees engaged with recognition When your employees go the extra mile, it's important to recognize them. With advanced recognition tools, employees can easily recognize others from anywhere. There's no excuse to not recognize the great work of your remote workforce. Employee recognition and rewards take on a great sense of importance when workers are geographically distant, since it shows employees their extra effort truly makes a difference. In fact, recognition has the biggest impact on employee engagement. Lack of recognition is the third biggest reason people say they are or would consider leaving their jobs and 82 percent of employees wish they received more recognition for their work. Employees crave recognition and giving them the opportunity to frequently send and receive recognition encourages a culture of appreciation. Recognition not only improves employee engagement, it also positively impacts your company's bottom line. improve NPS scores and individual performances. Chris Cabos Associate Vice President HUB International Telephone: (504) 620-4470 Cellular: (504) 296-4437 E-mail: [email protected]
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BEYOND THE BUBBLE BATH: GETTING BACK TO THE HEART OF SELF-CARE
By: Diedre Dias
On airplanes, parents are instructed to secure their own oxygen mask before assisting others. The
same idea holds true for self-care. It’s up to us to realize when we need to pause and put ourselves first,
especially when we’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed. Because when we take the time for ourselves,
we show up better for those around us.
Self-care sometimes gets the rap of being indulgent or selfish, but it’s not. It’s your self-
administered stress defense mechanism, and you know best when it’s time to turn it on.
The consequences of not pressing pause? Stress, exhaustion and burnout.
The antidote? Putting yourself first on a regular basis. Now more than ever, it’s essential to take time to do the things you love, and the things that keep you replenished and grounded. Below, we outline six self-care strategies guaranteed to help you recharge. 1. Get Enough Sleep Sleep is one of the most important factors of our overall health and wellness. And getting enough of it is crucial to ensuring key components of our health are optimized. Sleep is the time our bodies need to heal and replenish themselves for the next day, and most of us need seven to eight hours of it per night. Think of sleep as a self-care mechanism, one that’s critical to your emotional and physical health. 2. Head Outside Just 20 minutes of Mother Nature can significantly lower stress hormone levels. Visit your nearest park for a stroll. Or just enjoy sitting on your front porch or in your backyard. 3. Boost Your Serotonin with Exercise Exercising helps us feel energized, while also relieving stress. Find a routine you love and stick with
it. In our new normal, that might mean joining an online exercise class and working out at home. On
days when even the thought of exercise sounds too exhausting, take a casual walk with your dog or a
loved one.
4. Practice Mindfulness Practicing mindfulness is a simple way to reset when you’re in the middle of a marathon meeting day or are feeling like you’re constantly on the go without any breaks. To reduce stress try taking a few minutes to breathe, focus and be present in the moment.
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5. Get Some “Me” Time Often, we feel “on” when around other people, whether that’s at our job, with our families or our friends. Flying solo gives us the guilt-free time we need to recharge, even if it’s only for a few minutes. For a busy parent with children, “me” time might mean five minutes locked in the laundry room alone or spending an afternoon doing a favorite activity. For an introvert, it may be cuddling up on the sofa and reading a book. Whatever it is, take the time to take care of you. You deserve it. 6. Focus on Prevention One way to take care of yourself is to stay healthy through prevention. You can prevent sickness through lifestyle choices, such as a healthy diet and exercise. You can also make prevention a priority by maintaining your health screenings and participating in proactive programs like Ochsner’ s Concierge Health, a new program centered around a holistic approach to health and wellness. In addition to having a dedicated concierge physician, you also get access to a full team of health and wellness clinicians, including dietitians, health coaches and exercise physiologists, that will serve as partners in your health and wellness journey. Diedra Dias, MSHCM Vice President, Health & Wellness Solutions Ochsner Health System Telephone: (504) 842-2320 Cellular: (504) 858-2145 E-mail: [email protected]
KEEPING YOU HEALTHY DURING COVID-19
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FUTURE BUSINESS TREND By Sal Cannatella
Conducting business has changed dramatically since the COVID-19 lockdown. This event will change the way businesses conduct themselves now and for the long term. It has shown many business owners that having massive office space may no longer be a necessity. One will see business owners reducing office space with more people setting up home offices. Many business owners in different fields have shown working from home has increased their billing and profitability. Companies are now using software such as Skype, Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Google. This allows for videoconference with employees and clients. In the future, businesses additionally will have employees sharing desks on days of rotation in the office. This will save on overhead expenses, adding to the bottom line for many businesses including I.T. support. Even now most I.T. personnel can work from home using team viewer to log into an employee’s computer for tech support. The availability of high speed Internet in homes has helped usher in this change. Presently, the approximate cost per square foot of New Orleans office space is $19.00, based on an 8 x 8 workspace. Once computers, desks, printers, copiers, insurance and parking are accounted for, the saving to a company’s bottom line could be substantial. These unprecedented times bring about necessary changes to continue our businesses in a profitable, productive and safe environment, for both large and small companies. Sal Cannatella, President Southern Imaging Solutions Telephone: (504) 200-2679 E-mail: [email protected]
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Editorial Policy
This newsletter is published by the New Orleans Chapter of the Association
of Legal Administrators. Opinions expressed in articles and advertisements are strictly those of the
contributors and advertisers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the
New Orleans Chapter or its members. Comments, suggestions, and articles are welcomed by chapter members and
Business Partners. Reprinting of any portion of this newsletter by any means including photo-
copying, scanning or any information storage system, is prohibited without
the permission of the Editor or the New Orleans Chapter.
Cover picture was taken at Houmas House Planation, Darrow, LA
Editor
Lynn M. Johnston
HR Director
Frilot L.L.C.
Proud Sponsor
of the
New Orleans Chapter
Association of Legal
Administrators’
Newsletter
A’LA Carte
A’La Carte
New Orleans Chapter Association of Legal Administra-tors P.O. Box 51145 New Orleans, LA 70151-1145
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