A company’s general counsel is often the one who discourages participating in diversity surveys or who balks at targeted recruiting. Ironically, a lawyer might be a good choice for a company’s chief diversity officer, a panel of attorneys and executives told an audience at DiversityInc’s two-day diversity learning event in Washington, D.C. They discussed what lawyers bring to the table and how they can be most effective in this role.

To attend DiversityInc’s March 2–3 event, featuring New York Times Columnist Frank Rich, Ernst & Young Chairman and CEO Jim Turley and others, click here.

John Zamora, Chief Diversity Officer, Deloitte, No. 25 in The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity^®: “Compliance is what you have to do just to operate. In order to excel, you have to take that to the next level. When we get an RFP, there is always an element asking about our diversity efforts and standards. So when we compete, we make sure that we’re facing off with the best talent. We make sure that we look like our clients. Firms putting lawyers into their diversity positions are afraid about compliance violations. It’s not up to the lawyers to ultimately make business decisions. At the end of the day, they’re just trying to protect the interests of the organization.”

Susan Hamilton, Assistant Vice President of Diversity and Chief Diversity Officer (and an attorney), CSX Corp., one of DiversityInc’s 25 Noteworthy Companies:  ”Attorneys do learn a certain way of disciplined thinking, which comes in handy in this line of work. I always think about the legal ramifications of everything I do. I think most companies that choose a lawyer for chief diversity officer do so because they believe that person will help the company avoid missteps. But if you’re operating true to your core values, there should be no fear of that. That’s why I would choose a lawyer, but I’d rather have someone passionate about the work. I understood that my role was to give advice and tell them how best to protect themselves, but I didn’t make the ultimate decision. If you have a lawyer make that decision, something is haywire. The lawyer is just to advise you, then defend you if you make a misstep.”

Wanji Walcott, Chief Technology Counsel (and a member of the diversity council), American Express Co., No. 12 in The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity: “Diversity is something we had to do to expand our business, grow our business and win in the marketplace. I also want to retain the people we spend so much time recruiting.

Diversity metrics can be scary if it looks and sounds like quotas. When we’re talking about goals, lawyers have an easier time. Rather than say ‘We have two positions open and we want to have women fill them,’ we’re more comfortable saying ‘We want to ensure that we have a diverse slate of candidates for those positions.’ That means you have to look beyond your country club to find the right people. American Express sends a diversity survey to all the law firms we work with now. Over the years, we’ve gotten better about looking at those results. We celebrate those that have made strides in the diversity space and we’re severing ties with those firms who have made no progress or who are moving backwards.”