Marking Earth Day, DLA Piper explains how they are developing their early careers recruitment strategy for a more sustainable future.
DLA Piper won ISE’s Most Successful Early Careers Strategy 2024. The firm demonstrated a strategically aligned experience in a complex sector that delivered exceptional results, including advancements in sustainable recruitment.
As part of its refreshed early careers strategy, sustainability and environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) became a priority focus area, and the firm has a goal of being a Net Zero law firm by 2040.
This aim has become increasingly important as students expect prospective employers to act in a sustainable way, and clients expect their advisors to show leadership in this area. In order to help clients transition to, and thrive in, a more sustainable future, sustainability needs to be embedded into the fabric of the firms.
More sustainable recruitment
Change starts with individual action, and DLA Piper's early careers recruitment is striving to be industry leading in our approach to sustainability. As part of demonstrating this commitment, it became a Sustainable Recruitment Alliance signatory.
The firm's progress towards more sustainable recruitment includes:
- Being the first law firm in the world to be accredited as a Carbon Literate Organisation (CLO) by the Carbon Literacy Project. DLA Piper introduced Carbon Literacy training for all trainees and apprentices, and summer interns also participate in a scaled back version of the full training programme which is co-delivered with the Speak Carbon Collective
- Use of electronic handbooks for internship and training programmes
- Delivering most of its attraction campaign at universities without the use of merchandise since 2017, and students instead vote towards a charity to receive a charitable donation.
- Introduction of a blended approach to attraction events (both virtual and in person) since the Covid-19 pandemic
- Paperless online contracts across all intern and graduate hiring
DLA Piper Guiding principles for sustainability
DLA Piper’s guiding principles for sustainability in early careers hiring
- Think ‘digital first’ when event planning. Always consider whether an event’s aim can be fulfilled by holding the event virtually
- Phase out the distribution of merchandise and print collateral at schools and universities
- Phase out the use of printed materials within the selection and assessment process
- Limit the distribution of merchandise at programmatic activity to goods which are recycled, reused or locally sourced
- Consider meat-free and/or locally sourced catering at all events and eliminate the distribution of single‑use food and drink packaging
- Ensure application of our Thoughtful Travel policy at all events and programmes, and source business representatives on a proximity basis
- Embed sustainability training into all attraction, selection and development activity
- Partner with external organisations, where appropriate to do so, to enhance sustainability efforts
Our refreshed early careers strategy compels us to make faster progress towards integrating sustainability into our recruitment.
In the year ahead, our focus is on introducing a paperless assessment and selection process and further evolving our carbon literacy training offering to our early careers’ populations.
DLA Piper's Sustainability Report is available here.