Diversity and Inclusion

Our Diversity Statement

Not everyone wears a tie at Wolf Theiss – and that’s a good thing. We are a people’s business and we are just as diverse as our clients. As a result, we live a diverse corporate culture with equal opportunities for all. What’s more, we strive for inclusion in all aspects of our business.

Our people, regardless of gender, age, ethnic background or nationality, religion or belief, sexual orientation or disability, are the foundation of our success. We believe that diversity is our greatest asset, keeping us a law firm fit for the future.

Our Focus Areas

At Wolf Theiss, we understand that our diversity is what sets us apart and makes us unique. We recognize the importance of enhancing accessibility and fostering transparent communication in this regard. Diversity encompasses a wide range of dimensions, including age, gender, sexual orientation and identity, ethnic background and nationality, disability, religion and belief. This commitment extends not only to our employees but also to our clients and other stakeholders within our organization.

In the following sections, we aim to illustrate our commitment to embracing these dimensions within our company and our ongoing efforts to foster their growth.

– Gender

At Wolf Theiss, we prioritize inclusivity. Our doors are open to individuals of all genders. We believe in the power of diverse perspectives, fostering an environment where everyone is valued and celebrated. Our commitment is to create a workplace where diversity is our strength and all talents are welcomed and appreciated. In alignment with this commitment, we actively champion “Female Focus,” an initiative that contributes to the richness and vibrancy of our company culture.

Women Empowerment
At Wolf Theiss, we recognize that our people are fundamental to our success and our female staff are an integral part of our achievements, even at the management and partner levels. Our team consists of two essential groups: the Legals, who are experts in core legal areas and our Non-Legals, including Business Professionals and Legal Assistants, who provide valuable support to our lawyers, ensuring seamless operations and exceptional client service.

We are committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive and excel. Empowering women in their careers is not only the right thing to do but also a strategic choice that enriches our organization with unique perspectives and talents.

Award-winning achievements
Our continuous support of women in the legal profession has earned us the “European Women in Business Law Award”, multiple times, in several countries.

European Women in Business Law Award: Central Europe

2024

European Women in Business Law Award: Poland

2024

External initiatives
In Poland, we have supported female entrepreneurship through a partnership with the Women’s Entrepreneurship Foundation (Fundacja Przedsiębiorczości Kobiet) and Black Swan Fund. We have given conferences on investments in start-up companies and establishing new businesses, as well as networking events in our Warsaw office for women investors.

Wolf Theiss Vienna is a partner law firm to GCD&I (General Counsel for Diversity and Inclusion) and supports its goals through ongoing dialogues with signatories and other partners. The objective of GCD&I is to promote Equity, Diversity and Inclusion across the legal sector, through defining and sharing best practices, identifying KPIs and Metrics to measure success and encouraging in-house legal teams to take steps that support greater ED&I.

Internal initiatives
More than half of our lawyers are women. For many years, we have been implementing targeted measures to increase the proportion of women at all hierarchical levels. As a continuation of our existing female advancement programme (Equal Opportunities), we have launched our Female Focus initiative. The campaign serves as an umbrella for a range of projects related to business development, parenthood and training/development. We offer internal network opportunities, lectures by inspiring women (not only from the legal world) and a call to action with projects to address as many areas as possible (regular training from top external trainers, business development, work/life balance, parenthood and our internal mentoring programme ‘Female Confidants’). Participation is completely voluntary and anyone interested and motivated can participate, regardless of hierarchy.

The collaboration between Human Resources and Business Development & Marketing allows us to shed light on several aspects of female empowerment and ensures a very fruitful exchange.

One remarkable outcome is our Parental Leave Policy, which covers both mothers and fathers across all of our offices. The policy establishes guidelines for maternity and paternity leave, as well as the option to work part-time after leave. This is because individual needs call for unique arrangements, particularly for lawyers who have young children and may require additional flexibility in organising their time and meeting revenue targets.

At Wolf Theiss, we believe in fostering an inclusive and empowering workplace where diversity is not just celebrated but actively supported. Recognizing the importance of female empowerment, we are committed to our parental policy that not only accommodates the unique needs of our female staff, but also gives our fathers the opportunity to organize their time flexibly according to the needs of the family.
Barbara Stimpfl-Abele
Chief Human Resources Officer, Female Focus Patron

– Ethnicity

With offices in 13 countries across the CEE/SEE region, we boast a highly diverse cultural footprint. Our workforce currently comprises around 30 different nationalities and although English serves as the official language of Wolf Theiss, our team members collectively speak nearly 40 different languages.

In order to foster diversity and inclusion at WT across borders, we’ve formed a Diversity Taskforce comprised of János Tóth [Partner, Hungary], Andreea Stan [Counsel, Romania] and Karolina Stawowska [Partner, Poland]. They are actively collaborating to create a vibrant, inclusive environment. Meeting regularly, they’re driving progress towards a more diverse and open future, both within our organization and beyond, leveraging their diverse perspectives and experiences to make meaningful strides on a global scale.

– Age

We embrace a dynamic and innovative work culture, fueled by our average age of 36 (as of July 2024). We believe in nurturing young talents by involving them from the outset while also cherishing the wealth of knowledge and experience brought by older generations.

By combining the fresh perspectives of our young talents with the seasoned wisdom of our experienced team members, we create a dynamic and collaborative environment.

We believe in learning by doing. Our juniors are invited to gain leadership experience at an early stage by supporting our assessment centre process for selecting legal interns. After this, juniors oversee the mentorship of the legal interns and share their knowledge in internal training sessions. Additionally, we offer network training and events to practice client acquisitions and there is the possibility to be actively engaged in various working groups with juniors also benefiting from a mentoring programme.

Seniors also benefit from mentoring & training programmes and if there is a special need, we offer individual training and further education programmes as well. Generally, we embrace applications from all age groups, including seasoned professionals.

Our commitment to bridging generational gaps empowers us to face challenges with creativity and resilience, driving us towards success. For this purpose, our Reverse Mentoring initiative was launched. 4-6 of our members from Generation Z (WT Global) and members of our Management Board come together on a monthly basis, in order to engage in an open dialogue on various topics in relation to WT.

– Sexual Orientation

As an Austrian law firm navigating the balance between tradition and change, we embrace individuals of all sexual orientations and genders. Our commitment to diversity shapes our evolving identity and fosters an inclusive legal environment.

As we built our offices in 13 countries and became one of the largest regional law firms in CEE, we saw that diversity, generosity and openness were the most essential success factors. Organizations that did not live this simply did not have long-term success. Different backgrounds, languages, religions and sexual orientations have always enriched us and made us what we are today. In times when this is being called into question – especially in CEE – it is a matter of course for me to fly the flag for these values.
Christian Mikosch
Partner, Diversity Patron

Cooperation with Pride Biz Austria

We see the cooperation with Pride Biz Austria (an association initiated for the promotion of the inclusion of sexual diversity in business and the world of work initiated by AGPRO and QBW and bundles activities in the field of LGBTIQA+ in business) as one of the first of many steps in the right direction to expand the boundaries within which we operate and to communicate this to the outside world. We want to show that people of all sexual orientations can and should feel comfortable at Wolf Theiss. We know that many more steps are needed to achieve our goal of equality for LGBTIQA+ people in all respects, but we are convinced that it is a good start.

Cooperation with Pride Business Forum

Partnering with Pride Business Forum, Prague—founded by IBM, Hilton Prague and Prague Pride—underscores our commitment to fostering an LGBTIQA+ friendly workplace across all our locations, also in CEE. Through this collaboration, we aim to demonstrate that we provide a safe and inclusive environment for everyone. Additionally, it allows us to engage with other members, presenting valuable opportunities for growth and continuous improvement.

Disability

We welcome everybody and focus on abilities rather than disabilities. It is important to us to create the right working environment for everybody and to respond to individual needs. We ensure fair treatment when hiring employees, in all areas of the recruiting process as well as in our employment relationships. Wolf Theiss cooperates with myAbility in order to increase our visibility to applicants with disabilities. myAbility strives for equal opportunities for people with disabilities in the job market. As an employer, we prioritize creating a workplace free from discrimination and ensuring secure structures for unforeseen circumstances. To reinforce this commitment, we’ve appointed a dedicated Diversity Confidant available to all employees. Additionally, we offer the option to utilize a whistleblowing tool for added accessibility and transparency.

Equal opportunities for all

We ensure equal treatment when hiring employees, in all areas of the recruiting process as well as in our employment relationships. In our day-to-day dealings with each other, we benefit from an open culture that accepts all religions and world views.

We signed the “Charta der Vielfalt” (eng. Diversity Charter) for Austria, Slovakia, Romania and Czech Republic, which is a public and voluntary commitment of organisations to value and recognize diversity. By signing the Charter, businesses and employers pledge to appreciate all individuals – regardless of gender, skin colour, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, worldview, disability, age, sexual orientation, or identity.