Women’s History Month is a time to celebrate the vital contributions of women around the world. This year, our theme, Breaking Through, pays tribute to the many trailblazing women in the legal profession and beyond who have shattered through countless glass ceilings and held their hands out to pull up future generations.
We asked Barbara Mayer-Trautmann, a Banking and Leveraged Finance Group partner in our Munich office, to share some thoughts.
What are the challenges of being a woman practicing law in your area of expertise?
As a partner in the firm’s Banking and Leveraged Finance Group representing both lenders and sponsors/borrowers, my practice is transaction and business driven. It’s high-intensity, fast-paced and, in some ways, relatively unchanged from 25 years ago—it’s very much male-dominated from a client-base perspective.
My clients are most often private equity sponsors, typically young deal captains, or, with bigger funds, finance specialists, investment bankers (where I nowadays come across more female clients), lending fund representatives and CFOs. Similar to the meetings I attended at the beginning of my career, my recent Zoom calls often include myself and a female associate as the only women—although I will say that there are probably as many female top-ranked practitioners in my area of expertise in Germany as there are male ones.
I will never forget one meeting where my associate and I were the only women hosting a restructuring kickoff for 20 clients from five different financial institutions, along with the borrower and their counsel. As the host, I made sure everyone found a place and that the seating order made sense. There were self-service beverages and coffee. I noticed a senior client from the restructuring department of one of the institutions and when I tried to introduce myself he asked whether I could serve him a coffee, no milk and two sugars. He was clearly certain that I was the receptionist. I served his coffee and then asked everyone to sit down, opened the meeting and ran through the agenda. He looked absolutely puzzled.
My practice is deadline driven and requires a great deal of planning ahead. A strong focus on teamwork and team efficiency, as well as a structured approach to work and self-organization, is vital in order to combine a successful career with the challenges of motherhood – we have four children – and family life in a balanced way. Also important is the ability to be a control freak (only) when it’s really required. Letting go and trusting the people working around you, be it at the office or at home, allows you to create space and clear your mind for uncompromised attention as needed.
How do you believe female leadership/management makes a difference in business? Did you have female references/role models throughout your career?
I strongly believe diversity in leadership and management is the key to success in any partnership or organisation. In my experience, a decision prepared by a group of people with different views, backgrounds, ethnicities, religions or genders is more balanced, more innovative and thus a better decision. No partnership or organisation can afford to not utilise the brain power of the best of the best, whatever their background.
Looking back, Caroline Jury, a colleague at my former firm, is clearly my role model. She transferred from London to Frankfurt when the leveraged finance and private equity ideas hit Germany and the German market, and she rightly and undisputedly earned the title of “Queen of Acquisition Finance” by Juve 20 years ago. She was a married mother and at the same time built the leveraged finance practice at that firm. Caroline is low-key, low-ego and brilliant at what she does, a true leader by example and expertise, not title or seniority. During her career she “made” four female partners, all of whom but one, who left Germany, are ranked at the top of the German market today.
There were never discussions or doubts about career or family. Caroline just did her job with enthusiasm, resilience, endurance and an approach that put us at ease. The four of us never hesitated and never doubted our ability to achieve. Our gender was not an issue. Interestingly, there also is a high percentage of female partners outside my former law firm and I strongly believe that having a role model who is outside of your own organisation is one of the most powerful means of bringing diversity to an area of expertise or a market.
Name a Woman you admire and leave a message for future generations of female lawyers.
I will name two to make my point: Michelle Obama and Angela Merkel. They are so very different in terms of background, education, profession and personality, yet they’re both outstanding, successful and admirable in their own way.
My message: there is not one way to become a successful and content female lawyer but there is one way that’s right for each of you. Be yourself, choose the area of law you really enjoy and do not overvalue what others might think. Be resilient, enthusiastic and follow your own path at your own pace, setting your own priorities. It is definitely worth it!
