Opportunities Ahead: Creating Pathways for GW Law Graduates


October 20, 2021

Delisle Warden Photo

In this interview, Delisle Warden, Associate Dean of GW Law's Center for Professional Development and Career Strategy, discusses what attracted him to GW Law, and the exciting new ways he plans to work with students and alumni to enrich their career opportunities. 

Dean Warden has worked as an attorney in the U.S. federal government, Am Law 100 law firms, as General Counsel for public institutions of higher education, as the Principal at Warden Legal, and as a marketing and mergers and acquisitions senior manager for a Fortune 100 technology company in Silicon Valley. 

He earned his JD at Harvard Law School, MBA at Washington University in St. Louis where he was a Consortium for Graduate Study in Management fellow, and his BA at Emory University. Additionally, Dean Warden earned the Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US) credential from the International Association of Privacy Professionals.

 

Q: What attracted you to this position with GW Law?

GW Law attracts students from across the country, and the students are interested in a wide variety of practice types and practice areas. I worked as an associate in large international law firms, as an attorney advisor at the U.S. Department of Commerce, and as General Counsel for large multi-college community college districts in California. 

I was attracted to this position, because I believe that I can leverage my experience in different organizations and practice areas to provide insights that are beneficial to students as they explore options for their legal careers—both for their first post-graduation job and as they consider lateral opportunities in the future. 

 

Q: What kinds of programs or services do you plan to offer to students?

The Center for Professional Development and Career Strategy offers a wide range of career education services, including workshops, industry-focused panels, interactive networking and mentoring events, career and internship fairs and expos, and employer information sessions. The Center will also continue to offer one-on-one meetings with counselors where the students and counselors collaborate to identify students' respective strengths and interests, work on professional skills development, gain assistance with job and internship searches, and learn more about various industries and legal fields.

Recognizing that it is increasingly common for recent graduates to pursue lateral opportunities early in their respective careers, we are developing programs to increase awareness amongst students on how to identify internship and fulltime employment that allows them to develop the skill sets needed to achieve their long-term career goals.

 

Q: How do you plan to work with our alumni network?

There have been several recent additions to the Center for Professional Development and Career Strategy team including a Career Services Manager position that is specifically tasked with, amongst other things, deepening the Career Center's relationship with alumni and alumni organizations. 

The team is developing programs and additional resources to facilitate successful job searches for recent graduates. Additionally, we will continue to build relationships with alumni who are interested in networking and participating in career development activities (such as mock and informational interviews, and serving as panelists at workshops) with current students. 

 

Q: What have you discovered so far about our student body?

The range of skills and career interests is incredibly broad. Some students are very focused on practicing in a particular area of law, e.g., national security, and matriculated at GW Law because of our reputation in that particular area of law.

Other students are exploring different career opportunities and express an interest in learning more about legal careers in both the public and private sectors. With one of the largest legal career counseling teams in the country, we have counselors that have the broad range of skills and subject matter expertise needed to advise such a diverse group of law students. 

 

Q: In your opinion, what makes this an exciting time to enter the legal field?

Technology, especially software, has dramatically changed how business is conducted in the U.S. The legal industry is slow to change, and is only now moving to adopt technologically enabled processes that are already widely used in other industries. I believe this creates a lot of "blue ocean" business opportunities for attorneys who can identify business problems and develop software solutions that address the unique business needs of practicing attorneys in the private and public sectors.

 

Q: What is a favorite hobby or off-work activity that you enjoy?

I enjoy landscape photography and hiking (to areas with picturesque vistas). The topography of the San Francisco Bay Area (where I lived for the past five years) provided many stunning views of hills, mountains, and valleys. 

I am interested in how technology can be used to improve efficiencies in business processes, and spend a significant bit of my free time engaging in informal meetings with friends who are data scientists, or software engineers to understand the limitations of SaaS platforms marketed as providing solutions to the types of business issues I routinely addressed in my prior roles as general counsel.  

 

Q: What are you reading currently or what podcast are you enjoying?

Generally, I read articles on strategy, leadership, and organizational culture in the Harvard Business Review. I also enjoy reading articles in The Atlantic