by Sander Coxe
Tiffany Yarde, a dynamic, lively and forward thinking chapter member, is travelling far, both professionally and personally. Her career recently moved in a new direction when she shifted gears and left her role as a Practice Development Manager at White & Case to take on a new challenge as a Diversity & Inclusion professional at Skadden. Tiffany, after eight years working in marketing and business development for international law firms, now devotes her day to diversity initiatives designed to help her organization continue to be representative of the global communities it serves. It’s a fitting role because Tiffany has much first-hand experience exploring the globe on her own.
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Hi Tiffany. Where are you from?
I am a New Yorker - born and raised in Brooklyn. My family immigrated to NYC many moons ago from the pristine isle of Barbados.
How big a family?
I am the second oldest of six. I have two sisters and three brothers. I am not a mother at this time but I have a niece and I'm a godmother to five fine kids. I love being the cool Aunt.
How did you make your way to legal marketing/communications/PR?
Where to begin? I started out as an assistant controller for a boutique law firm after leaving PricewaterhouseCoopers as an external auditor. I transitioned into legal marketing from the controller role based on the boutique's business development needs at the time. Over six years I went from a marketing department of one to a full service team of over five professionals. After spending two years short of a decade in legal marketing I decided to spread my wings and follow my passions.
I was hired by Skadden to support and add value to communications that focus on diversity and inclusion initiatives – an essential subject for an elite, global law firm. Our clients care greatly about this. It has become almost as much a marketing function as an HR function. Considering my Masters is in strategic human capital development, it was a very natural transition, and so far, while incredibly demanding, it has been a great fit. Skadden has shown tremendous dedication to these issues and I am privileged to have the opportunity to make a difference.
Great stuff. You obviously have an exciting new professional path. What do you to relax and cut loose?
Reading with a great cup of tea. 20 minutes in the sauna after a rigorous workout. In the summer months, hitting the rooftop scene with colleagues is always a blast.
Which rooftops?
230 Fifth, Refinery, Bar 54, Pod 39 Hotel. I love the rooftops. I also love visiting The Frying Pan on the Hudson when the weather is warm.
Love the Frying Pan and Pier 66! Thanks for the reminder – I have to get over there. Food and drink on the water – what’s not to love? A good lead in to one of our favorite inquiries: what are your favorite foods? And drink?
French cuisine! I love foie gras. I love my wine as well and am a bit of an aficionado. I actually teach wine fundamentals to young people in my spare time.
How cool. What do you teach?
The basics – flavor profile, locations, history of and how to become a more educated buyer.
What do you read outside of work?
I usually have about 2-3 books in rotation at any given time. My selections often have a business component or literature tied to understanding human behavior and growth. With that in mind, my favorite this quarter is "Originals" by Adam Grant. It sheds light on how to discern what separates us, and how our differences are exactly what the world needs to drive societal progression.
Also, I love “How Children Succeed” by Paul Tough, which looks at the characteristics and ingredients young people need to reach their accomplishments in today's competitive environment. From pre-school to young adulthood, there are tons of examples of resilience and how wide, not deep, experience is valued, and how synergies come about from having multiple backgrounds of experience and interest. Both are powerful reads on organizational psychology and thinking.
Any favorite films or TV shows?
Not so much.
Music?
I love calypso, steel drum. I love violin – but I don’t play.
Any favorite artists?
Lauryn Hill, John Legend, Nina Simone.
What else, if there is any time leftover, fills your days?
I love to travel and recently spent two weeks in Egypt with a close friend. It was wild and fantastic, and very educational. We visited four cities - Cairo, Luxor, Hurghada, Alexandria – and took in countless amazing sights and bits of history. We visited the Sanskrit wing of the Library of Alexandria. Many of the documents are so old and fragile that they cannot be exposed to light.
The Pyramids of course were wonderful. The visit to Coptic Cairo was inspiring. And the food was incredible everywhere we ate. Because I was traveling with my good Egyptian friends, we received good intel and got to discover amazing food in Alexandria and Luxor as well. Luxor was beautiful and lush, very green and very quiet.
Downriver they do things differently; we saw and experienced plenty of horse and buggy transport. So beautiful! The Valley of the Kings is awe inspiring. But the Egyptians are very protective of their artifacts, so no photos allowed. At nearly 110 degrees every day, I was always in search of shade before photo opportunities! Many of the tombs I visited in Luxor were emptied moons ago so, strategically, I took the time to visit the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities in Cairo. In doing so, I was able to see a lot of preserved original tomb artifacts and live mummies that once resided in Luxor. So many incredible and thought-provoking experiences. I absolutely loved it.
I also loved the South of France. I stayed in the commune of Juan Les Pins located in Antibes. The Metro was super easy to use so I visited cities like Cannes, Nice, and Monaco over the course of days. I even had the pleasure of taking a ferry to Saint Tropez. It was wonderfully relaxed vacation and a better fit for me than the City of Lights. I am not necessarily a Paris girl.
For my next trip I am planning to visit South Africa and Johannesburg in particular.
Outstanding. I am jealous! Great trips and inspirational for me. Is there anything else you would like to share with us? Idols? Pet peeves?
Sure. I can say with little hesitation that few things bother me more than a lack of consideration for tone in written communications. There is often insufficient context on email and text. Since we spend so much time not being face to face anymore, we need to be mindful and considerate.
I am with you on that!