Statement on our Culture and Employment Structure

  • Tailored employment structures for our employees were forefront objectives when we set up Advent’s internal model for hiring and retaining patent professionals. All of us involved with the founding of Advent had experience with large national firms using traditional lock-step hierarchical structures. This system may work when a general practice firm has a large pool of candidates and professionals are more fungible. Yet, for a boutique patent practice this type of model is a hindrance for retention and advancement of individuals who do not fit the traditional model.

    This highlights one of the major issues we set out to solve at Advent through a rethinking of the business of law at the highest level.    

    We refused to accept the status quo. Instead, we developed a three-pronged approach to address these issues:

    1. We invented a new non-hierarchical system for implementing a multitude of models within the same firm that are hyper-focused on inclusivity and retention of our patent practitioners;

    2. We implemented programs to recruit and engage undergraduate students educate them about potential career paths as a patent practitioner; and 

    3. We developed a highly customizable program for hiring engineers from colleges and thereafter mentoring those engineers through the patent bar examination process and potentially through law school in order to organically grow new talent.     

  • We chose the name ADVENT because it means something very dear to us. It means “the beginning.” We set out to be the beginning of something very different. At Advent, we scrapped the traditional top-down approach of most law firms and implemented a lateral flow internal structure. We knew that work-life and wellness initiatives promote a healthy and welcoming environment for all. Thus, for example, we do not use the billable-hour or time as any type of internal indicator of our attorney’s profitability. Additionally, for the most part since opening Advent, we have never had a “time” in the office requirement or required our people to work from the office (unless they are being mentored). Yet, most of our professionals choose to do so much of the time. Moreover — and this is a key benefit leading to enhanced recruitment and retention — we allow all our employees to take unlimited days off work for any reason (including staff).  

    Professionals work with the hiring and/or management team to develop their own individualized model based on their particular life circumstances, and that model can be modified by them at any time during their employment based on changing circumstances. Our professionals choose their initial starting salary (within objective reason) under their individual model and have some discretion to accept or reject any project on which they work, along with the value associated with those projects. In addition, our compensation model is set up so associates can earn more than partners and patent agents can earn more than attorneys (even partners). This egalitarian approach happens regularly and puts everyone on a level playing field.    

    We have developed a unique software program to account for the system and all models under the system in a completely transparent and objective manner. We have found that the system provides inclusiveness for almost any life circumstance and the ability to organically grow within the system based on the professional’s choices and preferences that they dictate. Because we are not an “eat what you kill” model, the risk of any professional’s underperformance is typically on the firm. Yet, we have found that the power of choice creates freedom, great empowerment, responsibility, personal ownership, and trust within the team. Most of all, we have seen a great amount of creativity and new ideas regarding how we conduct business.

  • Given the fact we were not seeing law schools graduate adequate numbers of attorneys with the right technical backgrounds, and the fact we were finding very few youth who even knew about patent law, we had to rethink how we recruited new talent and educated high school and engineering students about opportunities as a patent professionals. The need to cultivate a tech-savvy workforce is one of the reasons Advent is involved with and supports the AIM Institute, a nonprofit that is building the tech community in Omaha. In addition to the professional development and industry events that AIM facilitates for current tech professionals, AIM also helps build the next generation of tech talent by providing free, hands-on tech education — including 3D printing, CAD designing, coding and more — to youth who would not otherwise have the chance to take part.

    Additionally, several years ago we started engaging the local engineering colleges to give them exposure to the patent profession. We also proposed clerkship and full-time roles to around 10 engineering schools in the Midwest. We reached out to several schools that offer a Master of Patent Law to their engineering students (not a legal degree). These efforts are continuous and on-going in hopes of continuing to organically develop talent in the patent profession generally, and more importantly, for Advent.

Examples of Our Success with Culture and Tailored Employment Structure

Mallory Henninger is a great example of the success of our tailored employment structure and the effects of our system to accommodate a variety of life circumstances. We initially brought Mallory into Advent through Creighton Law School’s clerkship program. Her clerkship program was a split clerkship between Advent and one of our largest clients. This experience was enlightening because she was able to see both sides of the attorney-client relationship and different perspectives from a variety of individuals. After working in our system over the school year and graduating, we worked through a model where we could mentor her for the patent bar. After becoming a patent attorney with Advent, Mallory has graduated with a Master of Science in Intellectual Property Law, is studying for her PhD in Intellectual Property Law, and is an adjunct professor at Creighton Law School. She has achieved these great accomplishments while living and maintaining a 4-H farm in her family’s hometown about an hour and a half from our offices.  Mallory has developed into one of the most productive attorneys in the firm. Over the span of her employment at Advent she proposed, and we implemented, several different models to facilitate her changing life circumstances, enabling her to achieve her objectives.  

Andrea Rodriguez is another illustration of how Advent is implementing tailored employment structures to create a successful environment for our employees. Andrea came to the United States from Managua, Nicaragua. She moved to Omaha shortly after receiving her engineering degree from John Brown University in Arkansas. She heard about Advent’s opportunities for engineers through our recruiting and mentoring initiative with the engineering schools. When she started with Advent, we implemented a model where she would primarily be working on patent searching and landscape analysis while being mentored on traditional patent preparation and prosecution projects. She requested that we increase her mentoring on traditional patent preparation projects and subsidize a course to put her on a fast track for taking the Patent Bar, which she then passed on her first attempt. Additionally, Andrea came to us with a proposal to spearhead our marketing initiatives, which we accepted. She also took an active role during a pitch to a major US client, which the firm was ultimately awarded. During the pitch, the group expressed an interest in working with her as she progressed toward becoming a patent agent and after she became a patent agent.

Domingo Sandoval is yet another example of how Advent is implementing tailored employment structures to create career advancements. Domingo received an electrical engineering degree from John Brown University, Arkansas. He has worked in intellectual property since 2014, starting in a renowned European law firm. Domingo came to the United States from Matagalpa, Nicaragua under a humanitarian parole program in 2023. Upon receiving his work permit and interviewing in person, Advent realized the extreme potential of his electrical and computer science engineering experience and vast knowledge in patent searching and landscaping. Domingo started working in Advent in 2024 as a Technology Specialist and began training under our attorneys and patent agents to obtain a USPTO registration once he fulfills all requirements to take the Patent Bar. Considering this out-of-the-ordinary situation, Advent is sponsoring Domingo’s permanent work authorization by obtaining a permanent labor certification. We recognize the resilience and professionalism that Domingo brings to the Advent team and are inspired by his strong desire to contribute to the innovation industry through his years of expertise.

 Over the past several years, we have taken proactive steps and have expended substantial resources to develop new systems and processes to account for the different life situations of recruits and our employees in hopes of continuing the success we have achieved with our initiatives.