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Hall & Wilcox

4.6
  • 1,000 - 50,000 employees

Culture at Hall & Wilcox

9.4
9.4 rating for Culture, based on 33 reviews
Please describe your company's culture both in the office and after hours. Let us know about the structure and hierarchy, cooperation and teamwork, and socialising amongst colleagues.
All good, everyone is quite approachable.
Graduate, Sydney
Great social environment at work, the office always seems to be full of young(er) like minded people so very social inside and outside of work hours. They really push culture here but it comes from a genuine place not just the standard virtue signalling. A positive of the open plan office is that you really get to know everyone from Partners to legal assistants and everyone is truly respected regardless of the work they do.
Graduate, Newcastle
Company culture is fantastic - everyone is extremely caring, nice, and take an interest in you as an individual as opposed to as a colleague. Whilst there is a hierarchy, those in positions senior to me never make me feel intimated and have made it clear that I can simply approach them and ask questions whenever I require.
Graduate, Sydney
Great culture in office. Everyone always says hello to each other, even if you hadn't met them before. Open door policy. After hours, there is great work life balance. There are lots of social functions happening outside of work from sports committees and social committees.
Graduate, Melbourne
The culture at Hall & Wilcox is generally awesome. It is a positive and friendly environment. With more than 110 ppl there are always going to be some ppl who are less openly friendly than others but they are rare. We have an open plan office and partners do not have individual offices (no one does). We also do hot desking, although our practice areas are set out in 'neighbourhoods'. I was surprised by how well this worked. The partners are obviously at the top of the hierarchy in the office with national management above that. Our CEO and CFO are regular in the office and are openly friendly and definitely at least try to be approachable. We have an excellent, social office for those who feel like being social. There are regular events organised by the social club plus weekly Friday night drinks, that include a quiz run by the graduates. It's a fun time and a great way to end the week. We also have HW Evolve - which is a hybrid form of working in the office and from home. Most people work 2-3 days in the office and the rest from home. There is no pressure to return to the office and there isn't even enough desks for everyone in the office if they turned up on the same day. We are expected to be responsible and recognise that some work is best done in the office/face-to-face. It works well and is great for work life balance and helps to keep us all happy I think.
Graduate, Brisbane
The graduate cohort is very friendly and supportive, often doing after work events or hanging out at lunch time. The team I work in is very young and friendly, and there's a strong bond between the staff that work there. The workplace itself is full of people who will come up and introduce themselves at lunchtime for a chat, and are keen to talk to a grad about the experiences in their own team. Generally, I feel as though there is a very collegiate atmosphere. I never feel looked down upon as a grad, if anything I feel like people are excited to make sure I enjoy my time at the firm.
Graduate, Melbourne
Everyone is very friendly and the culture is positive and supportive.
Graduate, Sydney
Culture at Hall & Wilcox is great and the firm does its best to find people that will fit within their culture. Some people are easier to get along than others however that is the case in any office.
Graduate, Perth
People get along quite well in the office, partners are approachable, there is an emphasis on sharing the load in my team (good cooperation and teamwork) - colleagues socialise after work too, at firm events and social sport
Graduate, Melbourne
I believe the thing that contributes to the culture the most is how friendly and nice everyone at the firm is. People genuinely care and are willing to held you. This contributes to a very collaborative and supportive culture.
Graduate, Melbourne
The culture is very respectful and inclusive. As a person of colour I don't feel out of place at work. We have a lot of social activities such as a Harbour cruise, Luna Park, Friday night drinks, and social sport like tennis. Many people bring their whole selves to work and are genuinely friends. The workplace is very collaborative where we enjoy learning from and mentoring each other. There is still a clear hierarchy but everyone is approachable, eager to connect and chat.
Graduate, Sydney
The culture is strong. People are friendly and welcoming. I have got to know people inside, as well as outside of my team/practice area. I don't feel that there is any disconnect between those at a higher level (eg partners) and those at a lower level such as myself. I have built good relationships with the partners, special counsel and senior associates, just as I have with my graduate cohort. Within my team, the work-sharing arrangement is great, I have been getting work from many different lawyers and assisting in a variety of sub-practice areas which has been great for my exposure to different areas of law. There are many social events, probably the right number in my view. I cannot always attend them all, but I don't feel pressured to get involved in everything, I just attend those of interest to me. I can't speak highly enough of HW.
Graduate, Perth
In the Newcastle office there is a real community basis at least in the insurance teams. I have noticed there isn't a lot of intermingling with the commercial teams (except at quiz time). Teamwork is huge in my team as it is one of the larger at the Newcastle office so we all have to work together to understand where matters are at. This may be because I am the only grad in the team so I am doing work for all solicitors.
Graduate, Newcastle
One of HW's strongest points is its culture. The culture across the board is very impressive, there are lots of social and sporting events and opportunities to meet and mingle with people across the firm. The firm has a clear focus on culture, which is great, particular as a junior, making you feel more comfortable with your colleagues of all levels. The structure is fairly standard for law firms. Partners are mostly very friendly and down to earth, some have high expectations of you and expect you to work long hours or get things done ASAP. This can be tricky to manage, but this is standard in the legal profession, for better or worse. Different teams have different cultures. Some are very flat, where partners are very approachable and everyone is very friendly. Each team that I have experienced has some great mentors in the senior associate/special counsel positions, who are open with their time and offer great feedback and support to grads. Lower level employees are also very friendly and willing to offer advice and support. However, some teams are simply very busy, and people will have less time to mentor and support you.
Graduate, Melbourne
I would say the hierarchy is horizontal. Although there are people that are clearly more senior and have exceptional skills and are partners or SC, they do not talk down to anyone. The culture is warm and friendly.
Graduate, Newcastle
The firm has offices across Australia but it really is one big family and the culture is more or less the same across the board. Everyone is friendly, welcoming, supportive and has your best interests at heart. People and partners are easy to approach, always happy to answer questions and take time out of their busy days to guide you through difficult tasks. Outside of office hours the firm is very active. We have a sports committee which organises weekly netball and indoor soccer games. We recently went rock climbing and there are so many more events to come, including Run Melbourne in July. The social committee run drinks every month or so and the firm is big on Friday night drinks. The firm is very social and there is always something to look forward to!
Graduate, Melbourne
Hall & Wilcox is known to have a fantastic culture and I have had an experience that aligns with this reputation. People are friendly, genuine and work together. There is a big collaborative practice, and resources are shared. One of the key values here is 'better together' and our promotional structure and performance reviews are partially based on how well we can demonstrate teamwork, resource sharing, mentorship etc. This means that mentors are generally very happy to share their time. There is a hierarchy (partners, special counsel, senior associates, etc), though my perception is that it is rather flat. The offices are open and partners sit amongst lawyers. I sit across from a partner and chat with them everyday.
Graduate, Sydney
There is extensive teamwork and collaboration, there is no overwhelming feeling of status/entitlement or hierarchy. We have an open workplace plan where partners are seated next to all employees in a very positive and kind environment.
Graduate, Sydney
Everyone is very friendly and welcoming and there are social events outside of work hours.
Graduate, Melbourne
Approachable, inclusive and overall, easy to get along. Because of my colleagues and the culture at Hall & Wilcox, I was able to learn a lot in a short amount of time without being afraid of asking questions.
Graduate, Brisbane