ARE YOU AN OUTLAW? MEET MEGAN MCKEON
WHO HAS REDEFINED WHAT IT MEANS TO THINK OUTSIDE THE LAW (AKA OUTLAW) AND IS HELPING EACH OF US IN THE PROCESS?
Megan McKeon
Meet Megan McKeon, Director of Business Development for Clark Hill. In her role, Megan helps attorneys win new work and maximize business potential from targeted clients by creating client teams, facilitating client interviews, developing client pursuit programs and cross-selling efforts, and implementing impactful business development and client service training. She leads the Clark Hill business development team in raising the market profile of attorneys and key practices and in driving new business and cross-selling efforts to generate significant revenue for the firm. With more than two decades of active involvement in LMA on the international, regional, and local levels, Megan is currently serving as Co-Chair of LMA’s 2023 Annual Conference Advisory Committee. She is admitted to practice law in Illinois and holds an MBA.
Below is a recent interview conducted with Megan. Enjoy getting to know this Outlaw!
Q: What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
A: Taking out the garbage and realizing too late there’s a hole in the bag and some hot gross garbage juice has dripped on your socks. Makes my skin crawl!
Q: Where would you like to live?
A: My retirement plan is to relocate to Europe. We’d rent an apartment in a major city for two years, then move to another city for another two years, and so on…I think I’d start in London!
Q: What is your idea of happiness?
A: Sitting outside, having a great conversation with great friends, sipping a nice drink, while something delicious cooks on the grill. That makes me feel very happy and very content.
Q: What is your motto?
A: Get Sh!t Done. It was actually the motto of the LMA Midwest Board the year I was lucky enough to serve as president, and it’s a mantra I embody every day. Strategy is table stakes, and plans are essential—but nothing brings progress faster than taking a couple of minutes to actually get something done instead of talking about all the things we’ll do!
Q: To what faults do you feel most indulgent?
A: I am a terrible human being because I rarely eat leftovers. That’s not to say we don’t have any in our household, but I am very fortunate to have a husband who is more than happy to eat the same thing day, after day, after day, so nothing goes to waste. I really crave variety in everything I do, and dinners are no exception! ;)
Q: Finish this sentence: “If I could have one super-power, it would be…”
A: I’m going to take this in a different direction. The super hero I’d most like to be is Batman. I feel like with Bruce Wayne’s resources, he could do so much more to actually effect change than spending billions on technology and going around as a giant bat to pick fights with street criminals—and I’d change that! Now, my “work brother” Roy Sexton will probably come in here and tell me all the canonical ways in which Bruce Wayne changed the world far more than Batman. ;)
Q: Who are your favorite authors or what are your favorite books?
A: I recently read The Guest List by Lucy Foley. It was an intriguing tale about a murder at a wedding, with lots of fancy details that reminded me of Agatha Christie novels. A good murder mystery will always find its place on my reading list!
Q: If you could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?
A: I’d love to have dinner with my dad. He passed away about fifteen years ago and I’d just love to talk with him again about how much has changed—and how much has stayed the same—since then. I think he’d love to meet my husband, and I could sure use his advice now and then!
Q: What got you working in the legal industry?
A: Monster.com. Honestly. I was working at a sports marketing firm that ended up laying off all of its Chicago-based personnel. I’d just started going to law school at night, so figured I’d look for a low-level job at a law firm. Little did I know when I applied for the Marketing Clerk job at Schiff Hardin & Waite, I’d be setting the stage for the next 20 years. Dave Milberg and Marcie Johnson took a chance on me and the rest is history.
Q: Who is your favorite musician or band?
A: I’ve loved Guster since I was in college, and over the last decade I’ve really gotten into Blind Pilot. Three Rounds and a Sound was our wedding song.