Since joining Mayer Brown in 2005 I have progressed from Graduate to Principal Transport Planner, and following a period of maternity leave I returned to the company on a part-time basis.  Mayer Brown has been extremely supportive in my decision to work part-time and I am grateful for the flexible working arrangements available to me.  The company continues to support me professionally and offers an enjoyable environment in which to work and learn.

Since the birth of my first child in 2007, Mayer Brown have helped me to accommodate a working situation which best suits my evolving home life. They have allowed me to work in a flexible manner and to carve out my own niche so that my career has remained productive and stimulating, whilst my commitment to family life is fully recognised.

I have worked for Mayer Brown for over 11 years. I enjoying working for a medium size company where everyone knows everyone, and the structure within the company means I regularly work with the same people but can be called upon to assist other teams as necessary.  The company offers significant flexibility – I reduced my hours to four days a week a number of years ago, which allowed me the opportunity to spend more time undertaking volunteering activities which I enjoy, and more recently reduced this slightly to three and half days a week due to family commitments. This gives the balance between home life and working, and ensures I am able to keep similar levels of responsibility at work and manage projects in the same way as before. Working from home is also an option, whether on an occasional or emergency basis, or undertaken more regularly on a scheduled basis, with IT support and equipment provided to enable access to project folders and therefore continuity of work with other team members.

Following starting at Mayer Brown as a graduate the company has provided support and assistance to allow me to develop my general and transport planning specific skills. Working within small regional teams has allowed me to experience a wider range of projects, with my specific involvement developing from report writing/analysis work to taking the lead on certain development schemes within a client facing role. The experience and knowledge of colleagues and open communication between teams/offices has been greatly beneficial for my development as a Transport Planner and to better understand the interaction between my work and other Mayer Brown disciplines.

The company has been very accommodating when I relocated areas from the midlands to the south west, enabling me to work remotely from within an alternative regional office and in turn move office location. Mayer Brown have also been obliging in allowing me flexible working to allow me to pursue a work/life balance that suits me and associated family commitments. The direct access we have available to speak to senior members of staff up to director level provides an element of comfort that if needed someone is always available to discuss and assist to address any concerns I may have in relation to projects or the workplace.

Since joining Mayer Brown as a CAD Technician in 2006 I have been provided with excellent training and opportunities, working on a vast range of projects including small and large scale mixed use, office-led and residential-led developments. In 2016 I was promoted to Senior Transport Planner, undertaking Transport Assessments, Travel Plans, Feasibility studies, junction design, GIS modelling and junction capacity assessments. Mayer Brown have sponsored me to undertake a BTEC qualification specific to Transport Planning and Traffic Management, which I successfully completed in 2016.

I am a committee member of the Mayer Brown Sports and Social Club, which runs regular social events, work lunches and sporting activities. I have also had the opportunity to be involved in planning one of the annual Mayer Brown away days, where staff get the opportunity to meet up with colleagues from all of the regional offices.  

I have worked at Mayer Brown for over 12 years, and many of my colleagues have worked at the company for longer, which goes to show what a great company Mayer Brown is.

I joined Mayer Brown as a graduate and have since gained a wide range of skills from writing Transport Assessments and Travel Plans, to undertaking junction design and analysis and GIS analysis.

Mayer Brown has given me many opportunities to develop my skills and further my knowledge through in-house training and external training courses.  In addition to this they have sponsored me to undertake a BTEC Level 4 course in Transport Planning and Traffic Management.  Mayer Brown are very supportive, and the working environment is enjoyable and engaging, which has given me confidence in my abilities. 

I am also a member of the Sports and Social Club (SSC), which organises regular in-house lunches, activities and evenings out such as go-karting, cinema trips, horse racing and various music gigs.   The club is a great way to socialise with colleagues from other teams outside of the office.

Since starting at Mayer Brown as a Graduate Engineer approximately 3 years ago I have gained a vast range of experience from undertaking Flood Risk Assessments and the detailed design of surface and foul water drainage networks (including SuDS) to undertaking modelling work using Civil 3D and Microdrainage. I was promoted to Engineer in April 2016 and over the last 3 years have had many opportunities to visit construction sites and have recently been assisting with the external works supervision associated with a £12million factory development.

In addition to the above Mayer Brown sponsored me to undertake an MSc programme in Management in Construction at Kingston University in which I recently graduated with distinction.   

As well as the work related opportunities I also partake in regular social activities including away days to Paris, regular sporting activities and evenings out (e.g. horse racing meetings, badminton, squash etc.).

So far my time at Mayer Brown has been invaluable in my Professional, Academic and Personal achievements and most importantly it has been enjoyable.

This placement is absolutely a wonderful experience and I really enjoy these weeks spending with Mayer Brown and with all of you in the office. I can really feel the kindness and friendliness from everyone in the office. Thank you very much.

“ …a really insightful experience, and I learnt a lot about the practical aspects of environmental assessment. It gave me a chance to see how the different disciplines worked together at the company, it's also given me several potential subjects to focus on for the future.”

My name is Rebecca Hopper and I joined Mayer Brown Ltd in June 2018 as an Administration Assistant. After 4 months, in October 2018, I was presented with the opportunity to progress my career and was offered to join the Environmental Department as a trainee Air Quality Consultant. I have since started a six year distance learning degree in Environmental Science which is fully sponsored by the company.

Throughout my time at Mayer Brown, I have always felt encouraged and supported in all aspects of my professional development and I feel that my confidence and professional abilities and knowledge grow every day.  Additionally, Mayer Brown provides me with a professional but relaxed work environment, with the opportunity to work flexible hours or from home if/when required.