Job Well Done
Robin F. Bond, Esq., of Transition Strategies LLC harnesses her years of experience, negotiation skills, and problem-solving prowess to help clients navigate a litany of complex employment matters.
No title or job description can adequately characterize the value Robin F. Bond, Esq., offers to people who seek her out for her particular brand of expertise. Bond is an employment attorney, yet her portrayal of the work she does as “a healing art” seems more apt.
As the founder of the Chesterbrook-based law firm Transition Strategies LLC, Bond specializes in complex employment matters, including executive compensation, discrimination claims, and wrongful termination, as well as performance coaching and the negotiation of job offers and severance agreements. Her guidance helps executives and other clients make informed decisions from a position of strength, while avoiding mistakes that could weaken their financial position or even derail their future employment prospects.
“When people are dealing with challenges at work, they are stressed out and upset, and that distress reaches into every other part of their life,” Bond says. “My aim is to alleviate that stress and empower people so they can move forward and prepare for the next thing in life, whether that’s a new job or a better situation at their current job, and I always try to avoid litigation.”
Bond’s negotiation skills and talent for problem solving recently helped her facilitate the largest settlement of her career: $12 million awarded to an executive who parted ways with a former employer amid circumstances she characterizes as “highly charged.”
“I critically analyze the facts and look to see where the employer has jumped from Point A to Point C without considering Point B,” she says. “Is the employer acting in a disparate manner? Is my client being treated fairly? If not, the employer needs to justify why. I look at the ‘carrots’ and the ‘sticks.’ The employer has probably used plenty of sticks, but there had better be recognition of the carrots the employee has delivered, too.”
While Bond enjoys helping clients attain results that place them on firmer footing, financially and professionally, she gets as much satisfaction from assisting them through the emotional upheaval that tends to accompany difficult workplace situations.
“When someone comes to me, they’re dealing with workplace issues, but to them it feels very personal,” she says. “Maybe an employer is hurting them with bogus performance issues or, worse, targeting their personality. Part of the counseling I do is to help them see the real motivations behind what’s going on. ‘You’re not a bad person; you’re just not a good fit for the boss or the job.’ I’ve represented over 4,000 people, so that experience helps me give them a clear picture of the situation without the distortion of the pain they are feeling.”
A former client named Camille can relate. In a review on the online legal resource Avvo, Camille describes Bond as “the best of the best.” Bond had assisted Camille with a difficult employment matter, on top of the emotional turmoil caused by the recent death of Camille’s father.
“The level of compassion Robin demonstrated was not something I ever expected from my lawyer,” Camille says. “She is incredibly honest and provides you with a full assessment of your situation while explaining the legal aspects of your case, prior to pursuing action. Robin is very detail oriented, and she worked quickly to obtain resolution so I could obtain the peace I needed to move forward with my life. At one point the situation escalated, and Robin maintained a calm demeanor to obtain the successful outcome we both desired. … She is compassionate, caring, and gets the job done.”
Each client’s situation is unique. Furthermore, cultural shifts and economic trends tend to add new wrinkles to the challenges Bond’s clients face.
“I see more people now saying, ‘I’m willing to move on,’” she says. “The job market used to be tighter, so we’re seeing a greater willingness to let go of an imperfect situation and take the chance that they will land successfully somewhere else. If you are going to leave, you want a strategy and to be able to answer the question, ‘How do I line up my next opportunity?’ And you want to move forward without the fear that a former employer is going to come after you.”
Bond recently expanded her practice to become “of counsel” to Homans Peck LLC, a Wayne-based employment litigation law firm. That having been said, her efforts to empower others extend beyond her law practice. Ten years ago she penned the book How to Negotiate a Killer Job Offer, in which she shares many of her secrets to help readers “level the playing field.”
“You cannot make all the mistakes there are to make and survive on your career track,” Bond says. “I have helped people who have made just about every mistake you can make, so my goal is to help you avoid those mistakes in the first place and navigate that rocky road successfully.”
Transition Strategies LLC
88 Militia Hill Drive
Chesterbrook, PA 19087
(610) 640-5373
robin@transition-strategies.com
transition-strategies.com
88 Militia Hill Drive
Chesterbrook, PA 19087
(610) 640-5373
robin@transition-strategies.com
transition-strategies.com
Photo by Jody Robinson
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life magazine, July 2023.
