Kathleen Mon was once affectionately called “the hired assassin” by the head of her group at Clifford Chance. And rightly so. Kathleen is so effective that she’s been known to make an in-house placement in under a month, so versatile that she boasts not one, but two BAs as well as a JD, and so stealthy that she once surprised a fellow Whistler with a ring she had welded inspired by one of her tattoos.
But Kathleen, like an assassin, is not one to brag about her accomplishments (which is probably why it took two years of her working at Whistler for us to finally write her bio).
As a corporate associate at Clifford Chance, Kathleen was drafted into the Aviation group. We say drafted because the Aviation group had a lot of clout and moved mountains to get her. She thought it’d at least help her move overseas (spoiler: it didn’t). After three years at Clifford Chance, a recruiter lured her over to Torys with the promise of a broader corporate practice. And because, in her words, “Canadians are just so nice!”
After a couple of years of practicing at Torys, Kathleen left the law behind (kind of) and joined their administrative team. As Senior Manager of Administrative and Professional Resources, her focus was on improving Torys culture so the firm could attract and retain the best talent, and during her tenure she successfully advocated for them to pay market in the US (you’re welcome Torys associates). While making her first Torys hire, Kathleen was introduced to Whistler. Over the next five years, she kept an eye on our candidates because she thought: “those recruiters close deals.” And when Sean eventually asked her to join Whistler, he closed the deal.
As Head of In-House, Kathleen loves that “follow your dreams moment” that going in-house grants attorneys. She’s interested in the complexity and diversity of in-house roles, helping startups build more inclusive legal teams, and all elements of recruiting except for sales… but in-house jobs sell themselves really.
Desired superpower: “Time travel... and if I get to dictate the terms, the kind where you can change your personal decisions and actions as many times as you want without irreparable harm. In other words, NOT the movie kind where the moral of the story is to love and embrace the life you have because you'd have it no other way.”
Favorite interview motivation song: “I don't need motivation to interview. I actually love interviewing... as an interviewer and interviewee. I'd do it for fun. But when I was an associate and needed motivation to work late at night, it was 2Pac's Thugz Mansion on repeat.”
Best dinner guest? “I don't host dinners... I only attend."