Deborah Solmor on Preparing the Next Generation of GCs

Deborah Solmor spent two decades as a Skadden litigator before walking into her first General Counsel role and discovering that being a lawyer was, as she puts it, the least interesting thing about the job. Her journey from big law to nonprofit GC became the foundation for a mission bigger than any single title.

In this episode, Jessica sits down with Deborah Solmor, General Counsel of Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation and Founder of Ready Set GC. They cover Deborah's path from Skadden to in-house leadership, the lessons that shaped Ready Set GC, and how she continues to build community for women in law.

Episode Threads

• Leaving Skadden after two decades to go in-house

• Realizing being a lawyer was the least important part of the GC job

• The board meeting mistake that taught her "it's not about you"

• Advice for senior attorneys trying to break into in-house roles

• The Crock-Pot versus microwave analogy for working styles

• Why outside counsel relationships matter beyond billable work

• Building Ready Set GC and the Ascend program from scratch

• What she'd do with her time if AI took over her job

Connect & Visit:

• Deborah Solmor

• Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

• Ready Set GC

• Jessica Nguyen

• Sandstone