News
Bankruptcy & Creditor's Rights Principal Danielle Juhle has been honored with inclusion in The Secured Lender's annual "Women in Secured Finance" edition.
Published March 2024, the issue features 56 inspiring women who "have carved their paths with determination, resilience and unwavering vision." They represent the various sectors of the Secured Finance Network's member organizations, including banks, law firms, appraisal and consulting firms, fintech companies and institutional capital providers.
In her introduction to the special feature, Laura Glass of Bank of America writes: "In a world where the narrative of leadership has traditionally been dominated by men, these women stand as beacons of empowerment, breaking barriers, and paving the way for a more inclusive and diverse future. Their stories demonstrate the collective progress we have made as an industry, highlighting the invaluable role that women play in shaping and driving innovation."
In her profile, Danielle shares her advice to women who are just starting out in the industry and reflects on the role that mentorship has played in her career. She also describes what she enjoys the most – and the least – about her role.
Danielle on Mentorship
"Mentorship has played an invaluable role in my career through both formal programs and informal mentorship relationships that develop organically. Every opportunity to be paired with a mentor is valuable and presents not only a learning opportunity, but potentially a lasting relationship that will continue to develop over time," she says. "For me, even though formal mentorship programs created important forums for learning, the most important and lasting mentorship relationships have been those that developed organically through work opportunities, where my mentors led and taught by example.
"These mentors did not provide advice from afar, but worked side by side with me, mentoring me through their everyday actions. These actions taught me effective and thoughtful ways to interact with and earn the trust of clients, collaborate with colleagues and opposing counsel, and to in turn mentor and teach younger professionals. My mentors pushed me to assume responsibility for matters, while at the same time providing invaluable support by being available to answer questions and explain a situation."
"The challenge of assessing a new situation that pops up real time and needs to be addressed thoughtfully and thoroughly is what keeps me intrigued and engaged in the work that we do every day."
Danielle's Advice to Women Just Starting Out in the Industry
"Jump in, ask questions and be a sponge by soaking up as much knowledge from those around you as possible. No matter the practice area, there is so much to learn, and I think that the best way to learn is by doing and getting as involved as you can in your matters. So, instead of focusing on what might seem like the discrete task that you have been asked to do, ask questions about the deal structure and context more generally so that you can understand how the task that you are working on fits into the bigger picture.
"Asking those questions not only communicates to those you are working with that you are interested in the matter or the issues, but it will also give you the background that you need to expand your work into other areas of the transaction and to take on more responsibility with respect to your matters. The best way to show your leaders that you can handle more is to ask for an opportunity to do more, and then put the knowledge from all of those asked and answered questions to work."
What Danielle Enjoys Most and the Least About Her Role
"In the restructuring environment, your days are unpredictable –which is probably both what I enjoy most and what I enjoy least about the role. Planning your day can be challenging as a result of this unpredictability, but the challenge of assessing a new situation that pops up real time and needs to be addressed thoughtfully and thoroughly is what keeps me intrigued and engaged in the work that we do every day."
