Hire Calling is a feature in which law-firm members in administrative positions are interviewed about hiring decisions and related employment matters at their firms. This week, reporter Barbara Rabinovitz speaks with attorney Kristy L. Nardone, pro bono manager at Ropes & Gray, about how she came to be employed at that Boston firm and how she is going about staffing its pro bono operation.

Q. What are the job responsibilities of a pro bono manager at a firm like Ropes & Gray?

A. Overall, it's to facilitate pro bono participation. More generally, it is to ensure the attorneys have the support they need for the pro bono matters either they are currently working on or would like to take on.

It's a little bit broader than that because we're also looking to develop relationships with other pro bono partners within the community [and] with other departments within the firm. ... I work with the hiring department on the summer associate program, and I work with attorney development to introduce the new associates at orientation to pro bono and community services.

Q. Do you think it helps a pro bono manager to have a background in the law?

A. Depending on how the position is utilized at a firm, it may or may not require an attorney. At Ropes & Gray, the way that we have instituted the program, an attorney is required for the position. And I do think that most people having these positions [she knows of five at Boston firms] are attorneys.

Q. Where does a law firm look to find a pro bono manager - in the legal community, the non-profit sector?

A. I actually think they try to look in both places. I was not only a litigation associate at Mintz Levin, I also was a staff attorney at the Victim Rights Law Center, a legal aid agency that focuses on the civil/legal needs of rape survivors. They're both equally helpful.

Q. Where does the pro bono manager fit in the law-firm structure?

A. I work directly with and report to the chair of the pro bono committee, Ana Francisco, who's a litigation partner at the firm. ... [And] I work with all the attorneys in the firm.

Q. I'm told that Ropes & Gray is advertising for others to staff your operation - a pro bono and charitables specialist in the firm's New York office and a pro bono assistant in Boston. What will their specific duties be?

A. The specialist in New York is going to more of a coordinator, so that person will be reporting to both me and Ana and will be helping us enhance our program in New York. ...The specialist position will likely require a senior paralegal; I'm sure we'll be seeing candidates from large law firms and legal aid agencies.

Q. Among your fellow managers at the firm, are you perceived as being a part of their team or are you in a category of your own within Ropes & Gray?

A. I very much feel a part of the team. I'm not doing billable hours certainly, but I'm definitely assisting the attorneys with getting the types of opportunities they're looking for. It's not my experience that lawyers are less interested in pro bono.

Q. Would you recommend that other lawyers consider this area of employment, and, if so, why?

A. I think it's just different [from being a litigation associate, for example]. I think if they're interested in pro bono and in public service, and if they're trying to find a confluence of professional and personal interests in that area, this is a great occupation. MLW