Vicepresident of corporate affairs | Organización Carvajal
Catalina Giraldo Valencia
Vicepresident of corporate affairs | Organización Carvajal
Attorney from EAFIT University, with a specialization in Commercial Law from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, and a dual specialization in IT Law and New Technologies from the Universidad Externado de Colombia and the Universidad Complutense de Madrid.
She has 25 years of experience across various legal areas. She began her professional career at Cervecería Unión S.A. in the labour law department, where her final position was Head of Human Resources. In this role, she was responsible for managing employee relations, labour policies, and union relations.
She later moved to Cali, where she worked at the Cali Chamber of Commerce and at Arellano Jaramillo Abogados, a boutique law firm specialising in corporate matters.
Over 15 years ago, she joined the Carvajal Organization, initially serving as Corporate Legal Director in charge of corporate affairs and M&A projects. In this role, she was involved in major acquisitions of companies in Colombia and abroad for the Packaging sector. She also played a key role in the divestment of companies across Latin America, including the sale of Editorial Norma, which operated from Mexico to Argentina. Additionally, she participated in the IPO of Carvajal Empaques S.A., the bond issuance for Carvajal S.A., and OPAs for shares in several companies.
Since 2017, she has served as Vice President of Legal Affairs, overseeing legal matters in Colombia and internationally, providing legal counsel for all companies within the corporate group, which operates in the United States, Mexico, Central America, and South America.
In recent years, her role has expanded to include new responsibilities. She assumed leadership of the Real Estate sector, the Sustainability area, and the Communications department.
In the Real Estate sector, she manages the business unit responsible for leasing office spaces and warehouses, as well as overseeing land development projects, where legal expertise is essential for efficient operations.
Since 2024, she has also been responsible for the Sustainability area, where she defines the group’s strategy and monitors the achievement of sustainability goals across all companies. In Communications, she defines the strategic approach, oversees risk management, and handles stakeholder relations.
How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organization’s resilience?
In our legal team, we understand that we are part of a business — not an isolated department — so our role goes beyond reviewing documents and providing legal opinions. We aim for our work to contribute directly to the organisation’s outcomes.
That is why we recognise that there are risks, opportunities, and also failures. We are part of the team that wins, but also the one that loses, and for that reason, we go beyond the traditional role of a lawyer.
We actively seek the organisation’s success; we are a team capable of leading and supporting projects. Our performance indicators are not just tied to conducting reviews — they are linked to our ability to turn those efforts into concrete results. We understand risk and accept that it is part of the process, always promoting decisions that are made rationally and grounded in deep analysis. We value agility and strive for simplicity.
During times of crisis, we simply remain true to who we are.
What are the major cases or transactions you have been involved in recently?
This year marks my fifteenth anniversary with the organisation. During this time, I have had the opportunity to be involved in the acquisition of companies both in Colombia and abroad, with investments exceeding USD200 million. I also played a role in all the divestments carried out during this period, which brought about a profound transformation of our businesses. In my current role, I also lead the sustainability and corporate communications areas, and i serve as general counsel for all the companies within the organisation.
What measures has your company taken to embed sustainability practices into its core business operations, and how does the role of the general counsel contribute to driving and ensuring sustainable practices within the company?
First, I like to explain what Sustainability means to me. Sustainability is about having a long-term perspective. In an organisation with more than 120 years of history, understanding that a business is built for the long term is part of our DNA. However, we must prove it every single day.
In the legal department, we support this goal on a daily basis. For example, if we aim to be a long-term organisation, our relationship with suppliers must be built on trust — on business relationships where both parties can win sustainably. If a supplier cannot sustain the agreement, they lose, but in the long term, so do we. Each of our legal opinions goes beyond simply interpreting the law; we strive to support and guide other areas in shifting from short-term decisions to more strategic ones.
What emerging technologies do you see as having the most significant impact on the legal profession in the near future, and how do you stay updated on these developments?
Definitely, AI is set to become the most important tool for any lawyer across all areas. The way it can enhance our work, increase our speed, and free up time to focus on strategic thinking will fundamentally change everything we do.
I have the privilege of working with a young and motivated team — they are eager to learn. This year, some of our lawyers have even included the use of AI in their 2025 professional goals.
We are planning training sessions and have been working on selecting pilot projects to explore AI implementation. For example, we are currently experimenting with using AI to help us organise and manage the information we receive from the law firms that represent us in various cases.
Our company has also developed an AI tool in collaboration with the law firm Londoño and Arango, designed exclusively for use by legal teams.