Career Biography

Francis Westelinck is a seasoned legal executive with extensive experience in steering complex legal and compliance strategies across multinational environments. As General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer for Danone Benelux, Francis oversees legal, regulatory and compliance matters across Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, supporting trusted brands such as Danone, Nutricia and Alpro.

Francis began his career in private practice at leading firms including CMS Belgium and NautaDutilh, specialising in commercial law, IP, competition law and regulatory compliance. These roles provided a strong foundation in complex transactions and litigation. Transitioning in-house, Francis joined Delhaize Belgium as Senior Legal Advisor before moving to Alpro, where he integrated legal strategies into commercial operations and supported sustainable growth initiatives on a regional level. At Danone, Francis advanced rapidly from Senior Legal Counsel to General Counsel. His tenure has been marked by a transformation of the legal function into a proactive, business-embedded partner. He has successfully aligned legal priorities with Danone’s strategic objectives, ensuring compliance while enabling growth and innovation.

Francis has spearheaded digitalisation projects, implementing contract lifecycle management tools and compliance dashboards to streamline processes and mitigate risk. His ability to navigate complex regulatory landscapes and renegotiate critical supplier and customer agreements has strengthened resilience during volatile periods, including post-COVID disruptions and inflationary pressures.

Francis regularly shares insights on legal leadership, compliance strategy and talent development at high-level industry events. His contributions focus on positioning legal teams as strategic partners and driving innovation and value in the legal and compliance field.

Francis’ contributions have been acknowledged externally, including his inclusion in the GC Powerlist Benelux 2023.

Francis holds advanced qualifications from the Brussels School of Competition, the University of Edinburgh and Vrije Universiteit Brussel. His skill set spans Intellectual Property, Litigation, Competition Law, Commercial Law and International Compliance, underpinned by strong business acumen.