Team size: Eight legal and compliance professionals

Career Biography

Tebogo Brenda Albert is legal director for KONE plc, with responsibility for legal, governance, compliance and risk management across Great Britain, Ireland and the Netherlands. She serves as a statutory director and board member of KONE plc and is responsible for advising senior leadership on strategic transactions, construction projects, governance, artificial intelligence (AI), data protection, competition law, employment matters and regulatory compliance.

With over 15 years of legal experience, Tebogo leads a high-performing legal team supporting one of the world’s leading elevator and escalator businesses. She is recognised for integrating legal risk management into business decision-making whilst enabling commercial growth and operational excellence.

In addition to her corporate role, Tebogo serves as a member of the TED Law International Advisory Council, supporting the development of the TedLaw platform..

What are the key projects you have been involved in over the past twelve months?

Over the past twelve months I have led a number of strategically significant projects supporting KONE’s growth, governance and operational resilience across Great Britain, Ireland and the Netherlands.

A significant focus has been driving change in the service business and embedding a new policy and way of working. These matters required balancing legal risk, commercial objectives and long-term customer relationships whilst ensuring appropriate training and upskilling of service colleagues. Through collaborative negotiation and pragmatic risk management, we secured commercially sustainable outcomes while protecting the organisation from disproportionate exposure. This initiative has improved legal risk visibility and helped embed compliance into day-to-day operations rather than treating it as a standalone activity.

Another important area has been employment and organisational transformation projects, including complex workforce matters, restructuring support and leadership guidance. By providing practical, commercially focused advice, the legal function helped leaders navigate difficult decisions whilst maintaining fairness and compliance.

In addition, I have worked closely with executive leadership on strategic risk management, board governance and corporate decision-making. As a statutory director, I support the Board in ensuring that legal and ethical considerations are integrated into wider business strategy.

Please provide a brief description of any internal transformation or development projects within your legal team over the last twelve months.

Over the past year our legal team has continued its evolution from a traditional advisory function into a strategic business partner.

One of our most significant initiatives has been the responsible adoption of AI within the legal function. We have introduced AI tools to improve efficiency in contract review, research, drafting and knowledge management. Our focus has been on ensuring that productivity gains are achieved without compromising legal quality, confidentiality or professional judgement.

We have also continued to develop self-service resources and standardisation across the business. This includes template rationalisation, playbooks, contract guidance and training materials designed to empower stakeholders while allowing legal resources to focus on higher-value strategic work.

Investment in people has remained a priority. We have focused on capability building, delegation, mentoring and leadership development to ensure team members have opportunities to grow and take ownership of increasingly complex matters. This has strengthened both engagement and resilience across the team.

The role of the GC has evolved significantly into that of a strategic business partner. How do you balance commercial objectives with legal risk?

The most effective in-house lawyers recognise that their role is not simply to identify risk but to help the business manage it intelligently.

I approach legal risk through a commercial lens. Rather than presenting legal issues as barriers, I focus on understanding the organisation’s objectives and identifying practical pathways to achieve them safely. This involves clear communication, proportional risk assessment and a strong understanding of the wider commercial context.

A key part of the role is helping stakeholders distinguish between risks that can be managed, risks that can be transferred and risks that should not be accepted. When legal teams engage early and build trusted relationships with operational leaders, they are better positioned to support strategic decision-making rather than react to it.

Ultimately, successful legal leadership is about enabling growth while protecting the organisation’s long-term interests.

How do you use AI within your legal team to improve efficiency while maintaining quality, governance and integrity? How do you think AI will impact in-house legal functions more widely?

AI is already transforming the way legal teams operate. Within our team, we use AI to support document drafting, contract analysis, legal research, policy development and knowledge management.

However, I have been clear that AI should augment professional judgement rather than replace it. All outputs remain subject to appropriate legal review.

The greatest opportunity for in-house teams is the ability to redirect time away from routine administrative tasks towards strategic advisory work. AI can help legal departments scale their impact without proportionately increasing headcount.

Looking ahead, I believe successful legal teams will combine strong legal expertise with technology literacy, governance capability and business acumen. Those who embrace innovation while maintaining rigorous oversight will be best positioned to create value for their organisations. To complete this cycle, I am currently working to build an agentic AI agent… this is the q4 project this year.

What are the most important attributes of the modern GC and what advice would you give to those aspiring to be an in-house lawyer?

The modern general counsel must be far more than a technical legal expert. Today’s legal leaders are expected to contribute to business strategy, governance, culture, ethics and organisational performance.

The most important attributes are commercial awareness, sound judgement, resilience, communication skills and the ability to influence without direct authority. Successful GCs build trust because they understand the business, not just the law.

For aspiring in-house lawyers, my advice would be to develop a deep understanding of your organisation’s commercial drivers. Learn how decisions are made, understand financial performance and invest time in building relationships across functions. Technical excellence is essential, but long-term success comes from translating legal expertise into practical business outcomes.

The lawyers who create the greatest impact are those who are seen not only as trusted advisers, but as trusted business partners.