What are the key projects that you have been involved in over the past 12 months?

I led Avaya’s outsourcing of its professional services organization in EMEA to a third party, spanning multiple European jurisdictions. This complex project required simultaneous management of TUPE-style employee transfers, voluntary separation programmes, and multi-country works council consultations. Navigating these processes while preserving operational continuity and safeguarding employee rights was a challenging exercise. The commercial aspects including ensuring continuity of services to customers has also been a key challenge in which I am still very much involved today.

I have supported the transfer of 7,000 direct customer agreements in sectorial packages to ten different business partners in Germany through Asset Purchase Agreements. I have also restructured my legal organisation with the creation of CoE’s for operations and paralegals with new AI enabled tools in CLM and Corporate Secretarial spaces. I have supported the roll out of DORA and NIS 2 compliance programmes, both internally and externally.

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 organisation’s resilience?

This is a highly cross functional exercise where the legal environment and priorities should be assessed hand in hand with the key stakeholders like Corporate Security and Global Trade Compliance teams. There should be the immediate action response items and the longer-term strategy decisions. The latter should be closely aligned with the Executive Leadership Team. Keeping a flexible structure in complex regions has proven to be efficient from a legal standpoint.

What do you think are the most important attributes for a modern in-house counsel to possess?

The role of in-house counsel has evolved significantly, shifting from that of a purely technical legal advisor to a strategic business partner who actively contributes to shaping organisational strategy and driving growth. While legal expertise remains fundamental, modern in-house counsel must bring a broader set of skills that combine business insight, adaptability, and foresight.

Adaptability is essential. The pace of change in today’s business environment requires in-house lawyers to adjust quickly to new challenges, whether driven by regulatory developments, market shifts, or internal transformation. The ability to lead through change — guiding teams and stakeholders with clarity and confidence — is critical to maintaining stability and progress during periods of transition.

Equally important is commercial judgment. A modern in-house counsel must understand the business drivers behind legal risks and translate complex legal concepts into practical, strategic advice that supports commercial objectives. This balance between risk management and business enablement allows counsel to act not as a barrier but as a catalyst for innovation and growth.

Finally, regulatory foresight has become a defining attribute. Anticipating and preparing for emerging trends such as digital regulation, data protection, and ESG compliance enables legal teams to position the organisation ahead of change. By combining strategic awareness with proactive planning, in-house counsel help the business navigate uncertainty while maintaining compliance, resilience, and long-term sustainability.

Based on your experiences in the past year, are there any trends in the legal or business world that you are keeping an eye on, of which you think other in-house lawyers should be mindful?

In the data economy with AI total disruption, the convergence of digital regulation and corporate compliance is a trend I monitor most closely. Legislators are increasingly imposing operational resilience, cybersecurity, and data governance obligations on technology providers. This means in-house counsel must bridge the gap between law, technology, and commercial execution, ensuring compliance becomes a competitive advantage rather than a burden. Losing touch with the evolving landscape has significant impacts both for the lawyer who would not be keeping up and be able to readjust legal strategy fast enough and for the company. The latter will be put under immense pressure from enterprise or government customers for which compliance is a requirement to do business. Equally, some areas of law need to be navigated with more caution as they tend to evolve in different directions or even to be implemented/enforced sometimes quite differently in some jurisdictions. For these, external legal experts are key to make sure the efforts are put in the right place.