What are the most significant cases, projects and/or transactions that you and/or your legal team have recently been involved in?

I recently led, together with my team, a major acquisition project involving companies within our industry value chain. This transaction, valued at RMB 126 million, represents a critical step in advancing the company’s strategy of diversified industrial development.

Our responsibilities went far beyond conducting legal due diligence or drafting transaction documents. We acted as both architects of the transaction structure and managers of the overall risk landscape.

Key challenges included:
First, the target company’s business composition required pre-transaction restructuring. Its historical scope of business—ranging from optical glass manufacturing and electronic component production to later transitioning into packaging products—necessitated a clear carve-out of non-core segments.
Second, the transaction timetable was extremely tight, as the company aimed to complete integration before the interim report.

To address these challenges, we took several decisive actions. We became involved early in the planning process and required the target company to divest business areas not aligned with our upstream or downstream operations. Acting as the central coordination hub, we worked closely with accountants, valuers, and internal teams in finance, technology and human resources to ensure efficient information flow and rapid decision-making. My team and I also secured more favourable integration terms for the company.

The transaction was completed ahead of schedule—two weeks earlier than planned—and has strengthened our ability to coordinate resource allocation, optimise packaging supply capacity, and support stable production and business development.

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crisis to ensure organisational resilience?

In times of instability or crisis, I believe the essence of legal management lies in building organisational resilience, not merely responding to emergencies. My team and I follow a three-pronged strategy.

First, we function as the organisation’s “early-warning system.”
We organise risk assessments of sales teams and supply chain units, require regular monitoring of supplier and distributor performance, track the credit risks of key partners, and closely monitor contract performance. Mechanisms such as restricting deliveries once credit terms are exceeded help contain risk at an early stage.

Second, during a crisis, we prioritise agile operation and decisive action.
For major incidents, we rapidly establish a cross-departmental command centre. When contract performance issues arise, we provide clear legal advice and decision-making support, enabling internal teams to assess risks and respond quickly.

Third, we focus on transforming crises into opportunities.
After each incident, we lead a structured review process. Through institutionalisation, process refinement and standardisation, we strengthen the organisation’s overall risk awareness and enhance long-term resilience.

Based on your experience over the past year, are there any trends in the legal or business world that other in-house counsel should pay attention to?

From my perspective as Board Secretary and Head of Internal Control, several trends stand out:

First, collaboration is becoming increasingly important.
Work is shifting from individual responsibility to cross-departmental, cross-company, and internal–external collaboration and integration.

Second, digital transformation is accelerating.
AI and other digital tools are increasingly used to enhance contract review, support external investment agreements, and assist in tracking and understanding newly issued laws and regulations.

Third, in-house counsel must proactively embrace emerging fields such as ESG and data compliance, shifting from risk prevention to value creation.

In light of these trends, I believe in-house lawyers should:

Demonstrate their value through horizontal and vertical collaboration;

Embrace technology and gradually experience the efficiency it brings;

Maintain a commitment to lifelong learning.

How can organisations foster a culture of ESG principles and compliance at all levels?

First, leadership must drive from the top.
ESG should be incorporated into the company’s governance framework, with regular reporting to the Board and the Audit Committee on ESG-related legal risks, regulatory developments and litigation trends. ESG must be a formal governance agenda item to ensure the highest level of oversight. A cross-departmental ESG steering committee—led by the CEO or senior executives—should be established, with the Board Secretary and Head of Internal Control playing a central role in ensuring legal compliance and risk control. ESG goals, such as emission reduction targets, should be measurable and linked to business unit performance assessments.

Second, ESG must be embedded into internal control processes.
This includes integrating ESG requirements into contract and procurement workflows, updating standard contract templates to include ESG clauses, and requiring suppliers and partners to comply with the company’s ESG standards—covering environmental protection, labour rights and anti-corruption commitments. Together with procurement, ESG performance should be used as a key supplier evaluation criterion. Working with finance and production teams, we should establish systems to collect accurate ESG-related data—such as energy consumption, community engagement and emission indicators—to ensure compliant disclosure and high-quality ESG reporting.

Third, communication—both internal and external—is essential for bringing ESG culture to life.
Internally, we use the company intranet, all-hands meetings and newsletters to share ESG success stories, best practices and company objectives, highlighting how ESG helps mitigate risks and capture opportunities.
Externally, we actively engage in communication and disclosure, clearly articulating the company’s ESG story and ensuring that ESG reports and public communications are accurate, transparent and credible.