About

Christian Graville has been head of legal for the Middle East at RSA Insurance since 2017. This is his second period of tenure with the company, having previously worked for RSA between 2002 and 2010; he is thus highly knowledgeable of the company, making him the ideal person to take on the myriad challenges of his current role. He has an extremely good track record on strategic transactions, and believes that each of these have contributed to his overall development. ‘There are common themes involved in successful transactional work’, he explains. ‘Firstly, it is important to fully understand the commercial rationale for the transaction, including those subtle areas that may not be immediately obvious. Secondly, it is key to keep things as simple as possible. Complex transactions tend to generate detailed discussions and concerns – usually they are easily resolved by objective assessment in the context of the transaction as a whole and, consequently, right-sizing the issue. Thirdly, stakeholder management is critical to every successful transaction. A stakeholder mapping exercise at the start of a transaction is helpful. Likewise, ensuring it is elevated within ongoing project management will ensure a continual focus. This means at every review, stakeholders are considered and actioned if needed; even a short, unrequested, update can go a long way.’ Internally, Graville’s main role is to ‘ensure the regional legal strategy is aligned with the business strategy’, which means a ‘continuous focus on risk vs reward’ and ensuring best practice is maintained at all times. ‘Another aspect has been a shift towards a more customer-focused service’, Graville adds. ‘Part of this is actively building relationships across the region and at group level. This has been important to get things done, and has proved valuable where corporate approvals are required’.