Alice Marsden – GC Powerlist
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United Kingdom 2019

Alice Marsden

Retail and Consumer Products | Thomas Cook

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United Kingdom 2019

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Alice Marsden

Retail and Consumer Products | Thomas Cook

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Team size: 40
Major law firms used: Allen & Overy, CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang, Latham & Watkins, Lighthouse Law, Slaughter and May

When profiled for last year’s GC Powerlist, Thomas Cook GC Alice Marsden vowed to make 2018 the year of tech. She has duly delivered.

Most conspicuously, this has been achieved by the appointment of a new head of legal operations: Keely Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick has an overall remit to improve the usage of technology across the legal function, but she works closely with the procurement division in particular, which now reports into Marsden.

Marsden comments: ‘It works really well to have a global, centralised contracting function. The new ops role works very closely with the procurement team to make sure right from the outset that we have the most competitive bidding processes possible.’

Of Fitzpatrick’s other responsibilities, she has liaised with Thomas Cook’s panel firms to try and drive extra value. With Lighthouse Law, Fitzpatrick has been exploring whether Thomas Cook can take greater advantage of its South African offshoring hub and send more work in that direction.

Another key appointment by Marsden has been a new head of intellectual property, Helen Stanwell Smith. The newly created role centralises Thomas Cook’s IP portfolio and, as Marsden says, ‘makes sure it’s in the right place’. CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang has recently been drafted in to help manage the portfolio.

In terms of the wider Thomas Cook business, the legal team has been involved in a number of critical mandates, including a strategic review of the company’s airline division. Also on the agenda was the extension of the company’s partnership with Expedia – previously Thomas Cook offered its city break and hotel-only product solely to the UK market, but this is to be expanded to various European markets.

Marsden is keen to get even more out of her team to continually drive the business forward. She concludes: ‘I make sure my door is always open and that the team can always get in touch with me. I am really happy to be challenged by them too – I truly believe that many heads are better than one.’

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