About

For David Jaffe’s busy and growing legal department, receiving value for money from outside counsel is paramount. He recently conducted an experiment with his team, asking each to identify a firm that charges the highest hourly rates, and having them field-test a potential alternative with lower rates. He explains: ‘I made it clear to the in-house lawyers that this was an experiment to see whether we would find counsel who would be at least as good as the incumbent at a lower total cost, and that their contribution would be evaluated on the quality of their analysis and judgment, and not on whether they selected a firm with lower rates. In the end, we decided to use the alternative outside counsel in a small majority of the cases, and in a majority of those we actually felt that we were ending up with higher quality. I was proud of the approach and analysis of our team, looking at the overall best result for our company, and not just at hourly rates or cost’. Jaffe’s other achievements include steering the department through a difficult period of transition in 2009, that saw numerous structural changes and the appointment of a new board. As for what he enjoys most? ‘I enjoy getting things done across cultures’. He says. ‘Guardian operates in over 25 countries on five continents, and the multinational aspects of our work, whether it’s a joint venture, a greenfield project or day-to-day operations, always give me great opportunities to interact with fascinating people and to learn. I also enjoy helping our lawyers and staff develop their skills and careers’.