GC Summit: Singapore 2018

Event Report

On Tuesday 13 November 2018, Singapore’s top in-house counsel convened at the offices of Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee to take part in the Legal 500’s GC Summit Singapore for an evening of engaging panel discussions exploring the issues facing in-house counsel from teams of many kinds.

Naturally, Singapore’s in-house legal community draws from a diverse range of lawyers from an eclectic range of businesses and backgrounds, and as such, the panel discussions were a fantastic chance to examine the arranged discussion topics through new lenses.

Panel discussion 1: How to build a diverse leadership?

Panelists:

Stephanie Keen (managing partner, Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee)
Maree Mysercough (general counsel, Conergy)
Melissa Koh (legal services, complex contracting lead, head of diversity and inclusion, Accenture)
Geraldine Lim (general counsel, Heineken)

Talking points:

How to make the case for diversity to the business
What can be done to foster an environment in which all team members can thrive
The value of mentorship
The challenges of measuring diversity
Picking business partners who are diversity champions – is it necessary?

The first panel discussion examined the topic of diversity, and how in-house teams can help businesses develop a diverse leadership, both within the legal time and outside it. Issues raised by the panellists included the challenges of ‘selling’ the case of diversity to the business, the difficulties of measuring diversity programmes, and the value of mentorship in ensuring that each diverse member of the legal team can be exposed to opportunities to learn and thrive. As one panellist relayed, the key challenge in diversity is: being invited to the ball is good – but being asked to dance is better.

The delegates contributed their own perspectives to the panel, with discussions on the challenges faced by businesses with local teams in a variety of cultures at different stages in the diversity journey, as well as the need to only engage with third-party suppliers (law firms included) who share the same commitment to diversity as the in-house team.

Panel discussion 2: How in-house teams should prepare for disruption

Panelists:

Paul Fredrick (General Counsel, Schneider)
Welly Tantono (General Counsel, Honestbee)
Bernard Tan, (Managing Counsel, Asia Pacific and Global Lead Counsel, Agilent Technologies)
Shaun Bell (VP and General Counsel, Risk and Compliance, Bureau Veritas)
Ritankar Sahu (General Counsel & Head of Compliance, Maxpower)

Talking points:

Dealing with disruption: the value of pro-action instead of reaction
The role of the general counsel as a business partner in managing disruption
Sources of disruption – from regulation to technology
Is the role of the general counsel changing in light of increasing disruption, even in traditional companies?

The second panel asked the question: how can in-house teams help their businesses prepare for disruption of many kinds? The panel drew on the expertise of in-house counsel from both traditional and disruptive businesses, which allowed for a comprehensive discussion of the many sources of disruption and how in-house teams should be preparing their businesses for every eventuality.

The topic of technological disruption was touched on, but the discussion dove deeper than that: with a selection of international legal heads on the panel, issues of international and local regulation were explored, as well as a consideration of how increasing focus on data protection around the world is impacting the work of the in-house team.

Following the discussions, attendees were invited to join the hosts in Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee’s entertaining room to enjoy networking, drinks and canapes while taking in the stunning views over the Marina Bay Sands.

Sincere thanks go to our panelists, and to Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee and The ACC Singapore, whose support and partnership ensured the event was a resounding success.