Industrias Peñoles, the world leader in silver production, is also the second largest Mexican mining company and the first Mexican producer of gold, zinc and lead. Industrias Peñoles currently has active mines in Mexico and some proposed projects in South America. Leading its Mexico legal team is Gustavo Alarcon, a lawyer with more than 15 years’ experience in prestigious Mexican and US law firms and legal departments of Fortune 500 corporations.

He currently manages a team of 13 lawyers as the deputy general counsel for Industrias Peñoles in charge of the corporate M&A, mining, infrastructure and legal compliance functions. In his role Alarcon provides practical business approach to transactional work, simplifying deals and working to create value for clients, making them aware of the risks and alternatives available to them. He is recognised for consistently adding value to the business, with legal and tactical advice, always aware of the values and drivers of clients.

Over the years, he has managed to stay abreast of challenges that have consequently helped him learn to become a better lawyer and leader. ‘I have learned a lot from my first days in-house by understanding the roles of the different stakeholders and managing a team of young lawyers. Constant learning and adaptation are paramount for an in-house role, as well as an incorruptible moral’, he says. Alarcon has created more efficient processes within Industrias Peñoles, starting with changing the compliance culture and considerably cutting costs to change the way the legal and compliance functions are perceived internally.