Ngozi Okonkwo led the ConocoPhillips purchase – Nigeria’s biggest upstream acquisition of 2014. Managing a 15-strong team, Okonkwo overseas all upstream, midstream and downstream operations.

Her wide-reaching changes to the legal function include introducing formalised training and strategy meetings, and internalising higher levels of advisory work. ‘I have been fortunate enough to get a great deal of experience in my current role, which many of my peers can only dream of ’, Ngozi says. When it comes to instructing outside law firms, she is looking for ‘articulate and concise opinions’, and says sometimes advice comes with too many additional questions, or is ‘too academic to be useful’.