Team size: 82

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Calmly Analyzing Legal Risks: In times of crisis, maintaining composure is the foremost principle. We must adopt a calm mindset to carefully examine the legal issues and potential risks at hand, avoiding irrational decisions driven by panic. By conducting an in-depth analysis, we can more accurately identify the critical points of legal risk, laying a solid foundation for the development of effective response strategies.

Detaching Emotion to Assess the Bigger Picture: Under immense pressure, it is crucial to temporarily set aside personal emotions and adopt a more objective and comprehensive perspective to evaluate the organization’s legal situation. This approach enables us to move beyond a localized view, focusing on the bigger picture to pinpoint the root causes of the issues. In turn, this allows for the formulation of more effective strategies, ensuring the organization’s steady progress through the crisis.

Proactively Managing the Crisis: When facing a crisis, our goal should not be limited to merely mitigating or reducing its impact. Instead, we should focus on proactive management to strengthen organizational resilience. Within the legal framework, we must explore innovative solutions to resolve the crisis and create new growth opportunities for the organization. This requires not only a thorough understanding of laws and regulations but also the flexibility to adapt to complex situations.

Seizing Opportunities Amidst Crisis: Crises often come with hidden opportunities. During such times, we must not only confront the challenges but also keenly identify the opportunities they present. By thoroughly analyzing legal policies, market dynamics, and other relevant factors, we can uncover new growth drivers to propel the organization forward. Additionally, we should actively leverage legal tools to safeguard the organization’s legitimate interests, ensuring steady development even in the midst of the crisis.

What are the main projects that you have been involved in recently?

Legal Support and Compliance Risk Management for Greenfield Investments Exceeding US$1bn in India, Vietnam, and Mexico; provided comprehensive legal support and compliance risk management for the company’s greenfield investments in India, Vietnam, and Mexico. This encompassed all aspects from project preparation to execution, including the design of investment structures, contract negotiation and execution, and thorough legal compliance reviews. The team closely monitored the dynamic regulatory environments in these countries, ensuring that the investment projects complied with local legal requirements. By effectively mitigating potential legal and policy-related risks, this effort laid a solid foundation for Fii’s steady growth in overseas markets.

Successfully removing Two Fii subsidiaries with over US$10bn annual revenue each from a regulatory list; in the face of a complex international regulatory environment, as Fii’s chief legal officer, I personally led the team in addressing BIS scrutiny on behalf of two subsidiaries, each with annual revenues exceeding US$10bn. Through relentless efforts, both subsidiaries successfully passed the BIS review and were officially removed from the list on July 2, 2024.

This achievement not only secured valuable market opportunities for the company but also reinforced Fii’s leading position in the industry.

SDGs-IP Project Management and Strategic Implementation. Focusing on the company’s portfolio of nearly 7,000 patents, the team pioneered the SDGs labelling initiative, aligning the patents with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Through qualitative and quantitative analysis, this initiative provided a comprehensive showcase of the company’s contributions and positioning in sustainable technology development. This innovative approach not only enhanced the company’s green development image but also offered a scientific foundation for shaping its future sustainability roadmap. By leveraging insights from a patent perspective, the initiative unlocked new opportunities for sustainable development, achieving a dual boost in economic benefits and social responsibility.

What is a topic (business-related or otherwise) that you are passionate about, and why?

One of the topics I am most passionate about is energy management. What draws me deeply to this subject is that it is not just about improving work efficiency but is also closely connected to personal health and well-being. In today’s fast-paced society, we often face various challenges and pressures. Effective energy management serves as a key that enables us to tackle these challenges with ease, maintain optimal mental and physical states, and pursue personal goals and dreams more effectively.

The book The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz has been a significant source of inspiration for me. It helped me understand that energy management is not merely about physical recovery or time management but is a systematic framework encompassing four dimensions: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual energy. Through scientific methods, we can enhance our capacity in all four areas, thereby maximizing the efficient use of energy.

As a result, I strive to integrate the principles and practices of energy management into my daily life and work. This approach helps me find balance amid busyness and stress, enabling me to lead a more productive, healthier, and happier life.

How do you build relationships with other teams in the company?

Define the role of the legal department; based on project needs, clarify whether the legal department will take a leading or supporting role. Responsibilities are delineated by defining the scope of duties between the legal department and other departments based on routine responsibilities.

Provide professional support While Maintaining Reasonable Boundaries; the legal department provides contract reviews, legal risk prevention, and compliance guidance to business units. From the perspective of business needs, it offers legal advice and risk control solutions. For non-legal matters or areas clearly under the responsibility of other departments, the legal department maintains reasonable boundaries to avoid unnecessary interference.

Establish cross-departmental communication mechanisms to enhance collaboration in solving compliance issues. Develop legal strategies tailored to the company’s actual situation, ensuring that the strategies are forward-looking and practical. Also, conduct regular legal training sessions to improve employees’ legal literacy and compliance awareness. Set up supervision teams to periodically check compliance implementation, ensuring that legal requirements are effectively met. Lastly, incorporate the rule of law into the corporate culture to create a favourable legal environment. Through internal promotion and education, inspire employees’ enthusiasm for legal compliance, jointly fostering the company’s healthy and sustainable development.