What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

I am responsible for the management of legal, security and compliance matters in Colombia and other 14 Latin American countries. My team is currently defending MDLZ interests in over 500 legal claims, for over $25m.

We are carrying out the antitrust clearance process in all the countries under my responsibility, following the acquisition of Ricolino, from Grupo Bimbo for a total of $1.3 bn. Additionally, we are providing assistance in the expansion of our Oreo plant in Lima, which is worth $20m. Our work includes obtaining all necessary permits and dealing with government inspections, drafting and negotiating multiple agreements to acquire services and machinery.

We have obtained the license for a free trade zone in Costa Rica that allows HR, finance and IT services to be delivered to Latin America providing MDLZ significant tax benefits.

Furthermore, the legal team is involved in a massive RTM by simplifying corporate structures, terminating non-productive distributors, and concentrating on major markets and key channels.

Due to Covid-19 we have implemented a flexible working model by streamlining our offices which required amendment of leases, permits and licenses.

Finally, we led the implementation of the Sagrilaft (anti money laundering) system in Colombia.

How have you harnessed technology to improve output or drive efficiency?

We are implementing a project called LEGAL 2.0 aimed at embracing new technologies to enhance our legal service delivery model. In July we are going to use Microsoft power automation tool for contract drafting, negotiation, execution and renewal workflows. We have just started using an advertising approval tool called GARP that enables all stakeholders and the legal team to approve, comment and reject advertising materials to shorten the process. Furthermore, this month we launched a legal chat bot called MIA which answers employees’ legal FAQ through an advanced AI system which processes information from an extensive legal database.

Finally, this year we replaced long face-to-face legal induction training with comprehensive online and video training for new employees.

As we enter the next decade, what skills will an in-house lawyer need to succeed in the modern in-house industry?

As lawyers we need to put our big egos aside and be open to new solutions. The in-house counsel industry is rapidly changing, and we need to constantly reinvent ourselves creating and adopting cost efficient processes in service of our stakeholders. Secondly, we must use objective metrics to measure achievements and failure so to convey them clearly to the organization. Finally, stop being just a lawyer and become a real business partner who knows about marketing, finance, sales, HR and logistics.