What are the projects that you are most proud of working on over the past 12 months?

Company’s strategy renewal, including strategic evaluation of business portfolio, leading to execution of selected divestments and other M&A activities.

Renewal of bid review process and related commercial and legal risk matrix guidance.

Renewal of enterprise risk management process and tooling.

Company’s first CSRD sustainability reporting.

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

In such circumstances, it is crucial to be even more approachable and available, not just to the legal team but generally across the organisation. Managing legal risks in these situations also becomes much more short-term focused, with cycles shorter and faster to steer matters step by step.

Leading from the front and by example is also vital, as is communicating trust and positivity for the future, despite the circumstances.

What do you derive the most satisfaction from in your work?   

I get most satisfaction from the company’s commercial growth and success, to which the legal team has contributed to, through continuous legal support innovation and development and enhanced service levels and service output. Being in the same boat and succeeding together makes it worthwhile.

What do you think are the most important attributes for a modern in-house counsel to possess?
The key attributes for a modern in-house counsel, especially in a General Counsel role, are proactive and strategic thinking, relationship building and influencing skills, communication skills, adaptability, and financial acumen. A General Counsel must have the ability to lead the big picture while retaining and developing core expertise in selected areas. This requires constant evaluation and re-evaluation of where to allocate efforts at any given moment to maximise the legal team’s value and output, enabling business success and managing risk. Tech-savviness and project management skills are also highly beneficial in any fast-paced company today.

Career background, Sami Takila

Sami Takila moved in-house in 2003 after three years working in Finland at Hannes Snellman Attorneys at Law, within the technology practice group. Takila has extensive experience in legal matters and law firm management, including corporate and contract law, IP, capital markets and M&A, compliance, litigation, and government relations across more than 30 countries.

For his first corporate role, Takila joined Nokia Corporation, the multinational communications and information technology company, serving seven years as Legal Counsel and Senior Legal Counsel across several jurisdictions in Europe. He was first based in Finland, then became Nokia’s first legal counsel in Moscow, Russia, for three years, followed by two years in Budapest, Hungary. He established local legal teams in Eurasia and South-East Europe, being responsible for all legal support for Nokia’s mobile phone business across those regions.

Upon his return to Finland, Takila joined Basware Corporation, a global leader in purchase-to-pay and e-invoicing solutions, as its Group General Counsel. He spent 12 years overseeing and developing the legal team and managing all legal matters across 14 countries, while also acting as Secretary to the Board of Directors, its committees, and the Basware Executive Team. Having obtained his MBA in 2016 from Henley Business School, Takila has also had broader responsibilities beyond legal functions, establishing and leading sourcing, insurance, and facility management functions.

In 2022, Takila became the Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Enersense International, a Helsinki Nasdaq-listed provider of project and service operations for the green energy transition and telecommunications networks. He is a member of Enersense’s Executive Team and oversees all legal matters, risk, and insurance management across the group. As an Executive Team member, he plays an active role in strategic decisions affecting the company and has helped integrate the legal team more closely into business operations, shifting perceptions away from legal being a ‘back-office function’.