Can you tell us about your journey to becoming an in-house counsel? What inspired you to pursue a career in this field?

I began my career as an M&A lawyer in Paris, spending seven years at international law firms. There, I honed my technical skills, from drafting corporate documents to negotiating complex contracts, while learning resilience, attention to detail, and how to juggle multiple workstreams under tight deadlines and client pressure.

Moving to Berlin was a bold step out of my comfort zone, embracing new challenges beyond the law firm environment. Transitioning to an in-house role was both exhilarating and overwhelming. When joining Delivery Hero, I did not expect to land in such a fast-paced environment. Early on, I was entrusted with one of the group’s largest acquisitions—a Spanish food delivery company acquired through a share-swap. This high-profile project gave me invaluable exposure to decision-making processes and capital market regulations.

What inspired me is the opportunity to influence Delivery Hero group’s strategic growth, to strengthen my soft skills and to collaborate with non-legal stakeholders by providing them with legal guidance that aligns business goals with regulatory standards while still being able to expand my legal knowledge – this is like being a Swiss knife.

In your role as an in-house counsel, what are the main responsibilities and tasks you handle on a day-to-day basis?

Since Delivery Hero is an M&A driven group, I oversee a wide range of international growth transactions: share / asset deals, VC investments, litigation, and post-merger integrations. This involves active drafting and negotiating contracts, supervising due diligence and delivering strategic advice.

In this context, I provide tailored presentations to (1) management, to present complex issues and pragmatic solutions to mitigate risks while aligning with business priorities and (2) legal and business internal stakeholders to outline team updates and lesson-learns from the projects. I also have to collaborate with (1) cross-functional teams (strategy, finance, tax) to address challenges and align on deal structures and (2) local teams to ensure consistency and compliance across our subsidiaries

Beyond pure legal work, I contribute to enhancing team and cost efficiency by developing automation tools, creating work and legal spend trackers, exploring AI applications, and defining and implementing OKRs.

This represents a unique (and definitely not boring!) role for an in-house counsel.

What are some of the key challenges you have faced as a rising star in-house counsel, and how have you overcome them?

Shifting to a business-oriented mindset, delivering concise, pragmatic advice that aligns legal protection with commercial needs while constantly having to adjust my speech to my audience has been one of my biggest challenges. Effective and impactful communication is crucial and a daily challenge for me in such a multicultural and diverse environment; this is not a skill that you are taught in law firms. Taking part in dedicated trainings, proactively participating in meetings, leveraging AI tools as well as speaking at a conference enabled me to elevate myself.

I also have to demonstrate adaptability by navigating complex multi-jurisdictional transactions, managing diverse legal frameworks, and making informed decisions while balancing acceptable risks and uncertainty. For example, managing an arbitration case in the MENA region broadened my perspective on diverse legal frameworks and jurisdictional complexities while adopting flexible and critical thinking.

Overall, I strive to be seen as a business partner and enabler, not just a legal gatekeeper.

What steps have you taken to enhance your professional development and expand your legal skill set?

I actively seek opportunities for growth through 360-degree feedback. Coaching sessions have been instrumental in strengthening my confidence, improving relationship management, and honing leadership and soft skills. These have helped me build trust and effectively navigate through organisational dynamics.

Additionally, I attended training programs delivered at Delivery Hero and industry conferences to broaden my legal and business expertise, stay updated on market trends to integrate them into my work, and expand my professional network.