How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crisis, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Instability or crisis tests the preparedness of the legal department, as well as the effectiveness of the controls and processes put in place including the legal business continuity plan amongst other controls. My approach is to first identify the inherent legal risk that the crisis presents and work with requisite teams to put controls in place to mitigate such risks. For example, the Covid Pandemic exacerbated a number of compliance and investigation risks and challenges, as business operations were greatly disrupted, due to a number of activities being carried out remotely. From Supply chain risks to Sales and distribution/transportation etc. It also introduced Privacy and confidentiality compliance concerns where previously non-existent and magnified it in other cases. This necessitated regular communication and reminders of the organisation policies, changes to risk profile, additional compliance trainings and refresher sessions for employees and partners, crafting innovative solutions to support the business as it was no longer ‘business as usual’. The Company needed to continue earning and growing revenue whilst maintaining and entrenching its culture of ethics and compliance. There was a collaborative effort between the business owners and risk functions, legal included, to continue to ensure accountability whilst managing the pressure faced by the relevant stakeholders by promoting ethical business practices to meet a difficult and unprecedented business environment. As is typical during crises and periods of instability, there was heightened regulatory scrutiny and enforcement, changes to regulatory guidance and resource guides which the organisation was required to adhere to. The Legal Department strategy aligns with the broader business strategy and aids resilience because of; a. proactive risk management, b. an updated legal business continuity plan which ensures that the business is supported from a legal perspective during unprecedented times, c. Reassessment of controls to ensure that they are able to properly address evolving business risks e.g., Sanctions/Trade Compliance & Export controls have evolved in the past couple of years due to conflict between global economic powers. d. Flexibility and adaptability have also been superpowers in supporting the business needs during time of crisis as the team is faced with new scenarios which require proffering custom solutions to address the business concerns. e. Effective Communication – reemphasising the corporate values of the organisation during a time of crisis is critical to maintaining the trust with customers and business partners that the organisation transacts with. This is also important in maintaining unparalleled brand reputation in the industry. In conclusion, during “wartimes”, our strategy ensures ethical business practices, compliance with local law, regulation & company policy and risk mitigation plans which help protect the organisation from potential liabilities, all in a way that guarantees alignment with the macro business objective.

In your opinion, what are the main trends that are salient in your country currently?

The rise of social media/Influencer marketing relevance. There is a saying in the digital realm that ‘content does not just inform the digital realm, it reigns supreme’. This underscores the critical role of content in shaping perceptions and decisions, and this has been no truer than in the Nigerian clime over the past year. Influencer/Content Marketing has become a booming and thriving business. Organisations are also taking advantage of this ‘rave’ by engaging key influencers to help ‘market’ their business to aid better visibility, particularly among the younger generation. The world has really changed, and traditional social media marketing strategies are losing their appeal. High Net Worth Individuals have also keyed into this ‘next big thing’. We also have the ‘Legal Influencers’ who provide awareness to the public on latest legal trends and insights. These people have become authoritative voices in their field as they share their expertise and spark viral meaningful conversations using their social media platform. This has also helped them to onboard new clients. That said, there are varying opinions on whether this violates the conservative rules for practicing as a lawyer in this jurisdiction, as you are prohibited from advertising/soliciting for professional work, which the social media content invariably creates for such influencers. Whether or not the use of social media breaches those rules is still being debated. My suggestion would be for our rules and laws to align with the times that we are in whilst still maintaining the integrity of the profession and what it stands for.

Secondly, Macro-economic trends: Trends of inflation, cost of credit, interest rates and weakening exchange rates are foundational indices impacting the entire business landscape. Thirdly, Political Apathy and a lowering trust index in governance – there appears to have been a downward trend in the level of trust individuals and businesses have for the public institutions and government representatives. This strongly impacts ease of doing business metrics and overall appetite for innovative and small businesses.

Fourthly,growing market for talent export: There’s been a sharp increase in the onboarding of local talents to scale global businesses, particularly in the software/technology and related industries. Finally, the accelerated adoption of Artificial Intelligence. Knowledge workers and corporate business units have widely adopted AI tools and various large language models. This is a total ground-shifting of the nation’s data privacy and governance landscape and has second and third order ramifications with impact for decades to come.

Are there any causes, business or otherwise, you are passionate about?

Gender Equity, Female Financial Empowerment and the Care Economy. Statistics show that gender parity/equality is potentially not achievable until another 130 years. This has made me more passionate about gender equity, female financial empowerment, and the care economy – of which women are largely the backbone. These are all interconnected as the central piece is ‘women’. There has been a lot of work done by amazing women over the years to close the gender gap, but it appears that we have not made so much progress. Women are traditionally treated as chattels of men and the scales are unbalanced across the board. Statistics show that only 2% of female founders receive venture capital funding in the United States, however when startups with at least one female founder are being considered, the % of the venture capital funding can be significantly higher sometimes reaching up to 17% or more. This confirms a persistent gender gap in venture capital funding for startups solely founded by women. The Care economy is largely driven by women, and I dare say that is one of the reasons ‘Care Work’ is not as respected and as ‘profitable’ (for women) as it should be, particularly in this clime. Care is the bedrock of the family and the larger Society. Despite its importance, the attention paid to it is very small. This is evident in the lack of recognition of the amazing work of Care givers (including those who care for aged persons), lack of regard for stay-at home mums, reports about non-existent/inadequate parental leave policies of some organisations, unsupportive managers, creation of a non-enabling environment and promotion of a culture where women feel guilty for creating a ‘new life’, or taking time off work ‘knowing’ that their career will take a hit, etc. The above issues create barriers to women’s economic opportunity, preventing them from realising their full economic potential, because it limits their access to resources. It also contributes to gender-based violence. Adequate and quality care improves quality of work output and productivity of employees. I am privileged to be a part of an organisation and particularly a team that values, supports, and celebrates women and their contribution. Oracle has a global development program called Oracle’s Women Leadership (OWL) which has been in existence for almost two decades, with a mission to engage and empower current and future generations of women leaders at Oracle and I have been a beneficiary of the development programs and opportunities. Women thrive at Oracle because of its flexibility, inclusive culture, DEI Policies and initiatives including the INSPIREHER initiative, which provides strong support, autonomy to do the best work, and fantastic leadership opportunities. In addition to Oracle’s enhanced maternity leave policy, there is also a robust Paternity leave policy which supports new dads. Empowering women is not as simplistic as it sounds and the tools to do this are interconnected and it involves going against the culture (for example, the differences in how boys and girls are raised), tradition and sometimes religion. The tools include training, continued awareness about the value of care in the home, workplace and in Society, repealing patriarchal and misogynistic laws or rules that stifle women, transforming institutions that reinforce gender discrimination and inequality. Women need economic power so they can fund the causes to empower other women, dismantle patriarchal institutions and norms, run political campaigns and more. More importantly, we should continue to engage men as allies to fight Patriarchy.