About

When Kapil Chaudhary was offered the chance to join the Indian operations of US-headquartered Autodesk, a leading manufacturer of software, in mid-2015, he saw an opportunity to work on the frontlines of India’s tech boom with one of the country’s most exciting companies. Chaudhary left his position as IBM’s Singapore-based Counsel, a prestigious role that gave him invaluable Asia-Pacific experience. Chaudhary is recognised as one of India’s leading business services counsel and has taken key strategic roles in a number of sectors covering outsourcing, technology and oil and gas services (as former India general counsel at Schlumberger). He is also a Member both of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators (SiArb) and of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). At Autodesk he handles a broad range of issues including channels, marketing, procurement, contracts, intellectual property management, license compliance, marketing, sales, M&A, and corporate policy. He is also the Asia Pacific focal point and lead counsel of Autodesk’s global privacy legal practice group and member of Autodesk’s core compliance practice group. While India’s thriving tech sector has given him a fresh perspective on how lawyers can advise businesses, Chaudhary still says his biggest challenge as general counsel remains similar to that of his peers across the world: ‘how not to be seen as just a lawyer’. To those who wish to follow his path he offers this advice: ‘To remain on top of our game, as in-house counsel, one has to think as a lawyer but be able to earn the trust of one’s clients by building relationships and paying attention to communication. Speaking to the business in its own language is the key to success’.