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

The priority is always the business. Instability may increase legal risks but that should not prevent us from helping the business achieve their immediate goals. This is even more critical in start-ups where everything is instable and dynamic by their own nature.  Understanding what to prioritise in terms of compliance during such periods is also critical, and keeping a written record of mistakes and learnings builds resilience for future challenges. 

What are the main cases or transactions you have been involved in recently?   

The acquisition of two great companies such as Hipoteca Genial and Intelimétrica was a landmark for the company, and I had the privilege of being involved in the whole process since due diligence to the current integration process. Another interesting challenge was to coordinate the legal side of the restructuring process of going from Flat.mx to Clau, which required us to cover a wide array of aspects from IP to labor and compliance. 

What strategies do you employ to ensure the successful digital transformation of a legal department while maintaining compliance with Mexico’s data protection laws?   

First, we map all potential compliance issues from a data privacy perspective. We prioritise those that are more likely to create a contingency (according to our business model) and find a mechanism that is easy enough to internally monitor but effective enough to keep us on the right side of the law. External consultants sometimes forget how important it is to understand our business model before recommending a compliance protocol and as in-house you often receive one-size-fits-all memos that help very little in practice. Therefore, I recommend making your own research first, understanding your top priorities (e.g. data handling; storage; personal data), drafting your own data protocol and only then approaching an expert to validate. Finally, it is important to select the right technology solutions with built-in compliance capabilities. 

How can general counsel foster a corporate culture that supports ESG principles and compliance across all levels of the organisation?   

If you have many priorities, you don’t have any. In ESG, I’ve seen companies going from the greenwashing to the whole-menu approach and that has turned ESG programs into something less effective than they should be. For us, the current priority is employee wellness and strong governance. We are focused on creating adaptative programs, flexible work arrangements, and effective reporting mechanisms for ethical concerns. I´m personally focused on adjusting and iterating mechanisms to ensure ethical conduct, promote transparency and establish whistleblower protections. 

How do you prioritise diversity and inclusion within your legal department, and what initiatives have you implemented to foster a more inclusive and equitable work environment?   

Working in a start-up facilitates D&I strategies. Clau is composed of an incredibly talented and diverse team and that is also reflected in our legal department. Our DNA is to work horizontally, as equals, to hear ideas from each other and to have a safe space for sharing our views. That is what makes start-ups so powerful in solving problems. If your core strategy is to promote such a kind of environment all specific D&I initiatives and strategies are easier to implement and, importantly, they feel organic and sincere. 

How do you manage and motivate your legal team to ensure high performance and professional growth?   

Daily training, weekly one-on-one meetings and direct team motivation are key. Also taking time each day to say thanks to the team and provide honest feedback on what we can do better the next day. One thing that we like to do as a team is to explore tech solutions applications and strategies that can enhance our efficiency. 

Finally, we take some time together to understand non-legal aspects of the business. We try to collaborate closely with the different teams, which helps us to offer relevant and strategic advice on commercial strategies and new product launches. 

In your opinion, what are the main trends that are salient in your country currently (these can be legal, political, economy or business-based)?  

It’s challenging to keep up with all the regulatory landscape in Mexico. Tech start-ups must become hyper effective in handling all compliance obligations, new regulations and requests for information from different authorities. On top of that, new products and services are frequently emerging and often fall outside existing regulatory frameworks. I am eager to see how the digital strategy announced by the new administration can facilitate compliance in the start-up ecosystem.