Team size: 12

What is a cause, business related or otherwise, that you care about, and why?

Siemens Energy has, ever since the compliance scandal in the late 2000s, been heavily engaged in promoting compliant behaviour through collective action. With governments in the Middle East promoting its young talents, my compliance colleague and I thought it is worthwhile seeking cooperation with educational institutions throughout the Middle East (mainly universities) to promote the thought of compliance in the heads of the people who will carry the region to the next level. This can be done in various ways, by engaging with the organisation itself and supporting it in its own compliance efforts (e.g., through signing and cooperating on the basis of a compliance pact), but also – and more importantly – engaging with its students through lectures, seminars, practical experience, and other activities in the field of compliance. We have, so far, succeeded in signing one MoU on the topic with a university in Jeddah and will soon be partnering with some universities in the UAE.

I have been leading Siemens Energy’s efforts on the cause of people of determination in the Middle East. I am passionate about the topic because it is – despite some very positive signs particularly of the UAE government – still underrepresented in the Middle East and there is a lot that can be created. Also, from a company and legal department perspective, I believe that we are not even close to tapping into the full potential of people of determination and are missing a huge pot of potential talents. Also, I am challenged every day, as I constantly must adjust my communication to the needs of the person I am talking to (it is very different to speak to an autistic person in comparison to a person with hearing impairment) – a quality that ultimately will help me to do my job better. Lastly, the work is super-rewarding as one receives a lot of thankfulness from people of determination and their families – a circumstance that of course has a slightly bittersweet taste as what I am doing is supporting them to access something that I feel that we all are entitled to and shall not be deprived of by societal prejudices: a satisfactory job and happiness in life.

What would you say are the unique qualities required to be successful as an in-house lawyer in your industry?

I think that the most important quality an in-house lawyer needs is the ability to communicate appropriately on all levels: it is a completely different thing to negotiate with customers, prepare a claim jointly with the employees on site, brief a CEO or communicate with authorities. The better we are in this task, the lower the risk for misunderstandings and negative consequences for our company.