Team size: 19

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?

Several ideas come to mind, but I believe I can summarise them in four reflections.

Firstly, it is essential to stay close to business and commercial decisions, especially in times of crisis. Participating from the conception of any initiative allows us to understand and mitigate associated legal and reputational risks. This also allows us to alert in a timely manner possible negative impacts on the company, regulatory changes, or potential litigation with third parties.

Secondly, it is crucial to be transparent about the chances of success of such initiatives, as ethical and compliance terms are non-negotiable.

Furthermore, it is necessary to maintain a healthy balance between the search of legal certainty for the company’s business and the preservation of commercial relations. Avoiding conflict without sacrificing business whenever possible.

Finally, a legal manager must stay informed and self-evaluate the effectiveness of their legal strategies, while also monitoring the market for the best practices for continuous improvement to prepare for present and future challenges.

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?

I am part of the company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, where, alongside members of the board of directors and other prominent members of the commercial team, we have designed and implemented various initiatives aimed at fostering more inclusive work environments. These initiatives extend beyond the legal department to encompass the entire company, which conducts its commercial activities throughout the country.

Some of these initiatives include the development of inclusive hiring policies, mentoring programmes, and awareness campaigns addressing unconscious biases, discrimination, and sexual harassment in the workplace. Prior to this experience, I obtained a certification in Gender Equity Management and Inclusion applied to organisations from the Graduate School of the Peruvian University of Applied Sciences.

It is definitely a topic that I am passionate about because of what it implies for future generations. Despite the efforts made, we understand that it requires not only goodwill but also a real cultural change across Peruvian society. This will then allow us to make significant progress that allows minority groups to work on equal terms. It is a long but transcendent road that has already sown the seed of this change, and little by little, we can see it on different fronts.