Could you tell us a bit about your significant successes in your role?

I have established a dedicated corporate governance and compliance function to progress Pacific National’s governance maturity and have been appointed company secretary for companies in the Group. I have insourced the delivery of the function providing greater focus on alignment with our strategic objectives and our ESG priorities.

As a senior member of the legal, governance and compliance team, I am in the unique position of having worked on some of the largest and most significant rail haulage, supply and procurement, and infrastructure agreements in the transport and logistics industry. I use that knowledge to drive out team to achieve the best outcomes for the business and share my experience with other members of the team.

I have built automation tools and used technology to improve the delivery of legal services by the team. I built an automated document drafting programme – PAC Bot – using Microsoft apps and standardised agreements. I also developed self-service flow charts and diagrams for the business to answer simple legal queries and determine which standard form agreements to use without unnecessary engagement with the legal team. I implemented a matter management and triage process and tools – LegalLink – to assist in the intake and allocation of workload amongst the team.

In your opinion, what are the qualities and skills needed to form a strong legal team?

A strong in-house legal team need to be more than lawyers. In addition to technical expertise, the following attributes make for an effective team: (I) exceptional communication skills, both written and oral; (ii) values-based decision making; (iii)strong stakeholder engagement skills and ability to influence decision makers; (iv) self-motivation and aspiration to learn; (v)innovative thinking.

What is the biggest risk to your industry, and how are you contributing to prepare your organisation for this?

I believe the key issue for our organisation and industry is the ongoing pressure from community, government, regulators and investors on the way we operate – understand the complexity of aligning our corporate purpose with risk, governance, culture and trust that goes beyond the law – beyond compliance.

At a time when we are mitigating the impacts on our business of floods, fires and other climate factors, together with the effects of Covid-19, our operating environment is evolving at a rapid pace, often changing hour to hour – the provision of flexible, efficient, savvy legal services and strategic advice to ensure compliance with existing and emerging regulatory obligations is vital to the organisation’s ongoing success and growth.

What challenges have you overcome to get to the position you are in today?

To get to the position I am in today, I have focussed on building strong relationships across the organisation from the board and executive to front line staff. This is challenging in any organisation, but in a male dominated industry that can present additional challenges for a female lawyer. I pride myself in understanding our business, and authentically engaging with the people who work here to ensure I can be the best I can be and support them in being the best they can be.