Team size:   Eleven

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? 

Each country and each company are like living persons, they have ups and downs, wins and challenges of all types. They don’t exist in isolation but are built on the character of their people and are driven through different times by the force of their teams. The past 4 years have proven that even in period of crises and instability, be it economic, social and political, the capacity of people to adapt, understand and move forward is amazing. In such critical times, the role of the legal department is crucial; business as usual means navigating murky waters as well, therefore legal aspects need to be always considered and managed the right way to reduce risks, comply with required regulations and support business efforts to adapt, grow and move forward. Companies are grounded on strong principles to bring value to people’s lives, supporting social, economic and political environments while creating value for people to thrive. I am lucky to be part of a company whose mission since the very beginning was to connect Romanians and build a digital future that makes it possible for people to connect with their most important communities and targets. That supports education, healthcare, diversity and social inclusion. In this sense, legal strategy is always focused in identifying the best ways to deliver these objectives, constantly monitoring legal impact, challenges, supporting in setting trends, setting realistic expectations, providing constant and constructive feedback and solutions in order to ensure the organisation’s resilience and capacity to stay focused and deliver the best quality network.

What measures has your company taken to embed sustainability practices into its core business operations, and how does the role of the general counsel contribute to driving and ensuring sustainable practices within the company? 

Sustainability might seem a trend, but I believe this should be a mindset when structuring businesses, developments, investments, etc. Vodafone Romania, as part of Vodafone Group, puts sustainability at core in its Mission and Vision, which is a real indicator of its importance across all our activities, guided by our goal to reduce our carbon footprint and impact on the Planet. In a tech company, energy consumption is one of the key areas when talking about sustainability. As of January 2020, Vodafone Romania is using only green energy across the whole business, in order to increase energy efficiency and reduce our environmental impact. Our activity is also driving Romania’s digital transformation, while using technology to become greener. And a key part of Vodafone’s Mission and commitment is to invest in Romanians, their communities and their roots.

The role of Head of Legal is crucial across the entire sustainability field, guiding the business throughout regulatory challenges, evaluating the risks and impact and finding solutions to mitigate possible challenges at all levels. Also, monitoring the legislative changes, the Head of Legal brings into attention opportunities for the company to drive more effectiveness in sustainability and to find new directions for business.

What emerging technologies do you see as having the most significant impact on the legal profession in the near future, and how do you stay updated on these developments? 

Working in a tech company is a privilege and you feel all the time like Alice in Wonderland, as the most relevant technologies are just next to you, around the corner, with the appropriate support from high-tech professionals. So, we are actively testing new technologies like robots, using them in order to simplify replies to standard and repetitive questions coming from internal clients. But I see AI and Blockchain as relevant emerging technologies with high impact for the legal profession, starting from now, as the future is already here. I believe that these technologies will be able to bring more efficiency in the activity of legal profession, helping us to leave some very simple and not highly sensitive matters in the hands of the technology allowing us to focus on more rewarding and satisfactory legal work. In order to stay in touch with the developments and their impact in our profession, we discuss with peers, with our tech colleagues, we read the news in the field, attend conferences, have our team members joining dedicated trainings to stay up to date with latest news and dedicate working to learn and adapt.