Vice president, associate general counsel Europe | Philip Morris International
Aziz Aidaros
Vice president, associate general counsel Europe | Philip Morris International
Team size: 70
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?
During periods of instability and crises, it is critical to focus on people. Your team is going to feel anxious and nervous, and you have to communicate openly to assure them and neutralise the negative impact of those tough times as much as possible. Our legal strategy always tracks and aims to be contributing to and propelling our business strategy. In turbulent times, the business strategy adapts to prioritise our core objectives and shifts resources to support our people and those in distress.
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?
Diversity is a key asset of our legal department. By embracing diversity, we boost creativity into business discussions by leveraging different perspectives and experiences. Diversity and inclusion also reinforces our commitment to invest in the development of our people by giving them the opportunity to embrace new challenges beyond any stereotype limitations and learn from those new experiences. Our D&I group plays a pivotal role and has implemented lots of initiatives, including mentorship and sponsorship programs, promoting flexible working arrangements and diverse hiring practices, and creating employee resource groups.