Font Size: 
Tenets of a Global GC
Lenovo GC Mike O'Neill sets out what it takes for a 21st century legal head to stay at the top of their game
Legal Week
July 06, 2009
August Stein / Photodisc Green
In between the rush and flow of working as general counsel of Lenovo, a global computer company with heritage in both the U.S. (IBM PC) and China (Legend Computers) and operations worldwide, I've realized that there are some basic principles that guide my work. I call these tenets -- some of them I've learned along the way, and some I am still learning every day. Let me share those at the top of my list.
WE DON'T GET PAID FOR WHAT WE DO -- WE GET PAID FOR WHAT WE GET DONE
This is the single most important rule for a successful in-house role. In my company, we often talk in terms of 'done' and 'not done'. This is the ultimate summary status. It is often all the client has the time or inclination to hear. It is a hard discipline to stick to in my function and is undermined by legal education, which is fraught with nuanced facts and precedent applied and analysed to a legal conclusion. We sometimes preamble and then caveat in the same mouthful.
It is no surprise that outside service providers bill by the hour and not the results. But adhering to this tenet is often what makes the difference between business partnering (what my clients want) and functional support (the last phylogeny of legal engagement). If I had a mantra for in-house counsel, this would be it.
GET AN UNDERSTANDING -- SET THE PARAMETERS
One of the key things you learn as you move up the organisational ladder is the importance of understanding the drivers of the situation and the players involved before jumping in to work out a resolution.
By applying a legal resolution to a dispute or a transaction, you are often attempting to apply rationality to an emotional situation. If we push our chosen resolution when the timing is bad or beyond the boundaries of the parties' comfort zone, it can cause emotive behavior that is tough to reverse. I try to ask questions like: what is the 'must have' that the other side needs to take away? What can't we lose? It is very important to recognize what the limits are in a dispute. Trespassing those limits may drive irrational behavior.
This is not as simple as it sounds. The person on the other side of the table will often have a broad position, but if you drill it down, it typically narrows into one or two things the person cannot accept. They will scorch the earth to avoid those two things. Sometimes the best way to ferret that information out of them is to tell them what your position is: why you must have A or you cannot have X.
The more often I do this, the more I recognize that the nature of our profession is not just to advocate and espouse, but often to get the other party to articulate honestly what they really need.
For the head of legal, issues can sometimes work their way up the organization, and by that time there are usually entrenched positions and aligned constituencies, with real losses and gains on the table. You must find a way to balance these as quickly as possible.
GAIN TRUST
You cannot operate effectively in your team without an environment of trust. It is first and foremost: a key tenet. Trust usually takes a long time to build, and the general counsel does not have the luxury of time. You must trust others in order for them to trust you.
I was lucky to be able to fill my organization with people whom I deeply trust, and did this in such a way as not to create career bottlenecks or frustration in the organization. After networking and working with many people, I was ready to bring on board people who I trusted and knew could grow with the organization. It is essential to trust the skills of others and have faith in their honesty and judgment. It does not mean they won't make mistakes -- we all do. But you must share the trust or the synergy of the team is severely limited.
My relationships with outside counsel mirror what I seek internally. If the main focus regarding your outside counsel is cost, you are defeated from almost every definition of partnering.
I want outside counsel who buy into a long-term relationship. Sometimes there won't be a lot for them to do, but I expect them to continue to invest time into understanding my business and my industry. Sometimes I have to let them know: "Here's what I have, money-wise, and here's all I can give you to do." When we reach the same level of trust I have with my in-house team, my outside counsel become an extension of the legal department.
SET THE AGENDA
Every general counsel approaches the agenda differently based on their personality, but you must set it. There is more work in any given day than you can humanly handle. Identify the issues that have the potential to go nuclear, and put your attention there first.
My priority has been to establish process. There is a cadence, a drumbeat, to the issues that arise in any organization, and there must be consistent response and forward movement. My deputy, who runs the legal operations, really understands how to structure and maintain a great process. It is a real luxury for me.
I'm good at juggling -- you have to be to do these kinds of jobs. It is a relief and a necessity that the top talent on my team manages the disciplines of process.
As a leader, there is really no way to control the schedule. Despite your best attempts to set one, something inevitably comes up to rearrange the whole day, sometimes the whole week. You have to maintain structure and process for the legal team, and at the same time accept that your own days will not be like that.
