Amid a corporate growth surge and the pressing demands of worldwide antibribery and labor laws, Marriott International Inc.’s global general counsel Ed Ryan employs the kind of personal touch you’d see in any good hotelier.

Maintaining strong relationships with the 72 attorneys on Marriott’s legal team means that in-person contact often takes priority over email correspondence. An old-fashioned device helps, too, he said — “We don’t have any exotic transporter. I use the telephone a lot.”