Corporate legal departments have shifted away from being the “department of no,” but that does not mean that general counsel should be the “yes men” and “yes women” of their company.

The general counsels of Square, Google and Agilent Technologies discussed the importance of taking hard stances when necessary. Speaking on a panel titled, “Stepping Up: Your First Role as GC in a Time of Widespread Disruption,” hosted by In-House Focus, the GCs agreed that often, giving the unpopular opinion as a younger in-house attorney can be a good career move.