Long gone are the days when general counsel (GC) were asked to serve as the organization’s top lawyer and supplier of legal support. While a GC might have initially been asked to manage legal work and control costs, the role has long since become a catch-all job tackling issues as they crop up or managing new functions that emerge.

Today, the GC job typically comes with an ampersand: GC and corporate secretary, GC and compliance officer, GC and strategist, GC and head of government affairs. Gartner research finds that the typical GC oversees three to six distinct corporate functions. And those are just the official parts of the GC portfolio. Every new law, social media imbroglio or corporate crisis lands on the GC’s desk. Overall, 73% of GCs report that they face interruptions more than half the time.