7 habits of highly effective in-house counsels

Act proactively

If you truly want to be successful either as an in-house counsel or in any other job, you must take initiative and act proactively. A lot of people are waiting for “things to happen”. 

A typical example: “I do not know how to solve this issue as it is too complicated.” Or “How should I know that as I have no previous experience in that matter. Moreover nobody wants to help me.”

Proactive people are aware that the solution to any problem does not lie with others but with themselves. Even if they are not familiar with the issue, they start doing some research themselves or contact the relevant people within their organization to find out more about the topic. There is no shame in reaching out for help. It takes courage as it demonstrates that you are aware of your limits but at the same time are willing to go beyond your comfort zone.

A highly effective in-house counsel needs to be proactive and must not be afraid to get out of his or her comfort zone.

Know your business and your organization “inside out”

One of the first things I have always done when starting a new position as an in-house counsel was to plan a visit of the production plant and the headquarters. I usually reserved the entire day for my visit in order to have enough time to talk to different people working in different functions at various levels of the organization. 

Why is this so important?

Simply because you cannot be effective as an in-house counsel if you do not know the strengths and weaknesses of the business and the products or services sold by the company in detail. The best way to find this out is to get out of your office, visit the plant to discover the different stages of production and to talk to the people “in the field”.

This approach will not only help you to get to know some key people in your organization but also to understand some of the major problems and difficulties that are inherent to your organization.

Having detailed knowledge of the sector and products of the company you are working for is an absolute prerequisite for performing efficiently in your role as in-house counsel.

Focus on what is important

One of the first things I do every morning is make a list of the top 3 things that I want to accomplish.

It is a quite simple rule but highly effective. And it actually works as I apply it every day!

One of the downsides of such a to do list is that you can get disrupted by an unexpected event that comes up and needs your immediate attention. Therefore, I recommend making only a top 3 or top 5 list in order not to get frustrated if you cannot accomplish one of your daily objectives.

The key is that you stick to your objectives and focus on getting them done regardless of what else happens. It is the only way to make progress and achieve your (daily) objectives.

Remember: a highly effective in-house counsel is one who ultimately gets things done!

Demonstrate excellent people skills  

An in-house counsel with a good understanding of the law and legal principles might do a decent job but it is the interpersonal skills that make the difference between a good and a highly efficient in-house counsel.

Having a team of efficient people and a good dose of emotional intelligence allows you to communicate clearly with each person at every level of the organization, to get a good understanding of the issue you are facing and to identity the appropriate solution that works best for the company.

Having the ability to relate to others and to demontrate empathy and understanding for their position or point of view is crucial to achieving a carreer in business not only for an in-house counsel but for every role in a company. Sometimes being able to relate to others simply means that you are willing to agree to disagree with mutual respect; letting them know that you also understand their position.

Having good people skills is much harder to learn than technical skills but it is an absolute requisite to be(come) a highly effective in-house counsel.

Be(come) trustworthy

You can only be effective and accelerate your career if you are trustworthy, especially in the role of in-house counsel.  Establishing a trustworthy relationship in your organisation as an in-house counsel is the difference between success and failure. 

Without this, you cannot get things done or get any cooperation.

How can you build up a reputation of trustworthiness?

Significant experience and quantifiable results are one way to help build a lot of trust. Another way is to always have open and transparent communications. It is better to highlight risks straight away rather than avoiding them. A third way is to always stick to what you have committed to and deliver the result(s) within the given time frame.

Do not mix trust with credibilty. Credibility concerns someone’s qualifications. For instance, if you are looking for an experienced in-house counsel and you interview a person who has more than 20 years of experience working as in-house counsel for a Fortune 500 company, you are more likely to believe that the person is credible as in-house counsel.

Trust, however, is your impression of another human being. You need to build up trust within every organisation by delivering results and building up a relationship with your business partners.

A highly effective in-house counsel needs to be both credible and trustworthy.

Use common sense

It might be a simple principle but it is one of the most difficult to put into practice. Why?

We, as legal professionals, are usually in possession of very good analytical skills that are crucial for problem solving.  However, the downside of having excellent analytical skills is a tendency to overanalyze things. That is the main reason why lawyers or in-house counsels tend to make things more complicated than they really are.

This tendency to overanalyze often cripples productivity and leads to low-probability conclusions that prevent progress or avoid taking calculated risks.

Sometimes it does help to overthink and be cautious about potential risks and downfalls. But often, it is unnecessary to make everything seem worse than it actually is.

How many times have I heard the sentence: “I cannot accept it as it is not in compliance with our rules and corporate policy”.  The existence of a 75 year old corporate rule that never has been challenged is the perfect excuse to not make any decision or to say “no” to every opportunity that comes along.

One of the things that I learned during my career as in-house counsel is to let things go and to use common sense when looking at a problem from a different (non legal) perspective.

A highly effective in-house counsel should be capable of “letting things go” and prioritizing risks and opportunities using common sense.

Be part of the solution not the problem

Lawyers or in-house counsels have a reputation of focusing on problems rather than on solutions. In-house counsels are often seen as people who focus only on the risks and never see the opportunities in a potential business deal.

It is important to take a helicopter view and look at the problem from every possible perspective and not limit yourself to the legal side. Use your interpersonal skills and look at the human side of solving the problem. It’s not just about the legal rules and obligations — it is about the people involved, their interests and their objectives.  

Ask yourself questions like:

• how can we apply the legal rules to every party’s satisfaction?
• What are other options or solutions?
• How can we test these options?
• What can I live with in the interest of the company?

Elaborate a number of additional possible solutions and present them to your business partners.

They will be impressed by your “out of the box thinking” and understand that you are there to help by finding solutions rather than pointing out problems.

As a highly effective legal counsel, you should be able to look at a problem from all possible perspectives and not focus exclusively on the legal or compliance aspects.

Conclusion : Are you among highly effective in-house legal counsels ? 

I know that there are a number of other “habits” I could have included in the list above.  

But the purpose of this article is not to be exhaustive but just to provide you with some practical tips and insights. If you are passionate about your job as in-house counsel, then these are some habits that you can adopt, develop or implement in order to go that “extra mile” that will make your in-house job more than just a 9 to 5 occupation.

If you find this blog useful, pass it along to colleagues or friends, and share it.  This post does not provide legal advice or legal opinion.  It is intended to provide practical tips to in-house practitioners and other readers. You can find my other articles on my bog.

If you have questions or comments, please leave a comment or contact me.