Legal news and trends for Canadian in-house counsel and c-suite executives
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It's fi ne to kind of overlay the Bombardier approach and view of the world and systems and processes, but there's always a local colour that you've got to take into account. DANIEL DESJARDINS, Bombardier Inc. The Barrick protest and lawsuit against Copper Mesa exemplify the type of scruti- ny Canadian companies face moving into emerging markets and developing nations. Businesses may be focused on the bottom line when they set up operations in parts of South America, Asia, and Africa, but many have learned the hard way that it's essential to develop a strong relationship with local communities if they hope to have a long- term and peaceful presence. And those who have been there say in-house counsel have a distinct role to play in the process, juggling a complex set of tasks to help put the company's best foot forward as it opens up shop abroad. Daniel Desjardins, senior vice president, general counsel, and assistant secretary at Bombardier Inc., juggles these issues for a company with facilities in 29 countries. He says Bombardier always takes into account what he calls the "local flavour" when establishing operations abroad. "It's fine to kind of overlay the Bombardier approach and view of the world and systems and 18 • JUNE 2010 INHOUSE processes, but there's always a local colour that you've got to take into account." That means hiring local management rather than sending in a delegation of expatriates to steer the operation. Not only will that help the company quickly build strong roots in the community, but in the long run it's simply impossible to sustain a high expatriate presence. Canadians eventually want to come home after spending years abroad, notes Desjardins. From a corporate social responsibil- ity standpoint, Bombardier adheres to a supplier code of ethics, and has signed the United Nations Global Compact. Since its creation in July 2000, over 5,300 businesses in 130 countries have joined the initiative, which links their operations with 10 prin- ciples targeting human rights, labour, envi- ronment, and anti-corruption. "It gives us credibility both internally and externally," says Desjardins of the UN compact. "It gives us a framework to say, 'Those are the values in which we believe, and we will abide by those values and we will ask you Bombardier Inc. builds and sells transpor- tation products around the world and has signed on to the United Nations Global Compact on human rights, labour, envi- ronment, and anti-corruption. to abide by those values if you want to be a supplier of Bombardier.' . . . It gives us credibility internally to say, 'We're a seri- ous company and we want to do the right thing.'" Desjardins urges corporate counsel to make a point of meeting up with a wide range of professionals in the country in which operations will be set up. Lawyers, bankers, accountants, and other manu- facturers with an existing presence in the jurisdiction can offer vital information to help counsel avoid some of the struggles they may have had to deal with. "You may save yourself a lot of grief." It's also crucial to manage the distance between corpo- rate headquarters and operations abroad, says Desjardins. The best way to do that is by making communication a priority. He advises counsel to start the process by BOMBARDIER MULTIMEDIA LIBRARY