Legal news and trends for Canadian in-house counsel and c-suite executives
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FROM THE PROFESSION address specific matters, such as implementation of new laws or regulations that affect the corporation and/or its subsidiaries. The two VPs for law also conduct their own meetings to address specific matters related to their respective groups. TALENT MANAGEMENT "To make the right decisions on the ground, you need to have the right people in place," says Desjardins. Accordingly, talent management, training, and succession planning is important to successfully managing a decentralized legal function. Desjardins and the two VPs for law perform annual functional reviews to evaluate the high-potential lawyers within each group and the legal function as a whole. They also have regular calls and try to provide lawyers with opportunities to move from one location to another to offer a breadth of experience. Training is another important tool to help lawyers across the function to succeed. The in-house lawyers receive training — both in-person and via web-based systems — on general law issues and specific economic and legal issues relevant to Bom- bardier. A recent training initiative included having two senior lawyers from Desjardins' legal headquarters team travel around the world to train in-house lawyers in each of the business di- visions on guidelines and important features of a key letter of credit facility and of a bond issue. EMPOWERMENT Desjardins feels strongly that the culture must include a sense of empowerment in order to successfully manage a decentralized legal function, explaining that his lawyers are empowered to do what it takes to get their jobs done to "provide the best legal services possible." This sense of empowerment exists throughout the company as a whole. Communicating the importance of understand- ing and managing risks and providing training and tools are key factors leading to success. Additionally, Desjardins listens to feedback and adapts where necessary to ensure that systems and processes are appropriate. Explains Desjardins: "Empowerment, together with good governance, communications tools and talent management, helps Bombardier's law department to be [what I view] as the best legal department for the best delivery of legal services for Bombardier." IH 156679 DD RXHLFF-03 LOE InHs 6/20/08 11:58 AM Page 1 Renee S. Dankner is associate general counsel, advocacy and CLO services, of the Association of Corporate Counsel. The ACC frequently interviews CLOs in conjunction with its CLO ThinkTanks, exclusive forums for thought leaders to discuss ideas, concerns, best practices, and advice on issues affecting the in-house bar and their clients in the U.S. and Canada. Dye & Durham Law Office Essentials A selection of products geared towards today's legal professional Canada's Largest Supplier of Indexes • Available in complete sets or packages of individual numbers • Ordering only the numbers or letters required helps to minimize waste • Sets from 1-2000, letters A-Z Buff or White with up to 30% post consumer waste yourONE source supplier for Office & Furniture Products • Corporate Promotional Products • Printing & Graphic Services • Law Office Essentials • Corporate Supplies • Search & Registration Services OFFICE & FURNITURE PRODUCTS dyedurhambasics.ca • Phone: 1-888-393-3874 • Fax: 1-800-263-2772 24 A UGUST 2008 C ANADIAN Lawyer INHOUSE C W e ' r e a y C a n a p d i m a n o a n