Here’s the replay of our 'Ask the Expert' event where Iris Chen and Milana Homsi McCullagh took you through their experiences of building world-class legal teams under time constraints and shared their top tips for legal professionals in the same situation.

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Meet the Presenters:

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Host:

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‍Raad Ahmed, CEO & Founder at Lawtrades

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Panelists:

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• Iris Chen, DGC, Airbnb; former VP of Legal, Google
• Milana McCullagh, DGC, VP of Legal, Coinbase; Director of Legal, Google

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Key Takeaways:

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• Prioritize team building
• Be prepared to constantly adapt & re-assess goals
• Plan observation time in order to understand the “operating system” of the company
• Focus on initiatives that have the most “bang” for the company

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Don’t rush to take action:

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11:10-16:08

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• Iris: “Ask a lot of questions and conduct your own 360°assessment”
• Spend the first month listening, reflecting, and planning
• Schedule Zoom calls to meet and assess the team
• Understand the crucial functions of the company, and where they may interact with the legal team
• Navigate the cross-functional efforts
• Milana: “You need that observation and reflection time”
• Come up with a 90-day plan
• Prioritize what needs to be done immediately, what needs to be done in 6 months, and what can be placed on the back-burner
• Take any value from previous work experience (esp. from a larger workplace) and anticipate needs accordingly

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Build your Team:

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16:08-25:19

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• Milana: “My number one priority is recruiting and staffing top talent”
• Assess talent and figure out what you need
• Plan to spend a lot of time hiring
• Hire those that can handle complex initiatives
• Form a narrative as to why the opportunity is compelling
• Rely on networks to target candidates
• Iris: “Hire good general athletes”
• You get the best “mileage” from those who are capable of plugging into different roles and meeting the evolving needs of the business
• Assess goals of individual team members in order to match positions that align with their goals
• Put necessary time into defining and clarifying roles
• Utilize a point of contact directory, so people know who to go to when issues arise

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Prioritize:

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31:25-38:08

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• Milana: “You can’t scale without the basics in place on the commercial side”
• Figure out a contract management solution that works
• Implement a robust and seamless deal approval process
• Build close relationships with the product team & compliance
• Make sure product managers understand your role
• Iris: “It’s challenging to make sure information is being shared with the right people at the right time”
• Utilize a “weekly report” that is shared between legal and business departments
• Forms visibility into what team members are working on while providing a window into what the business is doing

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Set Expectations:

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38:08-46:05

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• Milana: “Articulate your expectations both in terms of the what and the how”
• Figure out what you are trying to achieve, articulate your mission & define roles appropriately
• Balance the risks & rewards
• Make space for social interactions, especially if you are a new team leader
• Set expectations not only with your team, but amongst your clients and other business partners
• Iris: “Can't emphasize enough how important it is to build trust and credibility”
• Invest in initiatives that empower your team to operate smartly, efficiently, and consistently with the standards you’ve set

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Want to continue the conversation? Request access to join our exclusive community of legal professionals where Iris and Milana are answering your hypergrowth questions!

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Also, look out for our next event workshop, ‘Working for yourself after in-house: legal professionals going out on their own’, on September 16th!

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