Rachel Yee, head, legal and compliance, Singapore and Southeast Asia, Sembcorp Industries, talks about the combination of traits she looks for in team members, how respect is at the heart of successful relationships with external counsel, and why mindset makes all the difference.

Hiro Kato, general counsel of Japan’s Inpex, talks about why it's important to follow the “Big Rules,” the importance of corporate culture to a flexible and non-hierarchical team like his, and how he never forgets that the legal industry is, in essence, a service industry.

Ong Johnson, senior group legal manager of i-Berhad, shares how every legal decision he makes has a dual purpose, the importance of empathy, and why he always strives to be a “good and faithful servant.”

Dorothea Dian, general counsel at Siemens Indonesia, speaks about why a company's culture sets the foundation for a cohesive and successful organisation, the ways in which her law firms could enhance their responsiveness and efficiency, and how she always seeks to thrive in the face of change.

As director of legal at Doctor Anywhere, a fast-growing one-stop telehealth app provider in Southeast Asia, Melissa Tan leads an in-house team that guided the company through “unchartered” waters during the pandemic. In this interview, Tan speaks about how one of her biggest personal highlights is witnessing each team member grow, why openness in communication is key to impactful lawyering, and why being comfortable with ambiguity in the law is something she looks for in her hires.

Navrita Kaur, chief legal officer of Malaysian tech company Microlink Solutions, talks about how she encourages her team to have the mindset of adding value to the business, how the legal services landscape has changed since she went in-house, and why one should never have two thoughts in one sentence.

Antonius Alexander Tigor, general manager of Legal Corporate Governance at Indonesia’s Telkomsel, shares why it's important to prioritise compliance and ethical considerations over business decisions, the secrets to a sustainable relationship with external counsel, and how witnessing the growth and development of team members can be highly rewarding.

Surabhi Madan, senior director and global legal counsel of ASM, talks about how a culture of fear of making errors hinders independent thinking, why she looks to hire lawyers who can think like engineers, and what areas of expertise she wishes law firms had.

Alex Liam, head of legal, data protection officer and company secretary at Singaporean utility YTL PowerSeraya, talks about his experience leading during challenging times, why it is important to be decisive to move things forward, and how he is looking to always stay grounded.

Yi Wong, general counsel of real-estate management company Lum Chang Holdings, talks about why walking the talk is better than putting up posters along the corridor, adopting a proactive instead of reactive approach to compliance, and why he prefers law firms that serve as a “one-stop shop.”