Global Counsel Navigate Uncertainty in Africa, and Terrorist Attacks in Brussels
When the Global Counsel Leaders Circle met March 9-10 in Paris, my column had just come out on in-house counsel’s need to find the right info abroad. The article argues that insightful info is essential to make decisions with more certainty. It’s not easy to distinguish truth from rubbish in countries where you don’t know the language, the laws or the people. The stories GCs told at that Paris roundtable, about sub-Saharan Africa and Middle East experiences, made it clear that good info is often not good enough. It’s the unknowns and unexpecteds in these markets that can be tough, from inconsistent enforcement of archaic laws and procedure, to political unrest that topples your JV leader. It's important to educate your stakeholders to expect frequent unknowns. How to keep your job while dealing with no predictability is the topic of my 22 March Corporate Counsel column entitled “Maneuvering the Great Unknowns in New Markets.”
Who would have thought that I’d so soon be tested on these topics, not in the wilds of Africa but in Brussels, my own European old-country backyard? In the horrific shock of that day, nothing felt sure and info was fragmented. I checked that friends and family were safe, then switched off the TV to carry on with work. But my attempt to focus was futile. I had to accept that the only sure thing in Brussels now-- this city of hundreds of thousands of peace-loving people from multiple countries-- is little certainty or predictability. Those reflections make up a third, more personal column, "Brussels Dispatch," written at the request of Anthony Paonita, CC’s Editor.
If you can't access the articles please contact me for a copy. eldance@ELDInternatonal.com