When it comes to building our relationship with global nutrition, health and wellness, Nestlé secondments continue to prove invaluable. We spoke to two recent secondees to find out more about their experiences and look at the other ways we are working with Nestlé.

Secondments are one of the key ways we are supporting Nestlé, with two examples being Will Spens and Olivia Chinwokwu.

Will’s secondment is particularly notable because he was offered the chance to join Nestlé’s in-house legal team at their UK headquarters near Gatwick as a trainee lawyer.

He says: “It’s been a steep learning curve for me but I’ve absolutely loved it. As a trainee in the in-house team, the nature of the work you receive spans a broad range of legal practice areas. As such, there was a lot to learn very quickly, but I relished the opportunity for a wide array of experience.

“The team here is really welcoming and friendly, providing a very supportive atmosphere to work in.

“One day you can be working on a commercial contract, the next day you could be working on an employment law matter for HR or conducting IP clearance searches.”

Will’s six-month secondment ended in March and he believes he returns to the Firm with the benefit of an invaluable client experience.

He says: “The insight you get on secondment is priceless because you really build an understanding of the client’s business and the issues that matter to them.

“For instance, it was fascinating to see what they wanted from their relationship and interactions with external counsel – what they like and don’t like, and how they like to receive information.

“It was also great to build relationships and trust, and I like to think they’ve valued the work I’ve done for the team.”

Will has also benefitted from the responsibility he’s been given at such an early point in his career.

He says: “To be given the endorsement of going on the secondment is a big vote of confidence, but the Nestlé team also trusted me to run some matters with a degree of independence and to make certain judgement calls on my own. I would be supervised on these matters but given a broader mandate to make my own decisions than I have previously experienced as a trainee.

“This was nerve wracking at times, but I always had the support of my supervisor and the rest of the in-house team. I never felt I’d been left on my own.

“I was also aware of the strategic importance of the secondment in building our relationship with Nestlé and I hope that, in future, it will lead to us winning more work with the client.”

Stepping up

London-based associate Olivia Chinwokwu’s secondment saw her cross the English Channel to work with Nestlé Waters’ global legal team at its Paris headquarters.

She says: “I had the pleasure of working with Nestlé Waters in 2018 when they acquired Princes Gate Spring Water so when I was offered this secondment, I was very excited to work with them again.

“My role was to provide cover for legal counsel Sophie Noël-Tavergnier while she was on maternity leave.

“This could have been a daunting task, given that it is an integral, high profile role in the network, but I had a thorough handover and the general counsel, Sophie Germain, reassured me that she had full confidence in me, as we had recently worked together.

“I was part of a small team providing legal support to offices across the Nestlé global network with issues such as preparing and negotiating commercial contracts, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory and general compliance work.

“The whole experience was amazing. Coming from a Corporate M&A team it was really interesting to gain commercial experience and it helped me to learn a lot about the client.”

Olivia’s secondment involved working with many different departments and offices which, she says, gave her a completely new perspective.

She says: “I got to understand their key concerns and what Nestlé is trying to achieve from a holistic point of view.

“It was very practical and it will help me to know how we can align with their aims, recognizing where they need help and where we can help them, rather than thinking of it as trying to win work.

“Because I was working with non-legal people a lot of the time, it also helped me appreciate the need to talk their language rather than speak in legal terms.”

Olivia also got a chance to put her French language skills to the test.

She says: “Though English is spoken a lot of the time and my French isn’t fantastic, it did come in handy, plus the Firm provided plenty of support with French lessons and helping me with accommodation and travel.”

Olivia believes her experience gained in France stand her in good stead for her future career.

She says: “It was a great chance to work with new people, push myself and learn new things.

“I worked almost exclusively for non-lawyers and usually independently. Working directly for these clients who relied on me as their first (and often only) port of call for their matters meant great responsibility and it was an excellent learning experience.

“Nestlé and the Firm have a
strong, long-standing
relationship and that shows
in the way that they work
with and speak about us.”

“I also got the chance to work directly with senior internal and external stakeholders such as the CFO, business unit heads and general counsel.

“I’m taking a lot back with me, including some insights into how we could enhance our service, what they want and what we could do better.

“Nestlé and the Firm have a strong, long-standing relationship and that shows in the way that they work with and speak about us.

“I received very positive feedback and think the relationships I’ve developed mean we should be front of mind for any upcoming deals. They know what we can do and, most importantly, know we understand their business.

“In future, when we win business with them, I’ll certainly feel much better placed to help.”

Teaming up to benefit young people

Another way we’re building our relationship with Nestlé is through our support of its Alliance for YOUth initiative, which Nestlé recently announced would become global at the 2019 Davos summit in Switzerland.

The Firm is a founding partner of the initiative, which launched in 2014. It offers training programs and job opportunities to help prepare young people to enter the professional workforce.

In EMEA, the goal is to benefit 230,000 people between 2017 and 2020. Initiatives we’ve supported include:

• Developing a Readiness to Work Toolkit, an interactive training program to prepare high school and university students to enter the workplace.
• Creating a Readiness to Work Mentoring Program for law students in Germany and a Mentoring program with the University of Greenwich in London.
• Working with business skills development charity Young Enterprise on Law Master Classes, Junior Achievement events in London and the Junior Achievement Mentoring Program in France and Spain.
• Attending career fairs at the Firm’s partner high schools in inner city London.
• Taking part in the Nestlé Challenge (Switzerland) where our lawyers serve as online coaches for high school and university students to help them develop employability skills and teach them about sustainability in private sector companies.

We have also supported Nestlé’s Project Opportunity in North America, a career acceleration initiative to help people of all ages, (with a specific focus on veterans), gain work experience and strengthen their professional skills. We represented six veterans in their claims before the Board of Veterans Appeals and helped produce online employability resources for military lawyers transitioning to civilian life.