Australian Corporate Lawyer - Summer 2018

theAustraliancorporatelawyer
acla.acc.com
Rembert Meyer-Rochow
Based in Singapore and currently serving as
a Director & Senior Corporate Counsel with
Autodesk, a US-listed technology company,
Rembert has extensive experience working in
the technology industry. He has previously held
in-house roles with Intel Corporation and has
also practiced law in New Zealand, Australia
and Hong Kong.
A DAY IN THE LIFE
REMBERT MEYER-ROCHOW
Director & Senior Corporate Counsel,
Autodesk
6:15 am
6:30 am
7:00 am
I wake up before my alarm
clock goes off (which was set
for 6:30 am). I quietly sneak out of
the bedroom, scan emails on my
mobile phone for anything of high
priority that has come in from the
US overnight and take a quick look
at the key news headlines on CNN.
com.
I get the kids out of bed and get
their breakfast ready—usually
something quick and simple, like
boiled eggs and toast with Vegemite.
What follows is a mad scramble to
get myself showered and ready,
get the kids dressed and packed for
school, a quick goodbye kiss for my
wife, a cuddle with my dog Paolo
(whom we adopted when we lived
in Hong Kong), and then getting
everyone outside. The school bus
arrives at 7 am, which also coincides
with my first conference call of the
day.
My first call today is with a team
of legal and business colleagues
on the operation of our e-stores
in Asia. Some team members have
dialled in from our San Francisco
office and some are already in
transit on the way home. During the
course of this call I will have walked
to the bus stop, taken the bus to
my office, been careful throughout
to stay on ‘mute’, though unmuting
occasionally to make a comment.
7:30 am
8:00 am
9:00 am
I am now at the café in the lobby
of my office. I order a flat white and
plan to spend the next half hour
in the café responding to emails.
However, I spot a colleague from our
Australian office who has just arrived
in Singapore, so I join him for an
informal catch-up chat.
I am now in my office. I have a
1-hour weekly call to update with
my boss, who is based in San
Rafael. I use this time to update him
on key issues in the APAC region. As
usual, he probes me with questions
and also provides insightful thoughts
and guidance. He also briefs me on
various corporate strategic initiatives
that have implications for the
countries I cover.
My next few hours are relatively
unstructured. I say a quick hello to
my legal colleagues in the Singapore
office and get an update from
our ASEAN counsel on a matter
related to our software distribution
in Indonesia. I find myself having
to prioritise numerous types of
communications coming my way, all
competing for my attention—emails,
instant messages, skype calls, SMSs,
phone calls etc.
Affairs Director, who is also based in
Singapore, walks past and steps in.
We have a conversation about the
escalating trade dispute between
the US and China, and the possible
implications for multinational
software companies operating in
China.
I commence a 1-hour video call
with our global head of litigation
and compliance, who is based
in the US. He calls from his home
office and prefers this timeslot, as
it is after his evening dinner (which
he cherishes with his family). The
call starts with his daughter making
an impromptu appearance (she is
always enjoys saying hello to people
‘on the other side of the world’) and
then he closes his office door and
we are under way.
I head to the gym which is
located upstairs in our office
building, and spend 45 minutes
on the step machine. I bring my
headphones along and listen to
a pre-recorded company-wide
business briefing from our CEO. On
the way back to the office, I buy
some fruit from a vendor with a stall
outside our building.
I recently attended a team
building event, where an expert
taught us about the benefits of
meditation. I sit at my desk and do
a 5-minute mind-relaxation exercise
before proceeding with my workday.
I have a call set up for 1:30 pm with
the CIO and the legal counsel of
a company based in Hong Kong,
on an issue related to the licensing
terms of our software. I review my
notes on the matter and draft an
outline of the conversation I plan
to have, along with a negotiation
strategy on the various points that I
anticipate will be raised.
I make a quick call to a newlyhired
member of the APAC legal
team in Korea, checking in to see
how things are going. We briefly
discuss some of the issues she is
working on. It can be challenging for
newer legal team members to get
up to speed on all relevant issues
while based in a remote location.
She’s doing fine. I give her a list of
suggested tasks for the coming
week designed to help with her
I arrive home, and am greeted at
the door by both my daughters,
my wife and my dog, all wanting
my immediate attention. My
eldest daughter tells me that my
younger daughter had a fight with
her best friend at school during the
lunchtime break. I ask my younger
daughter what happened, but she
doesn’t want to talk about it. Dinner
is on the table, and my wife has
thoughtfully poured me a glass of
my favourite wine. I deliberately
put my phone away and spend the
next hour or so with my family. After
dinner I help my eldest daughter
with some of her homework, and
then read both girls a goodnight
story. They are sound asleep by 8 pm.
I have a global sales legal team
call starting at 9:30 pm. It’s very
early for my US-based colleagues, but
I know I will start to feel tired by the
time the call starts. To ensure I make a
productive contribution, I make a few
notes in preparation for that call, and
thereafter work through to around
9:15 pm responding to emails.
Time for a quick break before
the 9:30 pm call. I bought the
novel Crazy Rich Asians at the airport
last week to read on a flight to San
Francisco, and am halfway through.
I spend the next 15 minutes on
the sofa reading another chapter.
(Having lived in both Singapore and
Hong Kong, I can relate to many
characters in the book). My dog rests
his head on my lap.
My team call starts. My US
colleagues are all starting their day
and noticeably awake and energetic.
My European colleagues, who have
dialled in, are part way though their
day, and I am getting towards the
end of mine.
10:50 am I usually have an ‘open door’
policy (the exception being when
I am on the phone or need some
time to focus on an issue) and
colleagues sometimes drop by
for a quick chat if they see I am
onboarding.
including identifying 2 candidates
6 | VOLUME 28, ISSUE 4 – SUMMER 2018 available. Our APAC Government
that I suggest we interview.
VOLUME 28, ISSUE 4 – SUMMER 2018 | 7
11:00 am
12:00 pm
1:00 pm
1:45 pm
2:00 pm
3:28 pm
3:30 pm
3:45 pm
4:40 pm
6:00 pm
Our APAC weekly sales forecast
call commences. The country sales
directors across the region provide
business updates to our APAC head
of sales. I multitask, responding to
various emails in my inbox, always
remaining alert for any issue raised in
the forecast call that may have legal
implications. Our China sales director
mentions a deal that is being ‘held up
by legal’. I send an instant message
to the head of our China legal team
asking for a quick update.
Just as the APAC sales forecast
call finishes, I get an incoming
video call from my wife. She gives
me a quick glimpse of our daughters
who are now warming up at
gymnastics training. I watch the girls
stretch for a few minutes.
Our Australia counsel has been
pinging me throughout the day,
asking if I am free to chat. I am
conscious that Sydney (which is 2
hours ahead of Singapore) is heading
towards the end of its working day,
so I give her a call on her mobile
phone. She is in a meeting but steps
out to brief me on an employmentrelated
issue. We are in agreement on
the next steps, and I ask her to keep
me posted.
My plan is to spend the next 2
hours focused on completing a
list of ‘do today’ items that I have
written on a yellow post-it note,
which I have stuck next to my PC.
In particular, I have a presentation to
complete and an agreement with a
company in Korea to draft, and I want
to get this done today. I spend the
next 2 hours focused on these tasks,
with my office door closed.
A friend of mine who works for a fintech
/ cryptocurrency start-up calls
and invites me to a craft beer tasting
after work, a meetup for people
with a mutual interest in this field.
Tempting as it sounds, I decline.
I’m on the bus heading home.
I call our Japan counsel, knowing
that it’s 7 pm in Tokyo. (I know that
if she is already on the train she will
not answer my call. Fortunately, she
is still in the office). I provide a few
quick thoughts on the resumes I
reviewed for a new role we have for
the legal team in our Japan office,
6.30 pm
8.00 pm
9.15 pm
9.30 pm
10.30 pm Calls are done. My wife is still
awake, and we spend the next 15
minutes speaking about her day
and planning for tomorrow. Then
it’s off to bed, after which I will
emerge refreshed and ready for the
challenges of the next day. a