A Conversation with J. Alberto Gonzalez-Pita
Thoughts from the General Counsel of Tyson Foods, Inc. on Career Management
Hosted by MCCA®, Chance-2-Chat is a free online discussion that allows individuals to log on from the comfort of their offices to discuss important topics with luminary legal leaders. We would like to share with you the dialogue from our Chance-2-Chat discussion with J. Alberto Gonzalez-Pita, the executive vice president and general counsel of Tyson Foods, Inc. who talked to MCCA about taking charge of managing your career. The following is an excerpt of select questions from the Chance-2-Chat.
This session was moderated by The Flourishing Company and questions not posed by the moderator were submitted by actual attorneys who participated in the Chat and are reprinted with permission.
Moderator: Joining us today is Alberto Gonzalez-Pita. He is the executive vice president and general counsel of Tyson Foods, Inc. The focus of today's chat is managing your career, especially transitioning from a law firm to a corporation. Welcome, Al.
Gonzalez: Thanks. It's a pleasure to be here today and I appreciate the opportunity to share some of my professional experiences with others.
Moderator: Please tell us a little about your career and how you got to where you are today.
Gonzalez: I started practicing law in Miami in 1977 at a time when the profession was not very diverse. My first employer was a very large litigation firm that at the time employed some women, but no African Americans or Hispanics. Almost all of the other large firms in Miami were similarly constituted. My experience was generally positive, but I left after a few years to join a small corporate boutique, where I could receive better mentoring, a broader set of experience, and professional development. After about 10 years, the firm fell on hard times and I joined a national firm (since I thought it would be a better platform to service my clients, the list of which was rapidly expanding). That firm turned out to have been in the midst of a management and cultural transition (never underestimate a thorough due diligence!) and I left shortly after and joined a very large international firm where I stayed for almost 10 years before moving in-house.
Moderator: What are some of your responsibilities at Tyson Foods?
Gonzalez: I'm responsible for managing all the legal affairs at Tyson. That involves managing the law department, working with the lawyers in the department on numerous corporate, transactional, securities, employment and litigation matters and advising senior management and the board of directors. The law department also houses the risk management, workers compensation and corporate secretary functions, so we have all the corresponding responsibilities in those areas as well.
From Michelle Miller: How do you balance your responsibilities in a corporate law department with the business objectives of your company, including communication and correspondence with non-lawyers that you may work with?
Gonzalez: The goals are one in the same. The objective of a law department is to ensure legally appropriate behavior, and, at the same time, to help drive business goals. The key element is to clearly articulate the line between what is legally permissible and what is not and to try to ensure clients understand the reasoning behind your advice.
Moderator: What tips can you offer those making the transition from a law firm to in-house positions?
Gonzalez: Patience is a key factor as is the ability to help clients reach consensus on business and legal issues. While it is important to remain a strong advocate when legal or ethical issues are involved, it is not as important that your views prevail when it comes to purely business issues. Another tip, to paraphrase an old saying, is that most clients want their in-house lawyers to give them a good answer today and not a perfect one next week, unless they really need a perfect answer. Finally, clients generally appreciate you taking a position on what decision to make in a given circumstance, and not just telling them what the options are.
From Prashant Dubey: What do you think a general counsel needs to do to attain a seat at the business strategy table?
Gonzalez: It tends to change over time as the general counsel starts being perceived as a trusted advisor with good business acumen. Learning as much as you can about the business, how it operates, and its competitive environment, are all very helpful in showing clients that you understand how the company functions and that you can provide notch advice.
From Vanessa L. Allen: What, if any, are the most common practice areas that general counsel of publicly-traded companies must have or should have? What, if any, business experience is the most common among general counsel of publicly-traded companies?
Gonzalez: With respect to practice areas, the answer would be in corporate and commercial matters as well as litigation. I think you'll find most general counsel have either a commercial/corporate background or litigation experience in a number of different fields. As for business experience, that's a harder question to answer, but I have seen lawyers come up through the corporate development groups, which are principally responsible for mergers and acquisitions as well as regulatory groups when the company is in a heavily regulated environment. An increasing number of general counsel have government experience and have worked with state or federal governments in a regulatory or litigation function.
From Kathy Pasulka-Brown: What prompted you to take an in-house job and how did you prepare yourself for it?
Gonzalez: I wanted to work very closely with clients in an environment where you would have the opportunity to participate in strategic decision making. What I did to prepare more than anything was to learn what I could about the company in particular and the industry in general.
From Vanessa L. Allen: What have been the advantages or disadvantages, generally, of transitioning from a law firm to an in-house environment?
Gonzalez: One key advantage that is almost universal is that you no longer have to keep track of your billable hours. You also have the chance to work on a myriad of legal issues very closely with clients. One disadvantage is that you are working on so many different matters that you are often unable to do a trial or close an acquisition by yourself.
Moderator: What was the biggest obstacle you faced in your career advancement? How did you overcome it?
Gonzalez: I would have to say that it is perceptions about Hispanic lawyers that existed in some quarters of the legal community when I first started practicing law. Some of these were that Hispanic attorneys were not on par with others because they spoke with an accent, didn't know how to write well, weren't as articulate or couldn't work well with judges or juries. I tried to overcome these perceptions by working as hard as I could in each of these areas. I also received mentoring and good advice from non-Hispanic colleagues.
Moderator: What is the biggest secret for succeeding in-house?
Gonzalez: I'm not sure there is only one. Being a trusted advisor to your clients is certainly important, as is having good judgment, being able to work through difficult problems, working hard and trying to improve every day.
From LeRoy J. Watkins, Jr.: What are some effective strategies that diverse attorneys might utilize in trying to receive work from Tyson Foods?
Gonzalez: First, and, most importantly, is to ensure you can provide high-quality legal representation through your track record—previous case and client work you have handled. Secondly, try to become known to the legal department in some fashion, either through bar association meetings or other contacts or referrals. This is the same advice I would give to non-diverse attorneys. We are always on the look out for attorneys of diverse backgrounds, but I would have to say the elements of experience, professionalism, and capabilities are important drivers.
From Peter Kim: What are some challenges facing in-house legal departments today?
Gonzalez: Budget constraints, increased outside counsel expenditures, enhanced enforcement of laws and regulations, Sarbanes-Oxley, electronic discovery, records management and retention. And the list goes on.
Moderator: Thank you for joining us today and MCCA especially thanks Al Gonzalez for being our guest.
Gonzalez: You're welcome.
From the May/June 2006 issue of Diversity & The Bar®