Q&A With Bitesh Solanky

Bitesh, can you tell me a bit about your career history? 

So, I qualified in 2006 and started my career in commercial real estate. But, in 2008 I decided that working in-house was where I wanted to be and so I found an opportunity to work for a business who operated in a variety of market sectors which really appealed to me. The role was full of so many challenges I hadn’t faced before, and it was certainly sink or swim time!   

The first challenge was to set up a legal department and ensure the operating businesses (property, retail, and different aspects of manufacturing) had a robust legal framework. 

With the varied mix of property, commercial and consumer law, I quickly realised the importance of learning to take risk-based commercial decisions to support a fast moving, entrepreneurial business.  

Why did you want to work in-house? 

I love the entrepreneurial side of working with businesses and I consider that as in-house lawyers we can contribute so much more to a business. I pride myself in being entrepreneurial and I strongly believe in adding value through inputting into strategy, succession and growth of a business. That’s what really motivates me and why I love working in-house. 

And then where did you move to? 

Having thrived in a fast-paced working environment, I then joined Poundland as Head of Legal. Working for an FMCG business at the height of its growth and expansion not only gave me a deeper knowledge of practising commercial law, but also some great leadership experience. It is here that I really understood the important role that the legal function plays across multiple departments within a business to really strengthen and optimise business operations. 

An opportunity then came along to join one of Europe’s largest property management companies. Although I loved working in FMCG, this was a great opportunity to do what I loved… a variety of legal work, leading a fantastic team of individuals.   

The role appealed to me instantly. It was a really fast-moving and expanding business with the challenge of putting in an entire legal framework and governance procedures as well as managing the legal team to ensure that the business was compliant as it continued its rapid expansion. 

It is here where I feel I really grew as a commercial thinker, leader and general counsel. I love working with people and I thrive on helping them reach their full potential and it was great to see so many of the team really rise and develop throughout my time in the business. I truly believe in the concept of ‘sending the elevator back down.’ Creating success for everyone is crucial, both from a human and business point of view.  

It seems that you’ve done everything. Is variety something that you like about in-house work?  

Yes, I really love variety in what I do, hence why I’ve decided to join The Legal Director! 

I particularly thrive in a commercial environment and love getting stuck in to challenging situations, but I feel I really add value when I can support on commercial issues both inside and outside the legal function.  

And what’s your approach to risk? Does being in-house and knowing a business inside out help with that? 

That’s an interesting question. It can be a double-edged sword. Knowing a business inside out and making risk-based decisions is easier but sometimes you can know too much, and you have to be mindful that you are managing risk in the right way and always continue to challenge your own decisions. 

Working across so many commercial sectors, I now manage and mitigate risk depending on the business, the strategy and the type of risk.   

And what skills do you think you have brought to situations of conflict to avoid them escalating? 

Business is about working together, and negotiation skills are key to preventing escalation. Really, it’s about being human and finding a middle ground, preventing unnecessary costs to the business and making a commercial and pragmatic decision.  

The same skills apply when you’re negotiating a contract and quite often find yourself at stalemate over certain clauses. Running through real-world scenarios, playing out the risk and balancing this with commercial decision making is key. But it’s just as important to maintain good relationships with suppliers and third parties. These have to be based on honesty, transparency and good communication. I find this minimises the likelihood of conflict occurring in the first place.  

What benefits does this approach bring to the businesses you support? 

It is empowering and it’s positive both for the business and its legal function but also for all of the third parties and key stakeholders that the business interacts with.  

I am a very solution-orientated person and always believe that there is a resolution to any issue. I think it’s important that the legal function within a business is perceived as a positive force that helps a business grow and not stand in its way of progress.  

And do you think that you’ve been able to then influence how other people see legal in the businesses where you’ve worked? 

Definitely. So, in all my in-house roles, I’ve made it a mission to become the centre point for anything legal! I’ve created a positive and motivational culture within the teams I’ve led and encouraged the legal department to pull up a seat at the table. I believe our role is key to supporting, influencing and empowering businesses to move forwards. If we are not doing this, then what is the point in being in-house? 

As you know, our strapline is ”Accessible Different Human”. How do you relate to these behaviours in the way you work? 

Generally, legal professionals have a certain image of not being that approachable. I think that ensuring you are available for clients, colleagues or any stakeholder by having an open-door policy is key to having an accessible legal function. 

I also believe that understanding WHO you are communicating with, and their level of legal knowledge is so important to making sure everyone understands legal concepts (without all the jargon). This is what makes us accessible as lawyers.  

It’s also so important to make sure that anyone in the business feels comfortable coming to seek clarification or advice, from the shop floor to the boardroom. 

Being different requires thinking outside the box and not taking a cookie cutter approach. I believe it is so important to keep innovating and finding new and different ways of doing things. Being proactive and anticipating legal issues rather than merely reacting to problems as they arise creates a great strategy to help businesses streamline their legal operations.  

For a lawyer, I have a very commercial approach – it is holistic. It’s important to me to be down to earth and commercially savvy. It’s more than just helping businesses in the legal spectrum. It’s about giving them sound commercial guidance and bouncing ideas around. That’s what I love.   

Being Human…my favourite value. As lawyers, we are very rarely seen as ‘human’, but we can learn to integrate empathy into our practice. Seeing things from different points of view is vital to the future of the legal function in the business world. We have to work collaboratively, ethically and foster great relationships with the people we work with (and have a bit of fun and a smile on our face whilst we do so)!