What Makes a CLO a Consigliere? The Three Things a CEO Should Do To Make the Most of Their CLO

How many consiglieri are there in Montreal's top law firms?  Before a couple of speeches to top Canadian law firms, this was the question I asked twenty CEOs and CLOs.  By consigliere, I meant lawyers that CEOs could go to for wise advise about their businesses, beyond that of solely a legal perspective.  From all of the top Montreal law firms, 10 consiglieri was the highest answer I received.  I found this a surprisingly small number.  If you are a CEO, you would like your CLO to be an advisor of this caliber. Closer to home, we would like to think about a question that every CEO should consider. What makes a great CLO, from a CEO's viewpoint?

This week's column is written with Josée Gravel (BA'79, MBA/LAW'83), a McGill MBA who spent 12 years as a partner at Stikeman Elliot, a top Canadian law firm, and who spent the last decade as CLO of GE Capital Canada.

Read full article: Forbes, August 9, 2011