The ‘next normal’ refers to a world which will be different in the post-Covid-19 era compared to what came before the pandemic. The term was coined by McKinsey & Company,[1] and has become a widely used concept. It is based upon the proposition that after the pandemic the world will not go back to the conditions that prevailed until 2019, but that the “post-COVID-19 era” will be different. Indeed, in the last 12 months the world has witnessed dramatic changes, such as:
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an acceleration in the use of new technologies;
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digitalisation and new forms of working;
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disruption and fundamental reshaping in supply chains; and
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medical innovations, including e-health.
Beyond that, the traditional shareholder-value centered business model is now being seriously challenged by the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) responsibility model, and companies of all sizes are increasingly acknowledging responsibility for their environmental and social impact.
In this Conference we will:
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Look at ‘next normal’ for entrepreneurs and businesses
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Analyse why and how they have been able to either quickly adapt to radically changed conditions, or develop new and successful business models in no time
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Discuss and exchange experiences and thoughts about what the ‘next normal’ means for law firms, and the way we work generally, in a dedicated breakout group session,
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Analyse and discuss – in a webinar and a dedicated breakout group session – what the ‘next normal’ is in terms of corporate governance, M&A transactions and deal-terms, and financing of small and medium-sized companies.
The format of this year’s Virtual Entrepreneurship Conference virtually follows the successful setup of the annual Global Entrepreneurship Conference, with interactive sessions hosted by entrepreneurs and keynote speakers from industry and practical workshops, held in small groups, on selected topics with high relevance for our day-to-day work. The Conference will also include two virtual social events that will maximise the networking experience for all attendees.
After the success of our first edition Virtual Entrepreneurship Conference in May 2020, it is back with more lively discussions thanks to innovative virtual session formats, and, most importantly, the active participation of many committees and fora of the IBA. Join us for an practical and interactive conference and enjoy the legendary ‘Closely Held’ spirit!
[1] See ‘The next normal arrives: Trends that will define 2021—and beyond’ by Kevin Sneader and Shubham Singhal, McKinsey & Co. (www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/leadership/the-next-normal-arrives-trends-that-will-define-2021-and-beyond).
Marco Rizzi
Bratschi, Zurich; Chair, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
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Nicole Van Ranst
Newton Law, Diegem; Corporate Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Marie Caroline Brasseur
ALTIUS, Brussels; Co-Chair, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Read biography
Dovilè Burgiene
Walless, Vilnius; Vice Treasurer, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Read biography
Giuseppe Coco
Ughi e Nunziante, Milan; Young Lawyers’ Committee Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Robrecht Coppens
Loyens & Loeff, Brussels; Vice Chair, Western Regional Group, IBA European Regional Forum
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Iván Delgado
Perez-Llorca, Madrid; Conference Quality Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Andreas Kloyer
Luther, Frankfurt; European Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Anne Louise Macdonald
Harper Macleod, Glasgow; Chair, IBA Law Firm Management Business Development and Marketing Subcommittee
Read biography
Alvaro Mateo
Gomez-Acebo & Pombo, Madrid; Chair, Young Lawyers’ Working Party, IBA European Regional Forum
Read biography
Annalisa Reale
Chiomenti Studio Legale, Milan; Communications Officer, IBA Women Lawyers’ Interest Group
Read biography
Stephen Revell
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Singapore; Co-Vice Chair, IBA Law Firm Management Committee
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Mercedes Rodríguez Giavarini
Mitrani Caballero & Ruiz Moreno, Buenos Aires; Conference Co-Ordinator, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
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Sajai Singh
J Sagar Associates, Bangalore; Chair, IBA Technology Law Committee
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Miguel Tornovsky
Pinheiro Neto, São Paulo; Special Projects Officer, IBA Latin American Regional Forum
Read biography
Virtual conference sessions
Monday 22 March 2021
1615 – 1700 GMT
Zoom
Conference opening and virtual coffee
We usually start our Global Entrepreneurship conferences the day before with highly popular informal social activities, such as sightseeing tours, cruises and walks through beautiful cities, museums, harbours and canals, followed by informal drinks and dinners at great places. As this is not possible, we invite you to join us for a virtual, informal pre-conference gathering, to meet friends old and new, and to get a flavor of the famous ‘Closely Held’ spirit.
After a brief introduction to the conference topic and format by the Co-Chairs and Programme Coordinators, delegates will be allocated to a virtual table where they will be able to chat over a ‘virtual coffee’, with a moderator kick-starting discussions. After 15 minutes, delegates will be allocated to the next virtual table.
Monday 22 March 2021
1700 – 1800 GMT
Zoom
Session one: The next normal innovators and entrepreneurs
The next normal is being fueled by a new type of entrepreneurs and new business models. A panel of entrepreneurs and business leaders will discuss their enterprises and selected industries, and explain how they have developed successful and innovative business models, or adapted their existing model to the next normal.
Nicole Van Ranst
Newton Law, Diegem; Corporate Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Mercedes Rodríguez Giavarini
Mitrani Caballero & Ruiz Moreno, Buenos Aires; Conference Co-Ordinator, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Paolo Barbieri
Chief Executive Officer Pacific Capital and Deputy Chairman of Elite World Group, Luxembourg / New York
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Paolo Raimondo
Senior Executive, UpSurgeOn, Assago Milan
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Dieter Staib
Partner, Capital Certainty; Senior Advisor, VC.land, Madrid
Read biography
Tuesday 23 March 2021
1700 – 1815 GMT
Zoom
Session two: The next normal in deal doing and lawyering – virtual table workshops
This interactive workshop session, which is divided in two parts, will focus on the ‘war stories’ and lessons from session one, explore trends and developments in getting the deal done, and discuss the fields of activity of commercial law firms.
After an introduction to the respective topic, registered participants will work in virtual breakout rooms of six to eight participants, each led by a moderator, and exchange their views and experiences. The results of the workshops will be compiled in a document that will be distributed to all delegates after the Conference.
Part one: Virtual M&A transaction and negotiations – a dream, nightmare or the next normal?
In this session we will discuss conducting negotiations over videoconference, and what has changed and stayed the same. We will share experiences and elaborate on the do’s and don’ts, techniques and much more.
Marie Caroline Brasseur
ALTIUS, Brussels; Co-Chair, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Read biography
Iván Delgado
Perez-Llorca, Madrid; Conference Quality Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Moderators
Adriana Castro BLP, San Jose; Co-Vice Chair, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Robrecht Coppens Loyens & Loeff, Brussels; Vice Chair, Western Regional Group, IBA European Regional Forum
Paulo Coelho da Rocha Demarest, São Paulo; Assistant Outreach and Education Officer, IBA Law Firm Management Committee
Arthur Davis Addisons, Sydney, New South Wales; Chair, Underwriting and Distribution Subcommittee, IBA Securities Law Committee
Pierre-Alexandre Degehet Bonn Steichen & Partners, Luxembourg
Kosturi Ghosh Trilegal, Bangalore; Vice Chair, Current Legal Developments Subcommittee, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Rasem Kamal Kamal & Associates, West Bank and Gaza; Officer, IBA Arab Regional Forum
Pavla Kopeckova Prikrylová Peterka Partners, Prague
Oliver Künzler Wenger Plattner, Küsnacht-Zurich ; Vice Chair, Communications Group, IBA European Regional Forum
Sandeep Mehta J Sagar Associates, Mumbai
Andrea Metz Luther, Frankfurt
Mariana Norton dos Reis Cuatrecasas, Lisbon; Secretary, IBA Women Lawyers’ Interest Group
Federico Piano Guyer & Regules, Montevideo
Richard Spink Burges Salmon, Bristol
Cameron Taylor Minter Ellison, Auckland; Vice Chair, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Luciana Tornovsky Demarest Advogados, São Paulo; Secretary, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Gisèle Rosselle Strelia, Brussels
Cornelia Topf Gleiss Lutz, Frankfurt; European Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Women Lawyers’ Interest Group
Erika Villarreal Anzola Robles & Asociados, Panama City; Membership Officer, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Helge-Torsten Wöhlert Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek, Munich
Part two: New fields of activity and legal services for law firms advising entrepreneurs and SMEs
In this session we will discuss :
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Which practice areas will be ‘winners’ in the next normal?
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Which fields of activity will change substantially?
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Will there be new fields of activity?
Andreas Kloyer
Luther, Frankfurt; European Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Sajai Singh
J Sagar Associates, Bangalore; Chair, IBA Technology Law Committee
Read biography
Moderators
Gary Assim Shoosmiths, London; Vice Chair, Law Firm Management Committee Talent and Leadership Subcommittee, IBA Law Firm Management Committee
Till Alexander Backsmann Veirano, Sao Paulo
Frank T Boyle Muñiz Olaya Melendez Castro Ono & Herrera Abogados, Lima
Frédéric Cohen Foley Hoag, Paris
Neftalí Garro BLP, San José; Latin American Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Women Lawyers’ Interest Group
Jeremy Glaser Mintz Levin, San Diego
Clara Ann Gordon Niederer Kraft Frey AG, Zurich; Membership Officer, IBA Women Lawyers Interest Group
Orsolya Görgényi Szecskay, Budapest; IBA Council Member, Budapest Bar Association
Ellisa Habbart The Delaware Counsel Group, Wilmington, Delaware
Caterina Iodice EMW Law, London
Rabindra Jhunjhunwala Khaitan & Co, Mumbai; Regional Fora Liaison Officer, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Arush Khanna Numen Law Offices, New Delhi; Website Officer, IBA Young Lawyers‘ Committee
Jan Lindberg Trust, Helsinki
Elke Maria Napokoi bpv Hügel, Vienna
Zeina Obeid Obeid Law Firm, Beirut; Co-Secretary, IBA Young Lawyers‘ Committee
Masha Ooijevaar Clyde & Co Dubai, Dubai; Chair, Young Lawyers‘ Outreach Subcommittee, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Hin Han Shum Squire Patton Boggs, Hong Kong SAR; Asia Pacific Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Slawomir Uss Soltysinski Kawecki & Szlezak, Warsaw; Vice Chair, Central Regional Group, IBA European Regional Forum
Ilona Zekely Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners, Moscow; Human Rights Officer, IBA European Regional Forum
Wednesday 24 March 2021
1700 – 1815 GMT
Zoom
Session three: The next normal law firm – does it meet clients' needs?
This interactive workshop session will explore issues of relevance for law firms and the profession, including:
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Have law firms adapted to client needs in the next normal – does remote working work for clients?
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Re-inventing the role of the office
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Firm culture and sense of belonging
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Training and professional development
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Diversity, inclusion and swarm intelligence
This session will be based around a survey issued in advance to IBA members on the above questions. It will start with an overview of the survey results and will then turn to a general counsel representative for their perspective on the results.
Delegates will be split into hosted zoom rooms for an in-depth discussion on the session topic. All delegates will then be welcomed back to share thoughts from the smaller group discussion rooms and the session will conclude with a poll on whether the next normal will actually meet our clients' needs.
Part one
Part two
Anne Louise Macdonald
Harper Macleod, Glasgow; Chair, IBA Law Firm Management Business Development and Marketing Subcommittee
Read biography
Alvaro Mateo
Gomez-Acebo & Pombo, Madrid; Chair, Young Lawyers’ Working Party, IBA European Regional Forum
Read biography
Annalisa Reale
Chiomenti Studio Legale, Milan; Communications Officer, IBA Women Lawyers’ Interest Group
Read biography
Stephen Revell
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Singapore; Co-Vice Chair, IBA Law Firm Management Committee
Read biography
Moderators
Andres Aznarez Posadas Posadas & Vecino, Montevideo; Latin American Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Christine Blaise-Engel FIDAL, Paris; Senior Vice-Chair, IBA European Regional Forum
Gretel Ciniglio de Perez Fabrega Molino, Panama
Gábor Damjanovic Forgo Damjanovic & Partners, Budapest; Secretary-Treasurer, IBA Professional Ethics Committee
Dagmar Dubecka Kocian Solc Balastik, Prague; Deputy Membership Officer, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Albert Garrofé Cuatrecasas, Barcelona
Yosbel Ibarra Greenberg Traurig, Miami, Florida; Member, IBA Law Firm Management Committee Advisory Board
Zoya Ilyenka 1961 Abogados y Economistas, Barcelona
Moray McLaren Lexington Consultants, Madrid; Assistant Strategy Officer, IBA Law Firm Management Committee
Ralf Morshäuser Gleiss Lutz, Munich; Education Officer, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Sharanya Ranga Advaya, Mumbai; Website Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Rebecca Normand-Hochman Institute of Legal Talent and Leadership, Paris
Pranav Srivastava Phoenix Legal, New Delhi; Treasurer, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Madelon van Breemen Leeman Verheijden Huntjens Advocaten, Rotterdam
José Visoso Galicia, Mexico City; Membership Officer, IBA Latin American Regional Forum
Douglas Young Rimon Law, San Francisco
Thursday 25 March 2021
1500 – 1615 GMT
Zoom
Session four: The next normal in M&A, finance and governance for SMEs
In this session, speakers will present and debate different topics in the area of M&A, financing and corporate governance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Topics will include:
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Next normal schemes and trends in financing of deals and the growth of enterprises
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The impact of the next normal on the shareholder value model and key governance challenges
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Valuation uncertainties, pricing mechanisms and other deal terms in the next normal
Dovilè Burgiene
Walless, Vilnius; Vice Treasurer, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Read biography
Alejandro Payá
Cuatrecasas, Barcelona; Senior Vice Chair, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Gabriella Covino
Gianni & Origoni, Rome; Chair, Corporate Governance Subcommittee, IBA Corporate and M&A Law Committee
Read biography
Felix R Ehrat
former General Counsel Novartis Group and independent Board member in various companies, Zug
Read biography
Miguel Tornovsky
Pinheiro Neto, São Paulo; Special Projects Officer, IBA Latin American Regional Forum
Read biography
Noreen R Weiss
MacDonald Weiss, New York; Membership Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Thursday 25 March 2021
1800 – 1930 GMT
Zoom
Conference virtual drinks and dinner
In this virtual social event, after an introduction by a surprise guest on a non-legal and unconventional topic, delegates will be allocated to a virtual table where they can chat and a table host will introduce the theme of the round. After 20 minutes, delegates will be allocated to the next virtual table to discuss a new theme for a further 20 minutes, before the final table change occurs and a new theme is discussed.
While this event will obviously not compare to our legendary drinks and dinners, it will be an unforgettable virtual experience and a chance to meet new and old friends in a relaxed and funny atmosphere. Don’t miss it!
Introduction by surprise guest
A lawyer, a judge, a best-seller novelist. Don’t try to frame her into a single category, she will surprise you anyway!
Table round 1: Food and drinks
A conversation around food and drinks culture. You may wish to bring along your favorite drink or food, or to share stories about them.
Table round 2: Travel and places
Share stories and experiences around travels and places you have been. And why not share a picture of souvenir with the other guests?
Table round 3: Sports and free time
Whether it’s ultra-marathons, bungee-jumping, shark diving, or being a coach potato while watching your favorite soap-opera: what do you do in your leisure time? Don’t forget to bring along your favorite item, gear or equipment, if you wish.
Giuseppe Coco
Ughi e Nunziante, Milan; Young Lawyers’ Committee Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Marco Rizzi
Bratschi, Zurich; Chair, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Read biography
Table Hosts
Sonja Ackermann Taylor Wessing, Munich
Alessandro Barzaghi Cocuzza & Associati, Milan; Membership Officer, IBA International Commerce and Distribution Committee
Christine Blaise-Engel FIDAL, Paris; Senior Vice Chair, IBA European Regional Forum
Marie Caroline Brasseur ALTIUS, Brussels; Co-Chair, IBA Young Lawyers’ Committee
Gretel Ciniglio de Perez Fabrega Molino, Panama City
Giuseppe Coco Ughi e Nunziante, Milan; Young Lawyers’ Committee Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Gábor Damjanovic Forgo Damjanovic & Partners, Budapest; Secretary-Treasurer, IBA Professional Ethics Committee
Arthur Davis Addisons, Sydney, New South Wales; Chair, Underwriting and Distribution Subcommittee, IBA Securities Law Committee
Pierre-Alexandre Degehet Bonn Steichen & Partners, Luxembourg
Ingeborg Edel Binde Grösswang, Vienna
Charlotte Gunka Legal Counsel, Groupe Renault, Boulogne; In-House Counsel Liaison Officer, IBA Criminal Law Committee
Caterina Iodice EMW Law, London
Natalija Lacmanovic Lacmanovic, Zagreb; Co-Chair, Creditors’ Rights Subcommittee, IBA Insolvency Section
Dinesh Melwani Mintz, Boston, Massachusetts; North American Regional Forum Liaison Officer, IBA Closely Held and Growing Business Enterprises Committee
Richard Spink Burges Salmon, Bristol
Helge-Torsten Wöhlert Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek, Munich
Douglas Young Rimon Law, San Francisco, California
Certificate of Attendance
Certificates of attendance for each session will be automatically provided to all delegates who have registered in advance and attended the live broadcast for a minimum of 30 minutes, based on verified sign-in and sign-out times. Certificates can only be issued to the name provided at the time of registration. If you have any queries relating to your Certificate of Attendance, please email webinars@int-bar.org
Fees
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Prices in GBP + UK VAT @20%, where applicable
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IBA members
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£95
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Non-members*
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£125
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All sessions will be available to all registered delegates; registration fees are non-refundable.