Gameshows, good vibes, and gigglin’ GCs.
Gather round the fire, for today is the day I tell you the story of Workgroup Legal London Autumn 2023.
So for those who do not know me, my name is Peter, and my day-to-day is herding lawyers into a single room. To do this, I convince a dozen and a half GCs to each run what we call ‘workgroups’ for other head lawyers, which are kind of like small focus groups.
And unlike most of the events you big lawyers normally attend, the small groups are attended almost exclusively by GCs and Heads of Legal, and run by them too. And yes, this means no sales pitches or forced vendor chinwags at all.
🤔 Did you know? - we set a minimum attendance of 95% GC, and cap sponsor numbers to that remaining 5% 🤔
Which means that Workgroup Legal is the least commercial event out there…
"Workgroup Legal has struck a magic formula of delivering super content in a relaxed community environment. No sales, no industry scare stories, just hand-picked group of talented lawyers across multiple industries sharing advice and experience.”
Zeno Capucci General Counsel Docplanner
Anywho, I’ve now run 4 of these events in the past year, but this was the best yet.
Yes, yes - we all love the workgroup format, that’s a given. But for this event, we finished the day on a “gameshow”.
Now I’m choosing not to spoil the format too much for those of you who missed out, but it involved four brave General Counsel - Zuzana Blazkova, Jeremy Barton, Vivienne Inmonger, Ellie Forrest-Charde - going head-to-head in teams of two, Red Team versus Blue Team.
The two teams had to race to “buzz in” - yes they had actual buzzers 🕹️ - to give their answers to a series of dilemmas, presented by gameshow host Kim Herman.
However, the team that didn’t buzz in first, had to disagree. And everyone in the audience voted with paddles on who they agreed with most, drinks in hand.
It was a mega silly way to end the day, and I’ve never seen a group of that many lawyers prove that they actually can have a shedload o’ fun.
“I laughed with tears in my eyes and I am still quoting many kernels of wisdom I picked up weeks later. What more can I say?!”
Dan Dally Head of EMEA Legal Confluent
That all being said, the real meat of the day isn’t the silliness, it’s the chance for people who lead legal teams to get together in a super chill space, to steal nuggets from each other, and to triple the size of their GC network.
“Peter has created a rather utopian event which masterfully balances a workout for your legal brain with light entertainment and the rare opportunity to fill up your little black book with multiple General Counsel contacts.”
Ellie Forrest-Charde Global Legal Director EssenceMediacom
Thanks Ellie 👆🏼. Oh go on, here’s another:
“Best legal event in town! Informal, laid-back, informative, collaborative and insightful. And most importantly: fun!”
Máire Barr General Counsel - Europe Kellanova
One more? (last one, I promise)
“This really is a very special and unique event, Peter has done a great job of creating a lovely community and safe space to share ideas and learn from peers.”
Adam Baldwin Head of Functions & Business Engagement BNP Paribas
Now before I let you click on the video below - which puts all my magical words above into visual context - I just want to say a final thank-you for all the appreciation and love you showered upon me and my team during the event.
We are a small and nippy team, yet we reckon we’re putting on the best GC event in the UK.
And I’m bloody euphoric that so many of you agree. Thank you.
One quick final shoutout to our sponsors actually. You might find it hard to believe, but there are a lot of vendors out there who are quite sales-y.
I know, shock horror 😱.
This means I spend a lot of time vetting for partners who “get it”. Luckily, we were blessed with the support of Will Samengo-Turner and Allen & Overy, of Rachael Cooper and Plume, Kim Herman and Sullivan & Worcester, and Mark Levine and BCL Legal.
Thank you all again, and I’ll see you all very soon.
