Andrea wood supports telus in its ai-powered diversification journey
wOOD’S LEGAL DEPARTMENT FOSTERS A CULTURE OF INNOVATION TO DRIVE THE COMPANY’S SOCIAL PURPOSE - AND GROW THE BUSINESS - THROUGH TECHNOLOGY
By Lucy Saddleton, Managing Editor, ADB Insights
Canadian telecoms giant TELUS continues to broaden its scope - not only by diversifying into new business lines - but also by delivering on its social purpose through creating benefits and opportunities for its many stakeholders.
“The focus of our business strategy is on leveraging technology broadly to drive our social purpose and social and economic value,” said Andea Wood, executive vice-president, chief legal and governance officer at TELUS. The company aims to drive value for multiple stakeholders - including customers, communities, shareholders and employees - through its diversification strategies, Wood said.
“If we are being thoughtful about how we apply our social purpose in a way that will benefit our business, the two things can be very symbiotic,” she added.
Business lines including TELUS Health, TELUS Agriculture & Consumer Goods, and TELUS International (recently rebranded as TELUS Digital Experience) have opened new doors for the organization and allowed it to remain a strong player in an increasingly competitive industry. As one example, TELUS identified health as a key opportunity to leverage technology to find solutions that benefit society broadly - while also driving value to the business.
Andrea Wood, EVP, chief legal + governance officer TELUS
“We recognize the need to diversify and to expand beyond our core telecom business, and frankly beyond Canada, so we are now operating in multiple jurisdictions internationally,” said Wood, during an in-depth interview with The Legal Innovation Forum’s founder and CEO Andrew Bowyer .
Wood joined TELUS in 2013, taking on progressively senior roles. She now leads a growing team of around 200 lawyers to support TELUS and its expanding businesses. A key challenge Wood has faced is growing her team to support the shifting business requirements. For example, with the arrival of online pharmacy solutions at TELUS Health, the team had to adapt to understand the regulatory context of this business, while introducing brick and mortar clinics presented a need to understand regulations surrounding the operations of a clinic.
“A number one challenge has been acquiring and growing the expertise that we needed on the team to meet the changing businesses that TELUS is in,” said Wood.
Understanding the technologies that they support in their businesses, and keeping up with new developments in artificial intelligence are key priorities for Wood and her team as they strive to take advantage of the opportunities presented by AI, while also mitigating risks. Woods noted that the company is “shifting towards data monetization and understanding how to responsibly use the significant amount of data that we’ve collected in our multiple businesses.”
As one of the national leaders in responsible AI, TELUS is supported by a data and trust office that is deeply committed to ensuring the company leverages AI in a responsible way. The company has an AI board that is informed by experts on ethics in AI as well as business people and technology experts, so they are able to maintain high standards for AI governance and data governance.
“We have a number of people on the team who are true thought leaders in the area, and really expert at the legal issues surrounding the use of AI,” said Wood. “It’s frightening for some people. I think it’s also exciting. It will bring all kinds of economic opportunities, and also opportunities to drive social good.”
The legal department also boasts a legal innovation committee which runs monthly learning sessions on AI to help team members understand it.
As part of its focus on social responsibility, TELUS is deeply committed to environmental sustainability, which in turn has led to new business opportunities, including investments in renewable energy companies. TELUS also values its commitment to diversity, with a highly diverse board of directors contributing to business success, Wood said.
Like many businesses, TELUS is cutting costs to stay competitive, so Wood’s team has also faced the challenge of maintaining the quality of legal support with a smaller budget. This includes leveraging AI to improve efficiency and ultimately do more with less.
Strong corporate values have helped Wood in her quest to attract and retain top talent in the legal department, together with a focus on diversity in all areas, including gender, race, geography and area of expertise.
“When we are recruiting, we look for people who are both excellent lawyers and who share our values,” said Wood. She noted that her teams are also diverse in terms of expertise, now including software engineers, regulatory experts, data governance experts and data ethicists, in addition to lawyers, paralegals and executive assistants.
As a global executive sponsor for Connections - the TELUS Women’s Network - Wood focuses on enabling women to expand their networks and grow as leaders in the organization, while a remote work program enables Wood to hire talent from multiple regions, giving the company a competitive advantage in the job market.
A curiosity and love for continuous learning is another quality that Wood looks for in new hires.
To support this approach to continuous learning, TELUS introduced a robust CPD program within the legal department, so that team members can easily meet their professional development obligations. Programs cover topics including professional ethics training, AI and the legal issues surrounding it, as well as mental health and how to identify and help team members who may be struggling with mental health issues.
“The people I see really excelling on my team are the people who share that commitment to continuous learning,” she said. “In this environment where the rate of change is so fast and technology is evolving so quickly, I’d say that’s a core skill because whatever we know today, it’s going to need to be supplemented tomorrow.”
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