Meet the Taskforce : Join us on our journey

Philile is a South African qualified lawyer, with experience in dispute resolution, general commercial law as well as competition law. She is experienced in private practice and in-house legal counsel, with a keen interest in in alternative dispute resolution and an LL.M in Comparative and International Dispute Resolution from Queen Mary University of London. She is currently a Legal Principal – Dispute Resolution in Anglo American Group Legal. She is also an employee elected Trustee in Anglo Medical Scheme and co-lead of the GCDI KPI and Metrics Taskforce.

Uzma leads on the firm’s Responsible Business Committee and the implementation of its ESG strategy. Her role is to work closely with the senior leadership to integrate societal and environmental issues into business strategy, operational activity and to translate their meaning into everyday business culture and interactions. Uzma is a globally experienced responsible business and inclusion professional, with over 20 years of deep subject matter expertise in the corporate sector, previously holding roles at KPMG, HSBC and the United Nations. She is specialised in the delivery of business transformation and change programmes to create more open, inclusive and engaged workplaces that positively contribute to the societies in which they operate.

Uzma is a Global UN Sustainable Goals Pioneer, recognised by the United Nations Global Compact in 2023, and a UK Sustainable Development Goals Pioneer by the UN Global Compact UK. Uzma is the architect and Co-Chair of the Steering Group of Legal CORE (Collaboration on Race and Ethnicity) which has 40 member firms and now in its third year. Uzma is a member of the Social Mobility Commission Employer Advisory Group.

Nicola is an experienced Chartered Trade Mark Attorney having worked in private practice and in-house at leading international media, telecommunications and FMCG companies.  Working for Vodafone Group Plc in the Legal & Business Integrity team, she is responsible for protecting, maintaining and enforcing Vodafone’s global trade mark portfolio, managing naming clearance for Vodafone products, services and propositions, global trade mark filing strategies and hundreds of contentious trade mark matters worldwide.

Nicola takes an active role in diversity, equity and inclusion as a member of the General Counsel for Diversity & Inclusion (GCD&I) Metrics Taskforce since 2022, GCD&I Ethnicity Community since 2023, co-leading the Race & Ethnicity workstream of Vodafone’s Legal & Business Integrity’s Inclusion for All team and being a member of various DEI networks within Vodafone.  These roles involve actively contributing to and promoting initiatives designed to drive positive changes and improve the representation and opportunities of ethnic minority employees in the legal sector and across Vodafone respectively, as well as educating others on the ethnic minority experience and curating events which highlight the issues faced by minority groups in society.

Roberto is the Country Lead Lawyer Italy for Cargill. He joined Cargill in 2013 and is based in Milan (Italy).

Before joining Cargill, he worked in a multinational real-estate company and in an international law firm.

He enjoys travelling, spending time with his family, watching football and listening music.

He joined the GCD&I Metrics and KPIs taskforce in 2022.

Helen is Global Head of Diversity, Inclusion & Wellbeing at Freshfields. Since joining in 2017 she has led the global D&I team and is part of both the Responsible Business and HR leadership teams. Helen is responsible for the firm’s global D&I and wellbeing strategy including the design and implementation of targets, programming, engagement and diverse talent management initiatives. She advises colleagues and clients on best practice and has over 20 years of experience in HR, talent, D&I and wellbeing having previously worked at Goldman Sachs and Baker McKenzie.

Tiernan Brady is responsible for developing and implementing Clifford Chance’s global inclusion policies and campaigns within the firm, with our clients and in wider society.

Tiernan is an equality campaigner. Before taking up the role in Clifford Chance he was the director of the Equality Campaign, the successful Australian marriage equality campaign and political director of Yes Equality, the successful Irish campaign for marriage equality – the only two countries in the world to enact marriage equality by public vote.

He has served as the Director of Organisation to the Irish Deputy Prime Minister (Tánaiste), Mary Coughlan and as Mayor of his hometown of Bundoran in Ireland.

Rachel is the Head of Functional Excellence & Legal Operations at Nestlé, the world’s largest food & beverage company, where she focuses on enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the Legal & Compliance function. Rachel brings a wealth of expertise in strategic planning, business partnering, financial and firm management, communication, and legal technology.

Throughout her career, Rachel has held key leadership positions. She served as the Division General Counsel at Nestlé USA, where she managed legal affairs for its Beverage, Baking & Global Foods Divisions.  Prior to her role at Nestlé, Rachel was the Managing Counsel & Senior Director at Under Armour, overseeing the global commercial legal team and providing strategic legal advice to senior management on commercial matters.

Rachel earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology from Butler University and  a Juris Doctor degree from Indiana University Maurer School of Law.

Neha is the Head of Client DEI at Linklaters, based in the London office. Previously a qualified lawyer in Melbourne, Neha joined Linklaters working in the BD & Marketing team. Following a secondment in Hong Kong, Neha returned to the London office to become a Talent & Engagement manager leading pitches and diversity training for a range of our clients and internal teams.

In 2020 Neha became a founding member of the firm’s Diversity Faculty which is a unique client offering that combines legal advice with strategic business guidance on Diversity and Inclusion issues. The service is designed to help clients manage the often-delicate balance between legal, regulatory and governance issues and long-term business reputation.

Anaar is a UK-qualified lawyer with significant experience in intellectual property, litigation, commercial and marketing law across private practice and in-house. She is responsible for Unilever’s global Home & Hygiene business, which includes world-famous brands such as Cif and Domestos. Anaar takes an active role in sustainability and advocacy work, and is leading the Home Care business’ green claims agenda. She also has a keen interest in diversity, equity and inclusion, both within Unilever and as a member of the General Counsel for Diversity & Inclusion (GCD&I) Metrics Taskforce.