Leaders in Law and Public Transformation with Pablo Jiménez Zorrilla

Today we welcome Pablo Jiménez Zorrilla, Vice-President of Legal and Corporate Affairs at Grupo Modelo, who discussed the challenges companies are currently facing in Mexico during the “Leaders in Law and Public Transformation” conference series organized by the School of Government and Public Transformation – Tecnológico de Monterrey.

Jiménez Zorilla identified four main challenges corporations face in Mexico, namely the corruption and a lack of transparency; a lack of knowledge and observance, on behalf of a company’s employees at all levels, of economic competition rules; the need to protect of intellectual property; and the importance of the State providing legal and tax certainty for investors.

Jiménez Zorrilla explained how corruption hinders the economic performance of companies, and of the country as a whole. He also emphasized that the main challenges for companies include finding efficient and effective channels to contribute to the development and promotion of a culture of legality. Above all, he stressed the responsibility of companies with advocacy power to commit to playing an active role in the fight against corruption and in the development of a culture of legality in Mexico.

He went on to discuss that another challenge for corporations is designing a social responsibility program with a transformative impact on the environment. “[…] Companies that do not incorporate social responsibility into their business strategy and models will eventually distance themselves from consumers and even from their employees. “Nowadays,” he said, “a company’s social responsibility policies are an important factor in the decision of those who are starting out in a professional career.”

“The role of the lawyer therefore is to become an advocate for the compliance of the Law, a vital task in Mexico,” he concluded.