Key insights

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1. Legal Ops often begins before leadership knows what it is
Susan explains that her first Legal Ops roles existed because GCs felt pain — not because they had a clear job description. Early Legal Ops leaders must define the role while doing the work, earning trust through delivery rather than authority.

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2. Finance fluency is the inflection point for credibility
A defining moment in Susan’s career came when a GC told her she couldn’t own the budget because she wasn’t strong with numbers. Instead of pushing back, she learned FP&A, P&Ls, and forecasting. That skill shift permanently elevated her influence and effectiveness.

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3. Hypergrowth rewards scalability, not elegance
At Twilio, Susan learned to prioritize systems that would survive rapid growth. Perfect processes matter less than durable ones. Legal Ops leaders must think years ahead, not quarters, when designing workflows and tooling.

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4. Legal Ops becomes the connective tissue during leadership change
Susan played a critical role transitioning between GCs — preserving context, priorities, and operational continuity. This highlights Legal Ops’ unique value as institutional memory when leadership changes.

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5. Legal Ops is now a technical discipline
At Atlassian, Susan intentionally hired Legal Ops professionals with strong technical backgrounds. Modern Legal Ops teams must understand systems deeply — often better than the lawyers they support.

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6. Ops leadership requires restraint, not visibility
Susan emphasizes that Legal Ops success is often invisible. Results matter more than recognition. Influence is earned quietly through reliability and execution.

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7. Closing insight

Susan Packal’s career shows that Legal Ops isn’t about controlling process — it’s about enabling scale with discipline. As legal departments mature, Ops leaders who master finance, systems, and trust will shape the future of legal leadership.