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Nicolette Nowak
General Counsel
Beamery
The beginning of a journey
Nicolette Nowak’s career journey is a testament to the power of networking. Growing up in San Francisco during the rise of the tech boom, Nowak attended a, Hastings College of Law, which is now known as The University of California College of Law, San Francisco. There she cultivated relationships with others in the tech industry and realized that her calling was to be a tech lawyer. After graduating, her journey led her straight into various in-house roles rather than starting first in private practice. Nowak started her career in-house at LinkedIn as a product manager, worked her way up through various jobs, and has now earned the role of GC after 10 years.
Along the way, Nowak pursued her dream of living in New York City, where she worked for multiple SaaS companies and then eventually moved to London (where she currently resides) to fulfill her burning desire to live abroad.
Understanding the industry
After spending the majority of her career in roles at B2B SaaS companies, she later transitioned into different industries. Nowak stresses the importance of understanding your industry. Her knowledge and experience across various sectors has shaped her leadership and expertise. She believes that the knowledge she’s gained over time led to her landing her GC role at Beamery.
The evolving role of the in-house counsel
The role of the in-house counsel is one of constant evolution. AI is a power tool but one which she believes can assist, not replace, the core functionalities of the job as attorneys, highlighting the ongoing need for essential skills like research, writing, and strategic thinking.
Nowak also discussed the growing trend of lawyers transitioning from private practice to in-house roles and noted that, “One of the reasons that people do the transition is because they want to move their day-to-day work away from black letter law and instead to have the opportunity to get to know a business well. And I think that in and of itself involves a desire to expand their own skillsets.”
Advice for aspiring GCs
When asked what advice she had for aspiring GCs, Nowak replied:
- Embrace growth challenges. Be open to learning.
- Give yourself grace. There will be slips and stumbles along the way that you just have to give yourself a little bit of grace of not knowing.
- Believe in yourself. You can do anything you put your mind to.
- Build strong relationships. Form relationships with subject matter experts at your outside law firms — they want to help ensure you are successful in your role.
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