India Vincent, Burr & Forman’s Chief Privacy Officer and Chairwoman of the firm’s Intellectual Property, Data Privacy and Cybersecurity practice group, was profiled in a Q&A by Law.com as part of the publication’s “How I Made Law Firm Leader” series. In addition to detailing her career arc from beginning her career at the firm to her current leadership roles, Vincent provides insights and valuable takeaways for success in the legal profession.

After becoming an equity partner in 2006, Vincent took on the role of leading the newly formed intellectual property subgroup. Cybersecurity and data privacy counsel became part of the IP subgroup in 2015 and then a separate practice with Vincent as its leader in 2017. She was appointed Chief Privacy Officer shortly thereafter in 2018.

In discussing the best advice she could give to colleagues looking to elevate their career, Vincent shared that those who are most successful in leadership positions understand the business from their work in the organization. “I recommend taking advantage of any opportunities to become involved,” she said. “Many of those opportunities may not have a clear connection to the type of role you want in the long term, but they are still valuable. They provide the opportunity to develop leadership skills as well as give others a chance to see you succeed in those positions. That success will help you be top of mind for future opportunities.”

As proof that this approach has results, Vincent took on several different roles within the firm throughout her career – some related to her current titles and others that were not. Through all of these positions, she worked extensively with firm management and had the opportunity to gain an understanding of things that remained important to the firm on a long-term basis – showing her ability to take on additional and challenging responsibilities.

Vincent also shared some of the most influential people throughout her career, including retired Burr & Forman attorneys Deborah Fisher and Bill Fishburne, as well as outside relationships from her involvement with community and professional organizations like leadership roles in the International Trademark Law Association’s Data Protection Committee.

For the full Q&A, please click here.