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CZ & Friends Podcast
CZ and Friends is a weekly podcast hosted by Cecilia Ziniti, CEO and Founder of GC AI and 3x General Counsel. Each episode features candid and insightful conversations with legal and business leaders who are scaling companies, building brilliant communities, and leading teams with trust and empathy. Whether you're an in-house attorney, a tech founder, or (also) an AI nerd, CZ and Friends is your window into how technology is rapidly evolving the legal landscape and the way we work.
All Episodes
Every episode, we talk with legal leaders, technologists, and operators shaping how modern companies work and scale.
S1 E44
58 minutes
Building Legal Ops From Scratch: Okta's Playbook with Kim Woodward
Kim Woodward pitched legal ops to Okta's GC in 2018 and was told it was not a thing. An IPO and a 15-person team later, here is her playbook for the function.
S1 E43
64 minutes
How to Build a Legal Department From Scratch
Alisha Cieslak was employee number one in Gordon Food Service's legal department. Her Greenfield to Gold Standard framework for building legal from zero.
S1 E42
51 minutes
How ClassDojo's Legal Chief Designs for Trust
ClassDojo's Tina Hwang explains how she builds trust into product design beyond compliance, and why she hires lawyers for curiosity over pedigree.
S1 E41
48 minutes
Building Legal as the Company's Air Traffic Control: Ekumene Lysonge, NerdWallet CLO
NerdWallet's CLO merged legal, security, privacy, and compliance into one Trust and Safety team. His durable-yes framework for risk decisions.
S1 E40
39 minutes
"Yes, If" Thinking: Sharon Johnson of Mode Global on AI, Logistics, and Legal Leadership
The "yes, if" framework keeps legal in the room. Sharon Johnson's six-lawyer team runs a $3B logistics company on it, with 100% AI adoption.
S1 E39
49 minutes
The GC-to-Board Playbook, With Executive Coach Anne Marie Segal
How does a general counsel get a board seat? Executive coach Anne Marie Segal shares the playbook: the mindset shift, the pitch, the plan.
S1 E38
49 minutes
The Kanye Clause, Taylor Swift IP, and AI: Wayfair's Legal Team Explains
The Kanye clause lets brands exit an influencer deal over reputational risk. Wayfair's Lauren Anderson and EverQuote's Mary Ambacher explain how it works.
S1 E37
56 minutes
How In-House Counsel Calibrate Legal Risk, From a 3x GC
David Schellhase ran legal at Salesforce, Groupon, and Slack. His "always be calibrating" framework for matching legal judgment to a company's risk appetite.
S1 E36
55 minutes
The End of the Billable Hour: Bjarne Tellmann on Why Clients Will Break the Law Firm Model
GC Bjarne Tellmann cut Pearson's legal costs more than 40% by restructuring, and not doing layoffs. He shares why AI will end the billable hour.
S1 E35
33 minutes
Legal Ops at Scale: How Marvell's Three-Person Team Supports Nearly 80 Lawyers
Marvell scaled legal ops from 5 people supporting 50 lawyers to 3 people supporting nearly 80, cutting contract time 73% with auto-triage and AI.