Omid Amjadi
As an attorney with a rare combination of legal and business savvy, collaboration skills, and a global worldview nurtured from a young age, it seems Omid Amjadi was destined to become an associate general counsel at Mars. Omid leads the legal function of Mars Global Services (MGS), which manages $8 billion in annual spending across key shared services for the multinational company. In 2019, MGS ranked among the Top 20 Most Admired Shared Services Organizations in the world.
As a young boy in Iran, deeply inspired by his father’s international business acumen, Omid cultivated a passion for the law and business. Omid joined Mars in May 2020 with experience as legal counsel across myriad industries. He brought with him a deep understanding of the legal complexities of global business and mastery in finding the perfect balance between risk and opportunity that leads to business growth. “Navigating through the ever-changing regulatory environment, developing standard work to better manage risk and promote efficiency and consistency across the enterprise, and optimizing legal capabilities through automation and integration of digital technologies all require a harmonious balance,” he shares.
Throughout his career working with legal teams of billion-dollar companies, including Liberty Mutual Insurance, Sprint Telecom, Infosys Limited, and Danaher Corporation, one trait more than any other has driven Omid’s success and that of his clients; collaboration. “Collaboration is one of the key aspects of what I do, how I do it, and how I progress to conquer challenges and realize opportunities. Involving key stakeholders is critical. I don’t dwell and theorize for weeks on end until I get somewhere alone. I involve the stakeholders to get their perspective,” he explains. During his 20-year career, he has used collaborative approaches to create legal frameworks that support growing companies’ commercial departments. And, his core value of collaboration is the foundation for all of Omid’s work to support MGS and its ongoing commitment to improve the customer experience, associate engagement, environmental discipline, corporate responsibility, internal controls, and vendor relationships for Mars, Incorporated. He works closely with business partners to ensure legal capabilities are aligned with business objectives. For him, the journey begins and ends with the business client.“ To be a true partner to the business, you need to be connected to the business, and the connection is all about effort,” he explains. “Diversity is important, so making sure we have a well-rounded approach, and then evaluating that input and its impact is critical to risk management. You can’t get that approach without true collaboration and it’s a key attribute that I’ve been told sets me apart from other attorneys.”
Although Omid is far from the shores on which he was raised, the values, passion and worldview his parents instilled in him a lifetime ago continue to drive his commitment to excellence and his entrepreneurial spirit. Focused on solving problems and improving efficiencies, he has developed a patented technology to facilitate affordable review of contracts by lawyers. Omid received his law degree from Washburn University School of Law and holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and international relations from the University of Northern Iowa.
Omid Amjadi
Associate General Counsel — Mars Global Services