Terra Potter

Hexcel Corporation

Terra Potter joined Hexcel Corporation in September 2019, shifting from spending years working in the oil and gas sector to, as she puts it, “a company that makes cool stuff”. Or, to put it another way, super-strong and lightweight composite carbon fibre, resin-infused material used in products ranging from aeroplanes and F1 cars to wind-turbine blades. Hexcel’s new EMEA regional general counsel and industrials division leader is a firm believer in the benefits of taking a leap into the unknown, arguing that people generally don’t move between industries enough.

“You can start from scratch and ask anything you want, you have the luxury of knowing nothing and other people in the business get the luxury of asking you questions they don’t normally get to ask,” says Potter. “Ask, ask, ask.”

Straight-talking Potter has already brought her appetite for being open and direct to bear on Hexcel’s relationships with external lawyers, putting in place new arrangements with K&L Gates and DLA Piper. Expect to see more change in 2020 from a lawyer who is not afraid to speak her mind.