Karl and Chris's story
After moving from Melbourne to New York, Chris Fladgate never imagined his alma mater would hold the key to a rewarding professional partnership decades after graduation.
Armed with Arts and Law degrees from Monash University, Chris answered the call for Australian attorneys in New York in 2005 and never looked back. Now the Managing Partner of boutique law firm Garson, Segal, Steinmetz and Fladgate, he maintained his connection with the University through hosting interns and attending alumni events.
The alumni community can open the door to opportunities you wouldn’t have found otherwise, which can massively boost your career," say Chris.
"But even beyond that, it’s a way to meet good people. And if you’re in a new city, that’s huge."
Chris’s ongoing engagement with Monash spurred a fortuitous connection. At an alumni dinner in 2014, he found himself seated across the table from a familiar face: Karl Redenbach, Co-Founder and CEO of LiveTiles.
One of the founding members of the Monash Alumni Group in New York, Karl was helping develop a strong alumni community committed to supporting and championing each other throughout their overseas experience. Recognising each other as Monash Arts/Law students and Law School Society members in the late ‘90s, Chris and Karl quickly reconnected.
"Over dinner, I found out Chris was doing some incredible work as a lawyer," Karl remembers. "And we'd just set up LiveTiles in the middle of Manhattan and were doing some really interesting stuff globally as an Aussie business headquartered in New York."
Chris and I realised our offices were opposite each other. A city of eight million, yet we’re diagonally opposite and 20 metres away."
As the CEO and co-founder of LiveTiles, Karl leads a global team of 200 people within an organisation recognised as one of the world leaders in employee experience, with clients ranging from Nike to the US Marines.
Listed on the Australian Stock Exchange, LiveTiles has complex requirements that require specific legal expertise. Karl quickly utilised Chris’s unique ability to understand US law, European law and Australian law to ensure optimum commercial results as well as compliance across partnerships and operations.
We were able to help each other out straight away," Karl remembers. "We’re very lucky that happened."
Chris credits Karl with not only initiating and augmenting his expertise in software and artificial intelligence law, but also growing his business. "I’ve developed a real specialty in software and AI and the legal aspects concerning those applications in the real world. It represents about a third of my practice now, and LiveTiles remains one of my biggest and most important clients.
"Working with Karl and his business, and developing my skills with them, has opened the door to a whole new area of law for me, and a line of business for my firm. That’s invaluable, and it’s been fantastic."
