Jonathan Olefson
Syneos Health
"It was an opportunity for those who are just intellectually curious to learn how to be a great in-house counsel and to be exposed to everything under the sun, because we were growing so quickly and expanding into different service areas and geographies," he said.
Olefson said that experience prepared him to thrive in roles at the other highly technical companies where he has led legal departments since — health care analytics company Cotiviti and biopharmaceutical services firm Syneos Health. His distinguished career has landed him among the 13 corporate counsel named Legends in Law by the Burton Awards this year.
"Jon cut his teeth on corporate transactions, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property management, and private equity-backed public company investments and is now one of the true mavens in his industry," said Les Parrette, a former general counsel of Novelis and deputy chairman of the Burton Awards.
Olefson was scheduled to be honored in person at the Burton Awards' June ceremony at the Library of Congress, but the event was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The next ceremony is scheduled for June 14, 2021. Law360 is a sponsor of the Burton Awards.
Olefson received his law degree from George Washington University Law School and went to work for Fulbright & Jaworski LLP in 2000. He stayed there for four years before going in-house with Cognizant. He jumped to Cotiviti in 2013, and then to Syneos in late 2018.
Olefson gave credit to the attorneys with whom he has worked for his successes over the years. He said his strategy is to try to hire the best talent and just allow them to be amazing.
"A lot of leaders are driven by a refusal to fail more than any desire to succeed," Olefson said. "I tend to surround myself with people like this. No matter what it requires, we're going to get the job done."
He said he doesn't manage from on high. Instead, he said, he'll do anything to help his colleagues work efficiently and be at their best, from stuffing envelopes to reading briefs and strategizing.
Talent development, he said, is his single greatest pride, more than any individual accomplishment at a company.
"I've always felt that the measure of your success is the people that you develop along the way and the people that you bring with you," he said. "When I look back at the colleagues that I've been able to work with and hire and develop and not just teach but also learn from, I think that's what I'm proud of."
--Editing by Kelly Duncan.
Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated Olefson's former role with Cognizant Technology Solutions. The error has been corrected.
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