Mary Ann Hynes is a Strategic Advisor and Executive Coach with BarkerGilmore, partnering with General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officers, and rising legal executives to strengthen leadership presence, navigate complex transitions, and accelerate long-term success. She provides tailored executive coaching, succession planning, and onboarding support, helping leaders strengthen their presence, navigate complex transitions, and deliver measurable value to their organizations.

Mary Ann brings to her coaching practice a passion for excellence, the ability to pivot seamlessly across industries, and deep experience leading in corporate law, compliance, ESG/EHS, and government affairs. Known for her emotional intelligence and practical insight, she equips executives to face challenges as opportunities, land quickly in new environments, and demonstrate both immediate and lasting value. Her coaching is informed by her work at Dentons, where she advised clients in governance, compliance, mergers and acquisitions, and international strategy, and by her insights on compliance and risk management during global crises, including COVID-19.

Mary Ann has served on the boards of both global corporations and nonprofit organizations. She was a director of GHD Pty, an Australian engineering and consulting company operating on five continents in the sectors of water, energy, environment, property, and transportation, and she also served on the board of Rahfan Maize, a global food and industrial ingredients company. She has been a director of the Dr. Scholl Foundation and a board member of John Marshall Law School, in addition to her service with Big Shoulders Fund, Girls Inc. of Chicago, and other nonprofits.

Her professional leadership has extended to major associations and civic organizations, including the Association of Corporate Counsel National Board of Directors, the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section and International Councils, the Chicago Crime Commission, where she was the first female officer, the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, The Chicago Network, and as a member of the U.S. Department of Commerce Manufacturing Advisory Council. She has also been active in organizations such as the Chicago Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, the National Association of Corporate Directors, the National Association of Manufacturers, the Conference Board, the Economic Club of Chicago, the Executives’ Club of Chicago, the Chicago Club, the Commercial Club of Chicago, and Women Corporate Directors.

Mary Ann’s pioneering career has been recognized with many honors. She received the American Lawyer Lifetime Achievement Award, the ABA Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award, and the Harvard Center for the Legal Profession Award for Professional Excellence. Inside Counsel and WIPL created the “Mary Ann Hynes Pioneer Award” in her honor to celebrate her groundbreaking contributions to the advancement of women in the legal profession. She received the Honorary Doctor of Letters and the Damen Award from Loyola University Chicago, where she also served as Commencement Speaker in 2016. She received the Anti-Defamation League Women of Achievement Award, the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans Impresa Award, the ABA Business Law Section Glass Cutter Award, and the University of Illinois Chicago (John Marshall Law School) Distinguished Alumni Award. She also received the Chambers Women in Law Award – USA Lawyer of the Year, Private Practice (2015). Her trailblazing work was in ACQ Magazine, Inside Counsel, and other publications.

Mary Ann earned an Executive MBA from the Lake Forest Graduate School of Management. She holds both an LL.M. in Taxation and a J.D. from the University of Illinois Chicago, as well as a B.A. in Political Science and Mathematics from Loyola University Chicago.

Leadership Development, Organizational Strategy, Succession Management

Mary Ann’s career spans over three decades as a Fortune 500 C-Suite executive across multiple industries and under the leadership of a dozen chief executives. Most recently, she served as Senior Counsel at Dentons, advising clients on governance, compliance, C-Suite and board dynamics, communications with stakeholders, and international strategy.

Before joining Dentons, she held senior executive positions at five global corporations, including Senior Vice President, General Counsel, Chief Compliance and ESG/EHS Officer, Corporate Secretary, and Counsel to the Chairman. At Ingredion Incorporated (formerly Corn Products International Inc.), she supervised multinational legal activities, oversaw corporate compliance, managed global environmental and regulatory affairs, and served as chief liaison to the Board of Directors, helping lead a transformative acquisition that quadrupled the company’s stock price. At IMC Global, she was Senior Vice President and General Counsel, where she played a vital role in the merger with Cargill Crop Nutrition that created The Mosaic Company.

Earlier in her career, Sundstrand Corporation recruited her to the position of Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary, becoming its first female officer. There, she held responsibility for global legal management, environmental affairs, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, contract negotiation, and risk management. She became General Counsel of Wolters Kluwer U.S. Corporation, managing corporate legal matters for a leading global information management company. She began her General Counsel career at CCH Incorporated, where she was responsible for intellectual property, benefit plan development, and international acquisitions, becoming the first woman to serve as General Counsel of a Fortune 500 company as well as CCH’s Founding General Counsel.

Across these roles, she successfully directed legal teams through five megamergers and countless acquisitions, favorably resolved critical litigation and disputes, and built effective compliance and governance frameworks. She consistently demonstrated the ability to align with management teams, drive measurable value, and lead organizations through transformation.

Manufacturing, Chemicals, Publishing, Information Services, Food and Industrial Ingredients