Senior Legal Counsel, Procurement

About the Role

As Senior Legal Counsel, Procurement, you will be part of the wider Corporate Legal team, supporting Haleon's Global Procurement organisation. The role provides broad based legal support across commercial transactions, with a strong focus on delivering a balanced and pragmatic risk approach. You will manage multiple strategic deals and projects concurrently, ensuring senior stakeholders are kept appropriately informed of the legal considerations and risks associated with each. We are seeking an individual with a practical, solutions-oriented mindset who combines strong legal and commercial expertise, demonstrates continuous improvement, and proactively anticipates and resolves issues.

Key Responsibilities

• Review and/or draft, analyse, counsel, and negotiate large strategic procurement deals (including any related legal, policy, regulatory and compliance issues) integrating legal knowledge with sound business understanding to reach a pragmatic result.
• Negotiate and custom draft other legal documents that may arise related to such transactions.
• Act as a point of escalation on the non-strategic but high-volume procurement transactions handled by attorneys in a centralized service center.
• Provide oversight and advice on playbooks, templates, and processes used by a centralized service center for procurement contracting.
• Implement operational excellence projects in the procurement contracting space.
• Research, review, and interpret new or pending legislation and regulations impacting procurement contracting to ensure compliance.
• Implement best practices to strengthen connection between Legal, Procurement, and other functions.
• Collaborate with teams across Group Legal, such as Litigation and/or Local Counsel Teams, to deliver a unified message to stakeholders while maintaining singular accountability.
• Partner proactively with the Global Procurement Leadership Team - and collaborate with other Functions and with the business's Operating Units - to collectively make decisions and solve business challenges.

Basic Qualifications

• UK qualified lawyer with significant post qualification experience.
• Must be able to attend Haleon's UK offices in Bankside, London at least 2 days a week.
• Solid understanding of legal concepts in contract law and experience drafting and negotiating complex procurement agreements.
• Demonstrated expertise in at least one procurement contracting category, such as digital and technology procurement, marketing procurement, research and development procurement, or supply chain procurement (e.g., direct materials, logistics, site facilities, real estate, and construction).
• Experience working with transactions that are subject to GxP (e.g., Good Manufacturing Practices, Good Distribution Practices, Good Laboratory Practices, and/or Good Clinical Practices).
• Strong interpersonal and negotiation skills to be applied internally and externally.
• Excellent communication (oral and written) skills required, together with ability to interact effectively and professionally with all levels of Haleon management.
• Ability to work under pressure, manage numerous and changing priorities effectively and efficiently, meet deadlines, and work independently as well as in a team environment when required.
• Key soft skills: influencing, empathy, analytical thinking, taking initiative, prioritisation, pragmatism, solutions-focused approach and resilience in managing ambiguity.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with laws and regulations associated with the fast-moving consumer goods industry.
• Experience in establishing a framework to efficiently support real estate and construction transactions globally.
• Experience implementing programs to ensure compliance with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) laws and regulations, such as traceability for sustainable sourcing and human rights.
• Good knowledge of how in-house lawyers collaborate cross-functionally with stakeholders resulting in strategic impact (or ability and interest to gain this experience if coming from a firm with no in-house experience).
• Familiarity with data privacy laws and regulations.
• Familiarity with vPPAs (Virtual Power Purchase Agreements) or other renewable energy projects to support sustainability goals.

Equal Opportunities

Haleon are committed to mobilising our purpose in a way that represents the diverse consumers and communities who rely on our brands every day. It guides us in creating an inclusive culture, where different backgrounds and views are valued and respected - all in support of understanding and best serving the needs of our consumers and unleashing the full potential of our people. It's important to us that Haleon is a place where all our employees feel they truly belong.