Director Legal & Compliance France/Benelux H/F

At Beiersdorf, we want to help people feel good about their skin – and our commitment goes far beyond caring for skin. For 140 years, we have developed innovative skin and body care products for well-known brands such as NIVEA, Eucerin, La Prairie, Hansaplast, and Labello. We act according to our purpose, WE CARE BEYOND SKIN, and take responsibility for our consumers, our employees, the environment and society.

Behind every brand, every product and every accomplishment are our more than 20,000 employees. It is for them that we live a culture of inclusion, respect and trust that is strongly aligned with our values CARE, COURAGE, SIMPLICITY and TRUST. We embrace diversity by valuing the uniqueness of each individual and being committed to equal opportunities for all.

We are looking for a Director Legal & Compliance based in Paris or Amsterdam.

You will be responsible for all legal and compliance matters within the Management Unit France/Benelux. The main purpose of the role is to provide legal support on strategic decisions, as well as being valued advisor and business partner for all business functions across the MU. As such, you act as a centre of expertise, providing strong and solution-oriented legal advice to help the company achieve its goals. Moreover, you act as MU Compliance Officer, responsible to ensure compliance across the entire MU.

You will collaborate closely with all teams in Corporate Legal Affairs at Beiersdorf’s headquarter in Hamburg as well as the Global Legal Team.

Core Responsibilities

• Serve as principal legal advisor, and support on commercial and corporate matters
• Provide legal advice and solutions on all legal matters to all business units
• Be an expert on compliance matters 
• Draft and negotiate all types of contracts
• Regular attendance of meetings - this may also include the preparation and keeping of minutes of meetings
• Collaborate with and support to Corporate Legal Affairs on tasks in the MU, European Region or beyond in case of regional/global projects where Corporate Legal Affairs is primary driver
• Collaborate with the Global Legal Team where relevant
• Implement of the Corporate Compliance Program, monitor and improve compliance processes and risk mitigation measures, conduct compliance trainings, compliance reporting
• Coordinate external law firms and lead of a Legal & Compliance inhouse team (currently 2 persons in France)
• Review of status quo of the Legal & Compliance (advice/service) structure in the MU and shaping an effective and efficient Legal & Compliance (advice/service) structure in the MU

What it takes

• Leadership as well as strong collaborative skills
• The ability to demonstrate sound and independent judgement, strategic and practical thinking, and maturity in complex and sensitive matters
• Deep knowledge and experience in working with and advising on a wide range of legal and compliance topics
• Experience as (in-house) lawyer in the FMCG environment a plus
• Excellent written and verbal communication
• Proactive and decisive in approach, solution-driven with ‘enabler’ mentality
• Corporate governance skills
• Strong business acumen
• Knowledge of anti-corruption laws, competition laws and data privacy a plus
• Digital/Legal tech skills & capabilities
• Proficient in English (oral and written), French language skills a plus
• Experience from working /studying /living in more countries a plus
• Experience with people leadership as a plus
• Cosmetic laws and Medical device/healthcare knowledge as a plus

Qualifications

• Law degree (fully qualified lawyer, Bachelor of Laws, or Master of Laws etc.)
• Profound experience as in-house lawyer
• Law firm experience as a plus