Head of Legal, North America

UPL Limited (NSE: UPL & BSE: 512070, LSE: UPLL) is a global provider of sustainable agriculture products and solutions, with annual revenue exceeding $6bn. We are a purpose-led company. Through OpenAg®, UPL is focused on accelerating progress for the food system. We are building a network that is reimagining sustainability, redefining the way an entire industry thinks and works – open to fresh ideas, innovation, and new answers as we strive towards our mission to make every single food product more sustainable. As one of the largest agriculture solutions companies worldwide, our robust portfolio consists of biologicals and traditional crop protection solutions with more than 14,000 registrations. We are present in more than 130 countries, represented by more than 10,000 colleagues globally. For more information about our integrated portfolio of solutions across the food value chain including seeds, post-harvest, as well as physical and digital services, please visit upl-ltd.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

JOB SUMMARY: The incumbent will serve as Legal Business Partner to the Regional Business Head of NA and will be a member of the NA Regional Leadership Team. He/she will advise the region on the strategic and day-to-day commercial and corporate legal needs of UPL’s businesses in the U.S. and Canada.  They will work closely with key regional leaders and management responsible for sales and marketing, regulatory matters, new product development/IP, human resources, supply chain, and other matters, both strategic and operational, as well as a broad array of compliance matters within the North America Business Unit.  They will also support UPL’s Global Alliances team in cooperation with the Chief Legal Officer and other regional legal colleagues.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Negotiating and drafting product sales and distribution agreements, supply agreements, and other commercial agreements required in the ordinary course of business.
• Advising management and ensuring compliance with corporate policies and procedures regarding corporate governance; developing and delivering live compliance training, including antitrust, sanctions, anti-bribery, conflicts of interest, privacy, etc.
• Advising management regarding legal aspects of human resources matters.
• Advising management on and drafting development, material transfer, and other agreements in connection with research and development and regulatory matters, including at UPL’s OpenAg center.
• Managing litigation (including IP litigation), claims, and outside counsel; managing legal budget.
• Driving process, documentation, and compliance improvements to support the business needs.
• Manage legal matters pertaining to Global Alliances area and assist the Chief Legal Officer with projects that are regional or global in nature, including in areas of licensing, acquisitions, finance, and other global agreements.
• Position will manage junior resources to be determined.
• Other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• JD degree from ABA-accredited law school and active membership in at least one US state bar.
• 11+ years of practicing attorney experience with focus on commercial and corporate law (law firm or in-house); experience in life science industry (especially agriculture) a plus.
• Confident cross-functional generalist able to identify and practically address issues and risk with an understanding of the business’s risk tolerance and goals; self-starter with a drive to improve process.
• Experience with US and global business and compliance issues in a multinational/matrixed company environment.
• Strong collaborator and communicator able to build relationships in region and in UPL’s global business.
• Ability and willingness to contribute expertise and support as a member of the global legal department.
• Excellent drafting and communication skills, clear and concise written and verbal communications.

Travel: Must be able to travel up to 10% of the time

UPL COMPETENCIES: 

• Adaptability & Resilience: Recognizes and is open to changing circumstances and alters behavior and scales up as necessary; increases personal awareness and appreciation of individual and cultural differences to create an open, inclusive, and accepting workplace.
• Entrepreneurial Mindset: Has a creative mindset and ability to think holistically, takes calculated risks and maximizes opportunities.
• Results Orientations: Takes action, pursues goals with persistence and achieves results; communicates goals and vision to the team to drive enthusiasm and ambition.
• Execution Excellence: Enhances the speed of execution and builds efficiency in processes, systems and people; has sharp focus on quality-orientation.
• Strategic Orientation: Demonstrates knowledge of the social, economic, and environmental factors and how they impact the business. Identifies key issues that could impact the business and develops strategy through an analytical lens / design thinking.
• Building Teams and Talent: Empowers colleagues through knowledge sharing and delegation, quickly establishing rapport; provides recognition for achievements and accomplishments.
• Customer Centricity:  Understands the customer needs and pain points, fulfills the needs and expectations by focusing on creating value for customers.

We are one team, for maximum impact. One team with shared goals. We all play for the team and no one plays against the team. We have a laser-like focus on what our customers need and want, on anticipating their future needs and on how we can create innovative solutions and experiences for them. #UPLJobs