Legal & Compliance Counsel GCC📣 إعلان

About the Role

Sandoz is seeking a Legal & Compliance Counsel GCC to join our team in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This full-time role is central to establishing and maintaining robust compliance standards, ensuring corporate governance, managing contracts, and providing essential legal advisory support across the organization. The position is instrumental in fostering a strong culture of integrity and ethical behavior, ensuring strict adherence to both internal policies and external regulations.

Compliance Responsibilities

• Establish compliance standards based on internal policies (*, Code of Ethics, Conflict of Interest, Sandoz Global Policy for External Professional Interactions, Third-Party Risk Management framework) and applicable laws and industry regulations.
• Develop processes and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all promotional and non-promotional activities, materials, interactions with Healthcare Professionals (HCPs), grants, gifts, and events.
• Ensure comprehensive compliance training for the local organization and monitor mandatory e-learning completion.
• Conduct compliance risk assessments and drive a strong culture of integrity, promoting ethical behavior and a speak-up culture.
• Ensure document retention and archiving practices meet internal and external requirements for inspections and audits.
• Support investigations and incident management, including documentation, root cause analysis, and remediation actions for potential misconduct or breaches.
• Perform monitoring and auditing activities such as spot checks, transactional reviews, event assessments, and sampling of high-risk processes to ensure policy adherence.

Corporate Governance and Contract Management

• Ensure corporate governance activities comply with local laws, regulatory requirements, and global Sandoz governance standards.
• Maintain and update corporate documents, including commercial registry records, signatory matrices, and power of attorney structures.
• Support the coordination and preparation of board and shareholder resolutions, filings, regulatory submissions, and annual renewal requirements.
• Oversee end-to-end contract lifecycle management, encompassing drafting, reviewing, and negotiating agreements.
• Ensure contracts align with global templates, approval workflows, and delegation of authority requirements.
• Provide guidance on contract compliance, identifying risks and recommending mitigation actions.

Legal Advisory Support

• Provide legal advice on matters affecting business operations, covering regulatory law, commercial law, anti-bribery/anti-corruption laws, data protection, and competition law.
• Advise internal teams on the interpretation of local legislation, corporate policies, and global processes.
• Collaborate with global and regional legal teams to ensure alignment with Sandoz legal standards and to implement new global requirements locally.
• Support the business in responding to legal queries, conducting risk assessments, addressing product-related issues, and interacting with government authorities as required.

Qualifications and Experience

• Law degree from a recognized university.
• Minimum of 5 years of regional experience in legal and compliance roles, with a total experience range of 5-10 years.
• Previous experience in the pharmaceutical industry is required, particularly in compliance-related roles.
• Strong understanding of compliance frameworks, industry codes, anti-bribery laws, and corporate governance principles.
• Structured, organized, and capable of managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong project management skills, including the ability to plan, execute, and monitor tasks and initiatives across different functions.
• Ability to work cross-functionally and support stakeholders within a matrix organization.
• Strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and proven ability to assess and manage risk.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to convey complex requirements clearly and practically.

Performance Expectations

Success in this role will be measured by several key indicators, including the alignment of local compliance standards with regulations and company policies, documented effectively. The establishment and implementation of local processes and SOPs for relevant policies are crucial. Expectations include ensuring all associates are trained on legal and compliance policies and SOPs, and that annual (e)-Training and (e)-Certification completion targets are consistently met. The role also requires conducting compliance-related risk assessments, performing self-assessments for monitoring, and developing remediation plans where necessary. Timely delivery of contracting activities with minimal legal risks and high adherence to global legal standards is expected, alongside accurate and timely completion of corporate governance filings and documentation within statutory deadlines. The quality and timeliness of legal support provided to the business are also critical performance metrics.