Senior Counsel - Strategic Projects

Job content

Location: Newbury or London + (Hybrid)
Salary: Excellent basic salary plus bonus and Vodafone benefits
Hours: Full time 37.5 hours per week – Mon to Fri
Hybrid
At Vodafone UK we believe that through collaboration and connection we can achieve great things. Our blended working approach allows our people to work both in the office and at home, providing the flexibility and resources you need to succeed in your role. Our “Office in a Box” home working kit will provide you with everything you need, no matter where you areAt Vodafone UK, diversity isn’t just a buzzword, it is core to who we are as a company. We’re proud to be certified as a Great Place to Work and are committed to driving inclusion for all; creating a workplace that is fully representative of the communities and customers we serve.

Corporate:
Join us at the heart of Vodafone UK in Corporate, one of the central support functions that underpin our business and keep us moving forward. We provide centralised support, expertise and guidance across our UK and Group operations, continuing to build on our success and trailblazing the way to our next stage of digital growth.

Who We Are
We’re a global technology communications company that empowers people and businesses to stay connected and thrive in a digital world. With a focus on innovation, sustainability and earning customer loyalty, we leverage cutting-edge technology to offer products and services that enhance communication and improve lives.At Vodafone UK, diversity isn’t just a buzzword, it is core to who we are as a company. We’re proud to be certified as a Great Place to Work and are committed to driving inclusion for all; creating a workplace that is fully representative of the communities and customers we serve.

Role purpose:

• work alongside the Head of Legal, Legal Leadership team and senior lawyers to raise the profile and impact of the Business Legal team within the business & drive employee engagement within the team;
• to own and drive Business Strategic Project Legal activities and projects ensuring positive engagement with Business stakeholders;
• work alongside Senior Counsel and Counsel in providing specialist and expert legal advice; and;

drive Business Strategic Project and Legal transformation projects, process improvement and innovation

What You’ll Do

• Providing or procuring legal advice and assistance in all areas of commercial law relating to Business Strategic Projects in Vodafone Limited;
• Develop and own key stakeholder relationships relevant to Business Strategic Projects as a trusted Business partner and enabler;
• Identify and assess legal risk and escalate as required, presenting appropriate risk briefings as necessary in order to mitigate Business impact;
• Providing a wide range of leadership and management support to the Strategic Projects Lead and Lead Counsel, including developing and implementing strategy, developing, documenting and maintaining best practice and inspiring, mentoring and motivating junior members of the team
• Providing timely expert legal advice, guidance, assistance and support (on both a proactive and reactive basis) to internal customers and stakeholders in writing, orally, by presentations and in face to face or virtual meetings;
• Drive and provide support to colleagues in relation to key contract negotiations linked to Business Strategic Projects;
• Provide expert legal advice to the Business on current contractual relationships with customers, suppliers and partners, change events linked to transformational change and supporting proactively with methods of mitigation to reduce impacts/risks and whilst doing so, always champion simplicity and customer experience;
• Establishing clear prioritisation of legal projects with all appropriate stakeholders in order that all key Business Strategic Projects are adequately supported
• Managing the relationship between external solicitors and Vodafone Limited in relation to all Business Strategic Project activities
• As a senior lawyer within the function, working with the General Counsel and Company Secretary, Head of Legal and Legal Leadership team to deliver team objectives and raising the profile and impact of the Legal function in the Business
• Foster and maintain collaborative and productive relationships within the wider UK Legal Team and aligned teams such as Compliance, Risk, Regulatory, Frameworks, Commercial, Networks, PLM, Product, Technology, CS&O, VBTS;
• Reviewing a wide range and sources of information for proposed legal developments and up to date case law; providing comment to the government/regulatory bodies as appropriate; flagging up emerging issues to the Group and UK Legal Teams and the Business as appropriate, including providing advice and comment in writing and/or in presentations/workshops or other appropriate means
• Liaising with colleagues in the Group Legal Team, Vodafone Business Legal, the Group Company Secretarial team and other Vodafone operating companies overseas to ensure consistency and sharing of best practice
• Focus on process improvement, efficiency, maintenance of corporate memory and know how
  
  

Who you are;

• Sound commercial and legal judgement
• Ability to devise innovative solutions and lead change management
• Good decision making skills and ability to identify and communicate key risks and ways to mitigate them to internal and external stakeholders and senior Business leaders
• Excellent communication and organisational skills and able to deliver concise, clear, strategic and logical advice tailored to the audience
• Ability to collaborate with others in the Business Legal Team, and UK Legal Team more broadly in order to flex resources across the team and co-ordinating legal support provided to Vodafone Business
• Solicitor or barrister practising in either private practice or in an in-house role in the commercial field
• Able to deal with highly complex and high risk issues in relation to commercial law. Excellent level of general legal knowledge
• Expert drafting skills and able to draft all necessary documentation up to the highest level of complexity
• Excellent level of commercial judgement and consultancy skills; able to advise internal customers confidently and effectively at all levels but with particular skill to influence at Director level
• Excellent negotiation and influencing skills and able to lead negotiations on complex legal matters in both private and public sector
• Working knowledge of Vodafone Limited’s regulatory environment (whether OFCOM, ICO or FCA)
• Excellent decision- making skills on conduct of all matters within the working area and able to provide leadership on strategic issues relating to procurement contracts and related matters
• Able to review legal work of others and provide coaching and guidance
• Ability to build and maintain excellent network of client contacts across the Vodafone Business, other relevant industry groups, relevant professional external contacts
• Ability to prioritise effort and deliver advice and support in short time frames
  
  

What We Offer
We believe that taking care of our employees is the key to their success. That is why we offer an excellent remuneration and bonus package with up to 28 days holiday entitlement, in addition to bank holidays and paid leave for charity projects. We offer an extensive benefits package that can be tailored to suit you and your family, including employee discounts, retail vouchers, pension plan and share schemes. We take pride in our commitment to supporting you at every stage of your career by providing top of the range learning and development tools, market leading parental leave policies and an innovative Reconnect programme for people who have taken a career break.Worried that you don’t meet all the desired criteria exactly? At Vodafone we are passionate about Inclusion for All and creating a workplace where everyone can thrive, whatever their personal or professional background. If you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align exactly with every part of the job description, we encourage you to apply as you may be the right candidate for this role or another role, and our recruitment team can help you see how your skills fit in.

Together we can
Vodafone UK are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and all offers of employment for this role are subject to background checks, including criminal (DBS) and financial checks to meet the regulators standards.If you require any reasonable adjustments or have an accessibility request as part of your recruitment journey, for example, extended time or breaks in between online assessments, a sign language interpreter, or assistive technology, please refer to the Accessibility section of our Careers website (https://careers.vodafone.com/uk/applying-to-vodafone/) for guidance.