Head of Regional Team Legal - North America

Powering the cars of today and tomorrow. Reducing harmful emissions. Giving unique properties to high‑end applications. Giving new life to used metals. As a global advanced materials and recycling group, we develop, produce, and recycle materials for a better life.

We are currently looking for a Head of Regional Legal Team for North America
. Reporting to the General Counsel, you will provide legal counsel to senior management and business leaders of all business units as a pro‑active business partner to create value (e.g., secure volumes and timelines; partnerships), manage risks (e.g., downside protections in contracts, regulatory compliance, litigation) and navigate complex projects and regulatory environments while implementing Umicore’s CORE strategy.

The role can be based in one of the following Umicore locations:
Raleigh (NC), Auburn Hills (MI), La Vergne (TN) or Bayport Pasadena (TX).

• Proactively collaborate and advise senior management, business heads and commercial and R&D functions with activities in the region on the translation of CORE into actionable steps (from strategy to tactics)
• Ensure that the regional legal team is a business enabler in that it provides to the point, constructive and timely legal advice and other support (including negotiation and structuring).
• Personally follow-up important cases in the region (including important contract negotiations, M&A, settlement discussions, litigation, compliance incidents and other matters with a risk of significant liability)
• Support Umicore’s compliance with new and increasingly complex regulations
• Maintain and manage a close coordination and cooperation with colleagues of other regions and central functions and with outside advisors, with a view to maintaining as much as possible a consistent global approach
• Ensure continuous legal training of existing and new commercial, R&D and other Umicore colleagues on relevant legal principles and compliance topics
• Provide management, leadership, strategic direction, oversight and coaching for the regional legal team
• Drive continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives within the legal department
• Maintain and foster close cooperation with all business units, other enterprise functions and other teams within the global legal department
• Manage the legal budget as well as a network of external legal counsel in the region
• Actively contribute to the overall strategy, operations, process and staff development of the Umicore global legal department as a member of the legal leadership team

Travel:
Occasional visits to sites in the region, and limited intercontinental travel

• 12+ years of experience as legal counsel in a multinational company and/or as a lawyer in a law firm with experience in relevant industries and scope
• Juris Doctor degree; admitted to practice law in at least one U.S. state
• Curiosity and genuine interest in understanding Umicore’s business and activities, alignment with the company’s values
• Collaborative and empowering leadership and people management skills and experience
• Analytical mindset with the ability to capture the essence of and to understand the business needs and challenges of the different business units, based on an understanding of the value chains in which they operate
• Pragmatic and solution‑oriented while ensuring legal quality
• Able to build strong relationships with colleagues both within and outside your team and open to different cultures
• Proven ability to take a strategic perspective and drive and structure decision making
• Strong negotiation and prioritizing skills

We aim to lead the way. Not just for our customers, but for our employees too. That is why we strive to create a collaborative environment in which we can all succeed, and a culture through which we can all share ideas, develop our expertise and advance our careers. We engage in building an inclusive work culture that offers equal opportunities for all employees irrespective of their diverse backgrounds.

As you would expect from a world‑leading organisation, we will also reward your contribution with a competitive salary and benefits. With all this and more, imagine what you could do?