Vice President, Legal

Job Description

Job Title:
Vice President, Global Employment Legal

Location:
San Francisco, Madison, Seattle or Washington DC Area 

Job Summary:
Zendesk is seeking a strategic, experienced, and collaborative Vice President of Global Employment Legal to lead our global employment legal function. This executive role will report directly to the Chief Legal Officer and work closely with senior leadership to provide guidance on employment-related legal matters, labor relations, and workplace policies that align with our company culture and global business objectives.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic Leadership: Develop and execute Zendesk’s global employment legal strategy, aligning with the company’s strategic goals and values.

• Global Compliance: Oversee employment law compliance in jurisdictions where Zendesk operates, ensuring adherence to international, federal, and local laws.

• Policy Development: Collaborate with HR and other stakeholders to design and implement progressive workplace policies and initiatives.

• Dispute Resolution: Collaborate with litigation lead on all employment-related litigation, arbitration, and mediation. Proactively minimize legal risk through training, audits, and robust dispute resolution frameworks.

• Advisory Role: Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders on employment law trends, workplace investigations, and complex personnel issues and collaborate with HR to develop strategic solutions that align business objectives with complex local employment laws and regulations.

• Labor Relations: Provide legal support on labor and employee relations, including collective bargaining agreements, union-related matters, and employee engagement strategies.

• Training & Education: Develop and deliver training programs for managers and HR professionals on employment law best practices.

• Outside Counsel & Budget Management: Oversee the selection and management of outside counsel, ensuring alignment with company goals, and manage the employment legal budget effectively.

• Systems: Create efficient and scalable systems and processes to enable independent stakeholder success, including leveraging technology.

• Team Management: Build, lead, and mentor a team of employment legal professionals, fostering a collaborative and high-performing environment.

Qualifications:

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school; active membership in at least one U.S. state bar.

• 15+ years of employment law experience, including in-house experience at a global company.

• Expertise in global employment law and cross-border issues, with experience advising on employment matters in multiple jurisdictions.

• Proven ability to manage complex legal matters and provide actionable, business-oriented solutions.

• Demonstrated leadership skills, including building and developing high-performing teams.

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust and influence at all organizational levels.

• Commitment to Zendesk’s core values, including customer focus, innovation, and fostering an inclusive and equitable workplace.

Preferred Experience:

• Experience in the technology or SaaS industry.

• Experience working in multicultural environments.

The US annualized base salary range for this position is $261,000.00-$391,000.00. This position may also be eligible for bonus, benefits, or related incentives. While this range reflects the minimum and maximum value for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations, the offer for the successful candidate for this position will be based on job related capabilities, applicable experience, and other factors such as work location. Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only (or OTE for commissions based roles), and do not include bonus, benefits, or related incentives.

Hybrid: In this role, our hybrid experience is designed at the team level to give you a rich onsite experience packed with connection, collaboration, learning, and celebration - while also giving you flexibility to work remotely for part of the week. This role must attend our local office for part of the week. The specific in-office schedule is to be