Legal Counsel - Corporate & Governance at British American Tobacco (BAT)

British American Tobacco has a really great opportunity for a Legal Counsel Corporate & Governance to join our team in Nairobi.

The role reports to the Area Head of Legal and aims to proactively manage BAT’s corporate responsibilities, compliance and governance requirements within ECAA and to successfully implement and execute the LEX Functional strategy and objectives.

Our new colleague will be responsible for providing strategic advice to BAT entities in ECAA on all legal matters pertaining to good governance and compliance controls of the business while representing the Legal department on the Functional Leadership Teams.

Principal Accountabilities

• Drive and communicate an effective area wide governance and corporate reporting framework to senior management and external regulatory bodies as appropriate.
• Advise on and be actively involved in any proposed changes to the corporate structure and governance practices for any BAT ECAA entities.
• Keep abreast of arising regulatory developments as well as evolving best practices in corporate governance practices and corporate compliance measures.
• Champion and ensure adequate measures are in place for adherence to the BAT Group Standards of Business Conduct [SoBC], applicable policies and internal controls/systems, and direct internal SoBC investigations appropriately.
• Develop and drive the maintenance of control systems and appropriate company policies to proactively deal with risks, violations of legal, governance guidelines and internal policies and evaluate the efficiency of internal controls for continuous improvement.
• Provide support and advice on governance aspects, compliance and relevant internal controls to the Boards of Trustees of various BAT retirement benefit schemes in ECAA.
• Ensure adequate implementation and compliance with the agreed records management programme and policies across ECAA and develop cost-effective best practice solutions in line with records management resources.

Leadership Capabilities

• Support and implement the strategic plans and objectives of the Legal sub-function in line with the business strategy.
• Identify and take steps in conjunction with senior management to mitigate and manage business governance and compliance risks
• Develop, train and promote better understanding by ECA employees and other relevant persons of applicable internal controls, corporate governance practices and records management requirements.
• Effectively communicate and position the scope and importance of this role to the business and functional leadership teams.

Functional Competencies

• Recognized legal qualification through a reputable academic institution. Qualification as a Company Secretary or Governance Auditor is mandatory.
• Minimum 8 years of experience, among which at least 3-4 years in managing compliance issues or advising on good governance practices in a corporate environment.
• Sound knowledge of applicable regulatory requirements, corporate governance practices and emerging trends and issues on the same.
• Excellent knowledge of reporting procedures and corporate record keeping
• Ability to critically analyse and provide direction on compliance and governance issues.
• Collaborative team player with strong negotiation, communication and dispute resolution skills
• High personal and professional integrity and strong work ethics