Our Work
Head of Legal
The Client
Phoenix successfully secured a dynamic Head of Legal for our life-sciences client; a newly-established Irish subsidiary of a US HQ’d global parent organisation ranked within the Top 5 on the Fortune 500 list and within the top 10 on the Fortune Global 500 list.
This was the first in-house legal appointment for our client in Ireland/ EU, and critical to support their ambitious EU expansion plans, and supporting wider US-based revenue generation.
The Challenge
For this strategic Head of Legal appointment, our client required a highly-experienced lawyer who could demonstrate exemplary technical legal and regulatory skills supported by proven niche-industry experience; successfully navigate the relevant complex legal and regulatory landscape whilst balancing the organisation’s commercial realities; and act as a trusted legal business partner up to C-suite and board level.
However, given the start-up nature of this strategic Irish subsidiary, our client also required a trusted in-house advisor who could carry out this critical Head of Legal role whilst establishing and scaling an in-house legal function, and successfully balance the resulting competing demands on time and resources.
Therefore, ensuring the successful candidate had and could demonstrate the right hands-on mentality and exemplary time-organisational and prioritisation skills was paramount.
Our Approach
● Targeted Head-Hunt: Identified, distilled, engaged a unique pool of relevant candidates with the requisite level and blend of legal, regulatory, industry and commercial experience, as well as the relevant attitude required for this challenging senior position, having regard to our client’s immediate and medium-long term needs in line with their growth plans.
● Trusted Search Advisor: Based on our in-depth knowledge of the relevant talent pool, from the outset we assisted and advised our client on the proposed level and remit of the role, key duties, an appropriate and impactful job description, positioning of the role and progression opportunities vis-a-vis the evolution of the role / new in-house legal division, total compensation package structuring etc.
● A Compelling Message to Market: We worked closely with our client to formulate and distill the unique selling points of their organisation and the opportunity tailored for the relevant candidate target market. This supported a consistent, impactful message to market, from initial engagement through to interview.
● Unique Network: Leveraging from the unique senior legal candidate network of the relevant Phoenix professional as a result of their unique career history i.e. 8 years’ training and practicing in “Big 6” and global law firms in Dublin, followed by a 10+ year successful search career.
● Psychometric: Psychometrics completed by a qualified professional to ensure a robust search process.
● Advisory Hiring Approach: Supported our client through the entire process, from initial job description and total remuneration structuring, to candidate shortlisting, all the way to offer, acceptance, contract, and resignation management.
Results
● Successful Executive Placement: Secured a highly-experienced Head of Legal and member of the executive senior management team, and overall trusted legal advisor to the organisation.
● Establishment of an In-House Legal Division: Secured an experienced Head of Legal to build an in-house legal and corporate governance division yielding both time and cost efficiencies for our client. They also have the necessary experience and “hands-on” attitude to effectively balance and prioritise competing demands as the legal division grows.
● Strategic Fit: The business has secured a Head of Legal and first legal hire for the group’s strategic Irish subsidiary with the requisite and unique mix of technical legal and regulatory expertise, proven commercial prowess, industry experience, and a “start-up”/scale mind-set is in situ. Therefore, they are expertly placed to support the business from a legal and regulatory perspective, whilst balancing the commercial realities of the business. They are also primed to support the Board and C-Suite on its ongoing EU growth plans, to include high-lucrative global commercial partnerships.
At Phoenix Search, we go beyond recruitment—we act as a strategic partner, using market intelligence and deep sector expertise to secure top leadership talent that drives real business impact.
