Head of Legal & Compliance

Overall purpose of the role
• The Head of Legal & Compliance, China provides strategic leadership and oversight of legal and compliance matters across Mainland China and Hong Kong, enabling Company to deliver its Focused Innovator strategy with integrity and accountability.
• As a member of the China Leadership Team, the role serves as a trusted advisor to the Managing Director and senior leadership, contributing to business strategy and critical decisions while safeguarding Lundbeck's legal, ethical, and reputational interests.
• The position leads both the legal and compliance agendas, ensuring effective legal governance, proactive risk management, a robust compliance framework, and a strong culture of integrity and accountability.
• Working closely with Global Legal & Compliance, the role connects local business needs with global expertise and priorities, supporting consistent standards, effective business partnering, and continuous improvement.
Key Responsibilities
1. Strategic leadership and business partnership
• Serve as a key member of the China Leadership Team, contributing to business strategy, organizational priorities, and critical decisions.
• Act as a trusted advisor to the Managing Director and senior leadership on legal, compliance, governance, and reputational matters.
• Anticipate emerging legal, regulatory, and business challenges, providing forward-looking insights to support sustainable business performance.
• Influence business decisions through independent judgment, constructive challenge, and pragmatic, risk-based guidance.
• Partner with business leaders to enable responsible business initiatives, strategic partnerships, and evolving business models.
2. Legal leadership and governance
• Set the strategic direction for legal affairs across Mainland China and Hong Kong, ensuring effective legal governance and alignment with Lundbeck's global standards.
• Provide strategic legal advice on commercial operations, business partnerships, corporate governance, competition law, employment matters, intellectual property, and other relevant legal areas.
• Lead legal risk assessment and mitigation for strategic business initiatives, complex transactions, and evolving business models.
• Oversee significant contracts, disputes, litigation, and other material legal matters, ensuring appropriate management and escalation of risks.
• Anticipate legal and regulatory developments, advising leadership on potential business implications and necessary actions.
• Strengthen legal processes, contracting practices, and governance to enable efficient and responsible business operations.
• Leverage global legal expertise and external counsel to address complex matters and deliver high-quality legal support.
3. Ethics, compliance and risk leadership
• Set the strategic direction for Lundbeck's ethics and compliance program across Mainland China and Hong Kong, ensuring alignment with global standards and local regulatory requirements.
• Establish effective compliance governance and oversight, with clear accountability, appropriate internal controls, and risk-based monitoring.
• Provide leadership on key pharmaceutical compliance risks, including anti-bribery and anti-corruption, promotional practices, healthcare stakeholder interactions, third-party engagements, and transparency requirements.
• Ensure material compliance risks are proactively identified, assessed, mitigated, and escalated, with effective oversight of investigations and remediation.
• Anticipate emerging compliance risks and regulatory developments, strengthening the organization's ability to respond proactively.
• Champion a culture of integrity, ethical conduct, and accountability, setting the tone through personal leadership and sound judgment.
• Influence business leaders to embed ethical conduct and compliance ownership into strategic decisions and everyday business practices.
4. Global collaboration and functional transformation
• Serve as the key link between China and Global Legal & Compliance, ensuring alignment with global priorities while addressing local business and regulatory needs.
• Collaborate with global legal and compliance teams to strengthen local capabilities, governance, and consistent ways of working.
• Contribute local perspectives and expertise to global initiatives, helping shape effective policies, processes, and risk management approaches.
• Drive functional effectiveness through simplified processes, clearer accountability, and responsible use of technology, automation, AI, data, and analytics.
5. People and organizational leadership
• Lead and develop the China Legal & Compliance team, building strong capabilities, engagement, and a high-performing culture.
• Set clear strategic priorities and ensure effective deployment of resources and expertise across Mainland China and Hong Kong.
• Develop talent, empower team members, and foster collaboration across local and global functions.
• Model Lundbeck's Three Behaviors — Curiosity, Adaptability, and Accountability — and inspire these behaviors across the organization.
Role Specific Competencies
1. Professional qualifications and experience
• University degree in Law; professional legal qualification in Mainland China or another relevant jurisdiction preferred.
• Significant leadership experience in legal and compliance functions, preferably within the pharmaceutical or life sciences industry.
• Proven ability to operate as a strategic advisor to senior management and influence business strategy and critical decisions.
• Strong understanding of the legal, regulatory, and pharmaceutical compliance environment in Mainland China, with the ability to oversee relevant matters in Hong Kong.
• Demonstrated experience in corporate and commercial legal matters, legal risk management, governance, and complex business transactions.
• Strong experience in compliance program leadership, risk management, internal controls, and complex compliance matters.
• Experience working in a multinational environment, navigating complex stakeholder relationships, and collaborating with global functions.
• Demonstrated success in leading teams, driving organizational change, and building functional capabilities.
2. Leadership capabilities and personal attributes
• Enterprise leadership: Thinks beyond functional boundaries and contributes to the broader success and long-term sustainability of the business.
• Strategic mindset and business acumen: Connects legal and compliance priorities with business strategy and anticipates emerging challenges.
• Integrity and courage: Demonstrates independent judgment, ethical leadership, and the confidence to challenge constructively.
• Influence and collaboration: Builds credibility and trusted relationships with senior leaders and diverse stakeholders.
• Risk-based decision-making: Balances business opportunities with legal, regulatory, and ethical considerations.
• People leadership: Inspires, develops, and empowers teams to deliver strong organizational impact.
3. Language requirements
• Excellent written and spoken Mandarin Chinese and English.
4. Key measures of success
• Legal & Compliance is recognized as a trusted strategic partner and influential member of the China Leadership Team.
• Legal risks are proactively managed, with effective governance and high-quality legal support for strategic business decisions.
• A robust, risk-based compliance framework enables responsible business performance and effective compliance risk management.
• Ethical leadership, sound governance, and accountability are embedded across the organization.
• Strong alignment and collaboration are maintained with Global Legal & Compliance.
• The China Legal & Compliance function demonstrates strong leadership, capabilities, and continuous improvement.