Legal, Ethics and Compliance Manager

Novo Nordisk A/S; Lisboa; Hybrid; EUR 55,000 - 87,000; Full time

Job summary

Novo Nordisk A/S in Lisbon seeks a senior Legal, Ethics and Compliance professional to shape strategy, negotiate complex agreements and guide regulatory oversight for consumer activities and partnerships.

You will lead privacy, AI, data, and RWE initiatives, advise senior stakeholders, and ensure readiness for launches while maintaining governance across Portugal and with INFARMED and APIFARMA partners.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Law.
• Admission to the Portuguese Bar Association, or eligibility and legal standing appropriate to the responsibilities of the role.
• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience in legal, ethics and/or compliance roles, with demonstrated ability to advise stakeholders on complex business matters.
• Experience advising commercial teams and negotiating complex agreements, partnerships and innovative business models.
• Strong understanding of legal, ethics and compliance frameworks, including commercial contracting, competition law, privacy, compliance governance and the responsible use of AI and data in regulated business environments.
• Experience managing audits.
• Experience with governance committees and the review and certification of promotional or other regulated material.
• The ability to influence senior stakeholders and work across commercial and specialist functions.
• Fluent written and spoken Portuguese and English.
• Confident use of Legal & Compliance systems, and openness to using approved AI-enabled and data-driven tools responsibly.
• Experience in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, life sciences or another regulated consumer-facing sector.
• Familiarity with digital collaboration, workflow, contracting and document-management tools.

Responsibilities

• Engage early in strategy, planning and execution for your assigned business areas, and structure, negotiate and implement agreements for consumer activities, partnerships, new channels, brand initiatives and online business.
• Develop workable alternatives when an approach raises legal or compliance concerns, explaining the options, trade-offs and recommended path forward.
• Lead legal and compliance readiness for new launches and help design new business models and routes to market, resolving critical issues in time to support delivery.
• Lead privacy legal support and advise on AI, data, RWE and clinical trial activities, including vendor arrangements, data access, intellectual property, consent and agreements with research partners.
• Own selected audits, Compliance Committee responsibilities and material certification, from preparation and decision papers to remediation and timely closure of findings.
• Spot emerging risks and recurring issues, and turn them into targeted improvements, practical guidance and training.

Skills

Legal judgement

Commercial mindset

Stakeholder advisory

Audit management

AI compliance

Governance & compliance

Cross-functional collaboration

English & Portuguese fluency

Education

Master’s degree in Law

Bar admission in Portugal or eligible

Tools

Regulatory systems

Job description

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What you’ll bring

To succeed here, you combine sound legal judgement with a commercial mindset and the confidence to give clear advice.

• Master’s degree in Law.
• Admission to the Portuguese Bar Association, or eligibility and legal standing appropriate to the responsibilities of the role.
• M inimum 5 years of relevant experience in legal, ethics and/or compliance roles, with demonstrated ability to advise stakeholders on complex business matters.
• Experience advising commercial teams and negotiating complex agreements, partnerships and innovative business models.
• Strong understanding of legal, ethics and compliance frameworks, including commercial contracting, competition law, privacy, compliance governance and the responsible use of AI and data in regulated business environments.
• Experience managing audits.
• Experience with governance committees and the review and certification of promotional or other regulated material.
• The ability to influence senior stakeholders and work across commercial and specialist functions.
• Fluent written and spoken Portuguese and English.
• Confident use of Legal & Compliance systems, and openness to using approved AI-enabled and data-driven tools responsibly.
• Experience in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, life sciences or another regulated consumer-facing sector.
• Familiarity with digital collaboration, workflow, contracting and document-management tools.

Plus but not essential:

Experience providing legal support for real-world evidence (RWE) and clinical trials.

What you’ll do

• Engage early in strategy, planning and execution for your assigned business areas, and structure, negotiate and implement agreements for consumer activities, partnerships, new channels, brand initiatives and online business.
• Develop workable alternatives when an approach raises legal or compliance concerns, explaining the options, trade-offs and recommended path forward.
• Lead legal and compliance readiness for new launches and help design new business models and routes to market, resolving critical issues in time to support delivery.
• Lead privacy legal support and advise on AI, data, RWE and clinical trial activities, including vendor arrangements, data access, intellectual property, consent and agreements with research partners.
• Own selected audits, Compliance Committee responsibilities and material certification, from preparation and decision papers to remediation and timely closure of findings.
• Spot emerging risks and recurring issues, and turn them into targeted improvements, practical guidance and training.

Who you’ll work with

In Legal, Ethics and Compliance, colleagues safeguard the business and help create value so Novo can deliver on its purpose. You will report to the Associate Director, Legal, Ethics and Compliance, and work across Portugal.

You will work closely with the Affiliate Leadership Team and cross-functional stakeholders across Novo Portugal, acting as a trusted partner on strategic business priorities, complex legal and compliance matters, and responsible innovation. You will also collaborate with Legal, Ethics & Compliance colleagues and specialist teams across the wider Novo organisation, leveraging expertise, sharing best practices and ensuring alignment with global standards.

Externally, you will engage with INFARMED and other competent authorities, APIFARMA, healthcare professionals and organisations, patient organisations, agencies, external legal counsel and digital health and technology partners. Working closely with all of them, you will bring clarity to complex questions and keep projects moving.

What you can expect here

You will be trusted to make timely, proportionate decisions within your delegated authority, and to take accountability for matters through to resolution. Your voice will count: we value people who engage early, challenge constructively and suggest ideas that move the business forward, not least in partnerships, business development and consumer engagement.

Your role will grow with the business. Responsibilities may evolve in line with business priorities, new engagement models and technological developments, giving you room to build new skills, including in responsible use of AI and data.

What We Offer

There is, of course, more on offer here than the uniqueness of our culture and the extraordinary results we produce. Being part of a global healthcare company means opportunities to learn and develop are all around us, while our benefits are designed with your career and life stage in mind.

• Salary: For this role, the Annual Base Salary ranges from Euro 54,620 to Euro 87,390, corresponding to the level of the position. The placement within the salary range will be assessed during the recruitment process based on the candidate’s skills, competencies, knowledge, and relevant experience. Further details to be shared during the recruitment process.
• Incentives and Benefits:The salary package may include short-term and/or long-term incentives as well as other employee benefits based on position level, location, functional area and relevant market benchmarks.

Learn more about our Reward Philosophy here .

We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.

At Novo Nordisk, we're not chasing quick fixes – we're creating lasting change for long-term health. For over 100 years, we've been driven by a single purpose: to defeat serious chronic diseases and help millions of people live healthier lives. This dedication fuels our constant curiosity and inspires us to push the boundaries of what's possible in healthcare. We embrace diverse perspectives, seek out bold ideas, and build partnerships rooted in shared purpose. Together, we're making healthcare more accessible, treating and preventing diseases, and pioneering solutions that create change spanning generations. When you join us, you become part of something bigger – a legacy of impact that reaches far beyond today.