Head of Secretariat, Corporate Counsel & Company Secretary

Job Description

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls.

We believe in the power and potential of every child. But this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it’s girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children.

We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood. And we enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

We have been building powerful partnerships for children for over 85 years, and are now active in more than 80 countries.

The Opportunity

• We are recruiting for a Head of Secretariat – Corporate Counsel & Company Secretary to lead the Company Secretariat team within the Governance and Executive Department. In this role you will lead the Governance & Secretariat team and will be responsible for advising on pertinent governance and regulatory requirements, enabling effective decision making,  providing high quality meeting services to, and ensuring open and accountable communication across Plan International’s governing bodies and senior management groups.

The Person

• We are seeking a qualified lawyer (US/New York State preferred). The ideal candidate should possess a comprehensive understanding of diverse governance and corporate legal frameworks, coupled with a proven track record in developing and implementing corporate governance support and company secretarial systems and processes.
• You will have experience collaborating with governing Boards and executive management teams preferably in international and/or nonprofit contexts.
• You will provide expert counsel on global governance and corporate law matters, while also staying attuned to emerging trends and utilising technology to keep up with new innovations and developments.

Please click here for the full role profile

• Please respond to the requirements of the role in your cover letter.
• Only CVs and cover letters in English will be accepted.

Location:

•  The location of this role can be flexible where Plan International has an office* that can employ on behalf of the Global Hub and you have the pre-existing right to work and live.
• You may be office, home or hybrid based

Type of role:

•  Permanent or maximum fixed term contract as per employing office’s standard terms and conditions.

Salary:

•  We will be happy to disclose the salary and applicable benefits to applicants as part of this process, however, please kindly note that the salary and employment benefits will be set according to your location and therefore it is not possible to include full details here.

Grade: Grade 5/Level 19

Closing Date: Sunday 3rd September 2023

*Applicable locations include: Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, China, Colombia, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Finland, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Kenya, Korea, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Uganda, United Kingdom, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International’s Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.