Head – Legal & Compliance

At Roche you can show up as yourself, embraced for the unique qualities you bring. Our culture encourages personal expression, open dialogue, and genuine connections, where you are valued, accepted and respected for who you are, allowing you to thrive both personally and professionally. This is how we aim to prevent, stop and cure diseases and ensure everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Join Roche, where every voice matters.

The Position

Job Title:Head - Legal & Compliance

Job Location: Location agnostic (within India)

Functional Reporting: General Manager, Roche Products (India) Pvt. Ltd.

Function:Legal & Compliance

Position Type:People Leader

Purpose:

To lead and embed a robust, independent Legal & Compliance framework that safeguards Roche Pharma India's license to operate, enables sustainable business growth, ensures adherence to applicable laws, ethical standards and global policies.

Act as a strategic advisor to the General Manager and leadership team on legal, compliance and governance matters, enabling legally sound, ethical and compliant decision-making across the organization.

Role Outline / Responsibilities:

• Act as a strategic partner to the General Manager and leadership team in shaping business strategy, providing proactive and solution orientated legal and compliance guidance to enable legally sound and compliant decision-making.

• Advise on non-negotiable risks not to be taken, and non-negotiable legal and compliance guardrails and counsel on calculated risks that the business can take and offer solutions to accomplish our outcomes within the L&C guardrails - where possible.

• Lead and manage the Legal & Compliance function, including lawyers, company secretary and compliance professionals, ensuring high-quality, timely and business-relevant support across the organization.

• Drive a strong culture of integrity and compliance across the organization through leadership, coaching and engagement with cross-functional teams.

• Ensure organizational adherence to applicable laws, regulations and internal policies by establishing effective governance structures, compliance calendars, and documentation standards.

• Design, implement and continuously strengthen a comprehensive compliance program, including policies, procedures, training, monitoring and risk assessments aligned with Roche global standards and applicable Indian laws (including UCPMP, Drugs & Cosmetics Act, NDCT Rules, Competition Law, Labour code and DPDPA).

• Lead and oversee internal investigations, speak-up mechanisms and disciplinary processes, ensuring fair, consistent and legally defensible outcomes.

• Provide expert legal advice on corporate, commercial, regulatory and healthcare compliance matters, including contracts, competition law, data privacy, litigation and risk mitigation strategies.

• Advise on complex regulatory and business matters including pricing, access models, partnerships, media engagements, CSR initiatives, indirect procurement arrangements to ensure compliance and protect the organization from legal and reputational risks.

• Serve as the primary advisor on regulatory, enforcement and government-related matters, including engagement with regulators and industry bodies (e.g., NPPA, CDSCO, OPPI).

• Establish and maintain enterprise risk assessment frameworks, including identification, mitigation and reporting of key legal and compliance risks.

• Support talent development, succession planning and capability building within the Legal & Compliance function and broader organization.

Additional Responsibilities:

• Ensure that the affiliate fully complies with Roche global and all applicable local compliance standards and requirements, and that healthcare compliance is embedded in the organization's culture, strategy and ways of working.

• Drive a strong compliance mindset across the affiliate by developing and implementing a comprehensive compliance framework and advising cross-functional teams on risk mitigation.

• Ensure appropriate governance and oversight on safety, health and environment compliance through coordination with designated functions.

• Maintain independence of the Legal & Compliance function, with the authority to escalate material risks to the General Manager and Regional/Global Legal & Compliance leadership.

• The role requires approximately 15+ years of experience, including significant leadership experience in legal and compliance roles within regulated industries.

Internal Stakeholders:

• All functions across the organization

External Stakeholders:

• External law firms, courts, regulators, industry bodies and government authorities

Functional Competencies:

• Strong knowledge of contract law, business law, corporate law, competition law, labour codes, data privacy law.

• Experience in litigation management and court procedures

• Expertise in legal research and regulatory interpretation

• Strong expertise in compliance program design, investigations, audits and risk management.

Mindset & Behaviour:

• Patient & Customer Centric

• Pragmatic and solution-oriented approach

• Strong ability to challenge constructively and influence stakeholders

• Collaborative and networked working style

• High integrity, strong ethical judgment and courage to escalate difficult issues

Who we are

A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100'000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.

Let's build a healthier future, together.

Roche is an Equal Opportunity Employer.