Principal, Employment Counsel

Skillsoft

40d•$175,000 - $190,000

About The Position

Skillsoft is seeking an experienced Principal Employment Counsel to join our team. In this fast-paced exciting role, the Employment Counsel will work closely with the People Team and business leaders to provide timely, solutions-focused advice on a broad range of employment and employee relations matters, contributing to the overall success and growth of the company. The successful candidate will serve as a trusted legal partner who can identify risk, exercise sound judgment, and develop practical solutions that support Skillsoft’s business objectives and values. This role offers the opportunity to advise a global organization on complex and evolving employment issues, manage international disputes and investigations, develop scalable employment practices, and collaborate across functions and regions. This role requires a proactive and business-oriented mindset, strong analytical skills, and excellent communication and interpersonal expertise.

Requirements

8+ years of professional experience as a corporate attorney, preferably in a similar internal role or with a reputable law firm with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an accredited law school and active membership in the bar association.
Strong experience and knowledge of United States employment law, with demonstrated ability to advise on global or multi-jurisdictional employment and other regulatory matters, and manage local counsel.
Experience advising on workplace investigations, employee relations matters, employment disputes, administrative proceedings, and employment litigation.
Strong drafting and review experience involving employment agreements, separation documents, policies, handbooks, investigation materials, and other employment-related documents.
Experience advising on and supporting corporate compliance programs, including policy governance, risk assessments, compliance training, internal controls, investigations, and regulatory compliance initiatives.
Familiarity with enterprise risk management (ERM), ESG-related compliance considerations, audit and compliance governance processes, and partnering with cross-functional teams to develop scalable compliance frameworks and controls.
Demonstrated ability to identify emerging legal and regulatory risks, develop practical compliance solutions, and implement sustainable processes that support business objectives while promoting a culture of integrity and accountability.
Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, with the ability to provide practical advice that aligns legal risk management with business objectives.
Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex employment law concepts clearly and effectively to non-legal stakeholders.
Skilled at working collaboratively with the People Team and other cross-functional stakeholders, while also working independently, prioritizing tasks, and managing multiple matters simultaneously.
Ability to be agile and take initiative, recognizing opportunities and initiating actions to develop practical, scalable, and productive ways to support the business.
Demonstrated emotional intelligence, sound judgment, and a collaborative approach, with the ability to navigate sensitive and high-stakes issues professionally while maintaining perspective, humility, and a healthy sense of humor.
Thrives in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment and brings a positive, pragmatic mindset, taking the work seriously and delivering at a high level without taking themselves too seriously.

Responsibilities

Provide accurate and timely legal advice and counsel to internal clients on a wide range of employment corporate matters, including recruiting, hiring, onboarding and performance management.
Advise on sensitive and complex employee relations matters, balancing legal risk, employee experience, business objectives, and operational realities.
Translate complex legal requirements into clear, actionable guidance for People Team professionals, managers, and business leaders.
Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders and develop a deep understanding of Skillsoft’s workforce, business priorities, and operating model.
Draft, review, and update employment-related documents, including, offer letters and employment agreements; restrictive covenant, confidentiality, and intellectual property agreements, separation agreements and releases; commission, bonus, and incentive plan documents; Performance management and disciplinary documentation; Investigation plans, interview outlines, findings, and remediation documents; employee policies, handbooks, notices, acknowledgments, and consent forms; workforce transition materials.
Review employment communications for legal risk, clarity, consistency, and alignment with company practices.
Develop practical templates, playbooks, checklists, and self-service resources for common employment matters.
Support periodic reviews of employment policies and practices to identify compliance gaps and opportunities for simplification or standardization.
Provide employment law counseling across the jurisdictions in which Skillsoft operates, coordinating with local counsel and regional stakeholders as appropriate.
Monitor developments in global labor and employment laws and advise on changes needed to Skillsoft policies, practices, agreements, and processes.
Develop and maintain tools that help Skillsoft identify, prioritize, and manage employment-related legal and compliance risk, including support regarding employee training and compliance.
Advise on and conduct workplace investigations involving allegations of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, misconduct, conflicts of interest, policy violations, and other sensitive employee matters.
Work with the People Team to define an appropriate investigation plan, privilege structure, interim measures, documentation approach, findings, remediation, and follow-up.
Provide clear and balanced recommendations regarding corrective action, remediation, process improvements, and retaliation monitoring.
Manage employment litigation, administrative charges, labor proceedings, pre-litigation disputes, demand letters, and settlement negotiations in the United States and internationally.
Develop case strategy in partnership with internal stakeholders and external counsel, including review of factual records, assessment of exposure, preservation and discovery strategy, and evaluation of settlement options.
Engage and supervise counsel when as needed.
Support Skillsoft’s enterprise compliance program which includes such areas as ERM, ESG, and other regulatory compliance.
Strengthen compliance program infrastructure by maintaining policies, controls, and documentation that feed ERM and Audit Committee oversight, and partner with Legal Operations to reduce key-person dependency across compliance readiness.