[Hiring] Lead Employment Counsel @Camunda

Role Description

We are hiring a Senior Employment Counsel to be the first line of legal support for our People team. This person will advise directly on employment matters, manage our key legal and HR vendor relationships, and reduce our reliance on outside counsel. This is a hands-on, embedded role for an attorney who wants to operate as a trusted business partner, not a gatekeeper.

What you'll be doing:

• Serve as the first line of support for employment legal questions, resolving most matters directly rather than routing them to outside counsel.
• Partner with each People Business Partner to advise on employee relations, performance management, terminations, leaves, and accommodations. Manage severe employee relations cases directly.
• Own the Remote.com relationship, including contract terms, service levels, escalations, and ongoing performance.
• Own the external legal counsel relationship, including a clear evaluation of scope, spend, and who we engage with.
• Partner with Legal and Finance on cross-functional projects involving employment law, compliance, or spend.
• Ensure compliance with employment law across every jurisdiction where Camunda operates, with particular depth in the DACH region. Find opportunities to reduce risk or balance risk with business value.
• Identify and adopt AI tools that make legal support to the People team faster and more effective.
• Track and reduce external counsel spend against a clear baseline.

Qualifications

• J.D. or equivalent law degree, with active bar admission in at least one jurisdiction.
• 8+ years of employment law experience, including significant in-house experience at a global, multi-jurisdiction company.
• Deep, current knowledge of DACH employment law (works councils, termination protections, co-determination), plus broad experience across other global jurisdictions.
• Experience managing outside counsel and HR vendor relationships, including EOR platforms such as Remote or similar.
• A track record of advising HR and People teams directly, and translating legal risk into practical, business-pragmatic guidance.
• Strong judgment and comfort making autonomous calls without escalating every matter to outside counsel.
• Experience using AI tools to improve legal or compliance workflows.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to build trust across People, Legal, and Finance.

Requirements

• This role is an existing vacancy.

Benefits

• We offer competitive, fair, and transparent compensation.
• Salary ranges are location-based, with Standard and Major markets reflecting local competition.
• Equity through our Virtual Stock Option Plan (VSOP).
• Remote & Flexible work options with home office budget and flexible time off.
• In Person Connection through Annual Kickoff and team offsites.
• Access to locally tailored healthcare and global mental wellbeing support.
• Retirement and pension plans, plus life and disability insurance where relevant.
• Up to $/€/£1,000 per year for self-driven learning: courses, certifications, books.