Head - Legal India

Head - Legal India

Are you ready to lead the charge in shaping a sustainable energy future? At Alfa Laval, we don’t just overcome challenges—we pioneer solutions that create a positive impact for our customers, our people, and the planet. Our curiosity sparks innovation, and our commitment drives us to deliver transformative results every single day.

Join a truly diverse and inclusive team where your leadership will make a real difference. At Alfa Laval, you’ll be empowered to build bridges to the future, delivering sustainable solutions that address the world’s most urgent energy challenges. Together, we’re making the world a better place.

About Alfa Laval

Alfa Laval is a leading global provider of products and solutions in heat transfer, separation, and fluid handling, serving customers across the energy, food, water, and marine industries. Headquartered in Lund, Sweden, the company operates in more than 100 countries, enabling customers to improve energy efficiency, productivity, and sustainability in industrial processes.

With a heritage of over 140 years, Alfa Laval plays a critical role in supporting the global energy transition, focusing on solutions for energy efficiency, waste heat recovery, decarbonization, and sustainable industrial growth. Sustainability and responsible use of resources are central to the company’s purpose of pioneering positive impact.

Alfa Laval India

Alfa Laval has been present in India since 1937 and plays a strategically important role within the group. The India headquarters is located in Pune, with eight manufacturing facilities based at Pune and Satara, and multiple sales and service locations across the country. The Manufacturing facilities supplies key components and systems in Separation, Heat Transfer, and Flow technology. It is also a hub for Centrifugal Separators, Decanters, and Flow equipment delivered to the global markets from here.

The company's products and solutions are omnipresent in over 25 multiple Indian industries including food processing, dairy, edible oil processing, sugar production, pharmaceutical & biotechnology, brewery, distillery, starch, pulp and paper, oil & gas, marine and energy. Alfa Laval caters to many national and international clients based across India and neighboring countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh.

We are now looking for an inspirational leader to spearhead the Legal function in India, partnering closely with the business leaders and managers.

Role Description

The Head of Legal for Alfa Laval India is responsible for leading the legal and compliance function by developing and executing legal strategies aligned with the organization’s business objectives. This role serves as a trusted advisor to the leadership team, providing proactive, business-oriented legal counsel across areas such as commercial contracts, regulatory compliance, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property, and risk management. The position ensures adherence to applicable laws and internal policies, drives robust compliance frameworks across areas like anti-corruption, trade sanctions, competition law, and data privacy, and oversee dispute resolution and litigation in coordination with external counsel. Additionally, the Head of Legal leads and develops a high-performing legal team, strengthens governance practices, and fosters a culture of integrity, accountability, and continuous improvement in line with Alfa Laval’s values.

Key elements of the Role involve

• Provide comprehensive legal expertise across specialized and generalist areas, including commercial contracts, R&D, product liability, mergers & acquisitions, and intellectual property (excluding patents and design), supported by robust commercial, legal, and ethical risk assessments.
• Act as a strategic business partner to management by proactively identifying and advising on legal risks and opportunities to enable informed decision-making and drive business growth.
• Draft, review, and negotiate a wide range of complex commercial agreements, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives and regulatory requirements.
• Lead and support the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of legal policies, processes, template agreements, and supporting tools.
• Drive compliance management across key areas such as Export Control & Sanctions, Anti-Bribery & Anti-Corruption, Fair Competition, and Data Privacy, including strengthening governance frameworks and best practices.

• Conduct legal and compliance training for business stakeholders, enhancing awareness in areas such as commercial contracts, corporate governance, and regulatory compliance, while fostering knowledge sharing within the legal and compliance teams.
• Manage and coordinate disputes and litigation matters in collaboration with external counsel, ensuring effective resolution and risk mitigation.
• Monitor and interpret legislative and regulatory developments, advising the business on potential impacts and implementing proactive risk mitigation strategies.
• Oversee Company Secretarial responsibilities for Alfa Laval India Cluster companies, ensuring compliance with statutory and corporate governance requirements.
• Lead and oversee Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, ensuring compliance with statutory requirements and alignment with the organization’s sustainability and community engagement goals.

Strategic Skills & Leadership Profile

• Over 10-15 years of relevant legal experience in in-house and/or private practice environments with Bachelor’s Degree in Law (LL.B.) or higher
• Qualified Company Secretary (ACS/FCS)
•   Proven experience in negotiating complex, high-value commercial contracts with multinational organizations
• Strong commercial acumen with excellent stakeholder management and collaboration skills
• Expertise in compliance areas including Export Control, Trade Sanctions, Anti-Bribery & Anti-Corruption, Fair Competition, and Data Privacy (preferred)
• Demonstrated experience in training, mentoring, or leading legal professionals

Reporting Relationship:

This role reports to the Group Affairs Manager, India

Location: Pune

“We care about diversity, inclusion and equity in our recruitment processes. We also believe behavioral traits can provide

important insights into a candidate's fit to a role. To help us achieve this we apply Pymetrics assessments, and upon

application you will be invited to play the assessment games.”

Experience Level

Senior Level