Data Protection Advisor

Purpose

For Linklaters Global Solutions Warsaw we are looking to hire a Regulatory Compliance Advisor who will be a member of Regulatory Compliance within Linklaters’ global Legal & Risk team. Regulatory Compliance are the firm’s global in-house lawyers and advisers. The team manages the firm’s risk worldwide, both within the Practice and Business Teams, to ensure that Linklaters’ reputation is preserved and professional rules are complied with.

Key responsibilities and challenges:

This role influences Linklaters’ global compliance with applicable data protection and privacy law and regulations and involves providing in-house advice and support on a day-to-day basis to the practice and business teams on a wide range of issues of privacy and data protection regulatory compliance issues. It supports the management of the firm’s privacy risk worldwide.

The role includes an element of responsibility for identifying areas for improvement in privacy and data protection governance and processes and driving forward improvements globally across the firm.

You will be responsible for:

Data Privacy Operations:

• Dealing with individuals rights requests by coordinating responses to and fulfilment of individuals’ rights under the applicable data protection laws;

• Providing advice on incidents and any associated incidents notifications, conducting and documenting data incident risk assessments, preparing draft notifications to the relevant data protection authorities and data subjects as necessary;

• Being a point of contact for colleagues in business teams, the practice, to support them in relation to the firm’s data protection and privacy processes and procedures including, for example:

  • the Strategic Sourcing & Supply team in relation to the vetting, auditing, and management of third-party suppliers, including supporting Commercial Lawyer in reviewing data processing agreements;

  • the Marketing, HR and Technology teams that process significant amounts of personal data;

• Working directly with external counsel to procure expert external advice and implement it within Linklaters;

• Coordinating responses to internal and external ad hoc data protection and privacy related queries e. g. in relation to pitches and engagement terms with clients.

• Helping the firm to implement rules of privacy by design and default into activities which involve the processing of personal data and completion of relevant assessments, including Legitimate Interest Assessments and Data Protection Impact Assessments.

• Special projects: Supporting the firm with the data protection and privacy aspects of specific projects for the firm, including for example initiatives to enable the firm to maximise the use of technology, to support diversity and inclusion initiatives or to develop and adopt internal processes to meet the requirements of the changing regulatory landscape.

• Reporting to senior stakeholders: Administering the firm’s privacy logs and records and preparing data protection and privacy reports for the Data Protection Executive Board including the collation of metrics to include in reports and updates from relevant business areas.

• With support from senior team members, developing and delivering training and guidance on privacy and data protection issues.

• Building know-how resources and upskilling colleagues so that they can work on queries and provide support in a range of expertise areas.

• Providing support to senior colleagues such as Regulatory Compliance lawyers both in Warsaw and London. This includes putting forward ideas / drafts for improvements in privacy and data protection governance and processes, policy updates, team management support.

Skills required:

• Be good at developing relationships with lawyers and business teams at all levels,

• Be able to cope under pressure, work on own initiative and prioritise efficiently,

• Have strong analytical skills,

• Be able to communicate effectively,

• Be hard-working and flexible with a "can do" attitude.

Education / Qualification:

• IAPP CIPP-E or similar data protection qualification a plus

Languages:

• Fluent English

Practical experience:

• 2+ years of relevant experience in the field of data privacy.

• In depth knowledge of data protection requirements within the European Union and awareness of data protection requirements globally.

• Hands on experience of advising on data protection and privacy laws, including experience of operationalising legal requirements either working alone or with the business to ensure requirements are embedded into business processes.

• Able to manage and prioritise competing projects, often within limited timeframes

• Clear communicator, able to support colleagues and communicate with senior stakeholders

• Good problem solver; able to offer knowledgeable, practical, and creative solutions

• Able to adapt to different cultures worldwide

Location

• Warsaw (hybrid model – min. 2 days per week at the office)

Type of contract

• Contract of employment

Benefits:

Joining Team Linklaters will see you qualify for a range of benefits designed to reward the vital contribution you'll be making to our success. These include:

• Private medical care

• Free in-house fitness centre

• Life insurance

• Worldwide travel insurance for business and non-business travel

• Benefit Multisport club card or subsidised travel card

• Wide range of training opportunities

About Linklaters
Linklaters is a people business. Being best in class in the eyes of our clients means that our people must be exceptional.
We look not only for brilliant minds, but for people who will thrive in our environment: people who love working collaboratively and demonstrate the innovative, efficient, agile, entrepreneurial, and responsible mind-set we aim to bring to every interaction.
Ours is an environment of outperformance. We achieve this not with targets and incentives, but by fostering a positive, supportive, fair, and open atmosphere.
We respect and value difference but insist on inclusivity. We celebrate all aspects of diversity and challenge any form of bias, because we want everyone to feel that they belong. This is vital to our ability to work as one team, with a common mind-set.
We recognise that one size does not fit all. Our goal is to embed flexibility across our firm by giving everyone the opportunity to work in an agile way, whether as a regular pattern or on an ad hoc basis, and we will be happy to discuss this further.

What sets us apart:

At Linklaters:

• We offer a truly global work experience and the opportunity to be involved in strategic projects that drive innovation and shape the future of our business

• We belong to a firm that embodies its corporate social, environment and governance responsibility commitments

• We celebrate diversity, equity and inclusion so our people can bring themselves to work

• We advocate speak-up culture to empower our people in sharing their voices and an open-door policy to ensure they are listened to

• We invest in custom-fit career paths for our people in line with their talents and aspirations

• We provide agile working solutions to meet the changing needs of our people and our business

• We are committed to people first relationships based on mutual trust, respect and appreciation

• We support the health and wellbeing of our people, providing a safe space to talk about emotions and mental health with access to expert advice as needed

• We invest in developing leaders of the future who demonstrate emotional intelligence and a passion to discover, coach and develop the talents of others

Technical Skills:

This list of duties and responsibilities above is not exhaustive.  It is intended to describe the general content of, and requirements for, the performance of this job. As such, the role may also include the undertaking of additional tasks as required.