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Vice President, Employment Law

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About Activision Blizzard

Our mission, to connect and engage the world through epic entertainment has never been more important. Through communities rooted in our video game franchises we enable hundreds of millions of people to experience joy, thrill and achievement. We enable social connections through the lens of fun, and we foster purpose and a sense of accomplishment through healthy competition. Like sport, but with greater accessibility, our players can find purpose and meaning through competitive gaming. Video games, unlike any other social or entertainment media, have the ability to break down the barriers that can inhibit tolerance and understanding. Celebrating differences is at the core of our culture and ensures we can create games for players of diverse backgrounds in the 190 countries our games are played.

As a member of the Fortune 500 and as a component company of the S&P 500, we have an extraordinary track record of delivering superior shareholder returns for over 30 years.

Our enduring franchises are some of the world’s most popular, including Call of Duty®, Crash Bandicoot™, World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Hearthstone®, Diablo®, StarCraft®, Candy Crush™, Bubble Witch™, Pet Rescue™ and Farm Heroes™. Our sustained success has enabled the company to support corporate social responsibility initiatives that are directly tied to our franchises. As an example, our Call of Duty Endowment has helped find employment for over 80,000 veterans.

Learn more information about Activision Blizzard and how we connect and engage the world through epic entertainment on the company's website, www.activisionblizzard.com.

Position Overview

As Vice President, Employment Law, this individual will be accountable for providing strategic counsel on all aspects of employment and labor law across North America. Partnering closely with Human Resources, the Vice President will guide executives and businesses to navigate the full gamut of labor and employment matters – anticipating and mitigating risk while preserving Company culture.

Specific responsibilities will include:
•Providing advice to the businesses and HR on all relevant employment laws, from a position of deep understanding of the business context and priorities. Advice will cover matters such as wage and hour compliance, family and medical leave, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, trade secrets, non-competition agreements, employee discipline, state and federal laws such as WARN and ADEA, and other areas of personnel administration to maintain compliance and anticipate and mitigate risk.

•Strategizing with business and HR leadership on implementing and managing change.
•Negotiating, drafting, and executing employment agreements, contracts, and separation agreements, including agreements for senior executives.
•Consulting business leaders and executives on new policies and drafting and/or amending policies as required.
•Partnering with Human Resources to review process and policies related to compliance and employment matters to enhance guidelines, tools, and trainings for the Company.
•Partnering with Human Resources and Privacy teams on people analytics efforts to ensure compliance with relevant laws and to identify initiatives to improve employee satisfaction and risk mitigation.
•In partnership with Compliance and Employee Relations, overseeing employment-related workplace investigations and recommending appropriate action in resolving such matters.
•Partnering with litigation team in managing outside counsel in both state and federal litigation matters.

Scale, Scope and Reporting Relationships
• Accountable for providing counsel across North America (U.S. and Canada) for Activision, Blizzard, and King.
• Reports to EVP, Legal and supervises senior employment counsel. Partners
actively with Human Resources and executive leadership.

Year 1 Success
•Gain full understanding of employment agreement process and assume lead role in drafting employment agreements consistent with Company organization and compensation approach and lead drafting, alignment and approval process for incentive plans, all with the goal of supporting long range growth goals via the attraction and retention of top talent.
•Develop deep understanding and partnership with HR, including CPO and other senior HR executives.
•Partner with the HR team to enhance policies and procedures around hiring, compensation, and performance management to bolster the talent agenda on attracting, retaining, and engaging our top talent.
•Provide Legal guidance on people initiatives across ABK for North America to mitigate company risk, enhance employee experience, and maintain consistency across all businesses; as the U.S. partner to HR and the International Legal team on these initiatives.
•Review and revise company policies to enhance risk mitigation.
•Together with the litigation team, assist management of employment litigation and investigation matters to satisfactory resolution.

Professional Experience & Expertise
The successful candidate will have and/or demonstrate:
•Senior In-house Employment Law Experience: A J.D. from a well-respected law school and current member in good standing of state bar, preferably in California, with 15+ years of employment law experience, including top-tier firm training and senior in-house experience. Experience within big tech/media/entertainment preferred.
•Demonstrated Leadership Experience: Outstanding leadership skills with a history of recruiting, managing and developing best-in-class teams and a reputation as an inspiring and motivational leader.
•Business Acumen: Demonstrated ability to exercise outstanding judgment,
integrating legal reasoning with business acumen to ensure advice is provided in the context of both business objectives and risk mitigation.

Contribution to Culture
The successful candidate will possess the following personal attributes:
•Hands on/Action Bias Orientation: Hands on, entrepreneurial style with a strong bias for action and results; thrives in unstructured environments with a focus on innovation; collaborative and without ego.
•Experience in Fast Paced and Matrixed Environment: Agile thought partner with the ability to efficiently and effectively counsel, triage, and guide stakeholders in a fast paced environment. Proven ability to drive through influence in matrixed environments. Independent minded yet open, direct, informative, collaborative with the right level of diplomacy. Favorably influences cross functional discussions.
•Superior Communication Skills: Verbal and written, effective at Board and
executive leadership levels and the cultural sensitivity to work well with a diverse group of colleagues.

Activision Blizzard is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable law, and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.