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SalaryAbout Nava
Nava is a consultancy and public benefit corporation working to make government services simple, effective, and accessible to all. Since 2013, federal, state, and local government agencies have trusted Nava to build transformative digital services to help people access public benefits. Meeting our mission is an opportunity to restore trust between people and public institutions. We focus on populations that are the least protected because the stakes are higher.
As a client services company, we work with government agencies to improve how people apply for benefits, navigate their health care, and more. We bill for our time, selling our expertise and problem-solving methodology to government clients. Our clients hire us to help improve their products and services so that their users and beneficiaries have a better customer experience.
These end-users—the humans who benefit from our work—are at the core of everything we do. We research beneficiaries’ needs to help our government clients better deliver on their missions, providing everyone at Nava opportunities to do meaningful, impactful work.
Position Summary
The General Counsel will oversee and manage all legal matters applicable to the company. This seasoned, values-based leader is responsible for providing strategic guidance to executive leadership and other company stakeholders relating to risk management, contract management, government compliance, operational matters, and legal analysis of business opportunities; demonstrating a hands-on approach to anticipating and addressing potential legal risks; serving as a creative problem solver for complex business, legal, and compliance challenges; and partnering across organizational boundaries with the delivery, growth, and operational teams to improve business results. The General Counsel will report to the CFO, establish the in-house legal function, and be a trusted advisor and integral part of the leadership team.
Nava provides the opportunity to do meaningful, impactful, mission-oriented work. As a public benefit corporation, the people who work at Nava have a fiduciary duty to our stated mission: to improve the accessibility, effectiveness, and simplicity of government services. When identifying and pursuing opportunities we must ensure that we are well suited to win and deliver successfully, but also evaluate the work against our mission and values. This is a high bar, but it's why we're here, and it informs what we do and how we operate across all phases of the business.
You will work as part of a remote-first team to deliver the highest quality internal support and solutions to employees at scale in a fast-growing professional services company. Nava is 250+ people today, and the General Counsel will be integral to help us approximately double over the next several years and become a more mature delivery and consulting firm. Critical to this role will be the ability to utilize significant experience in the technology, software, and professional services industry, interpret and advise on the impact of federal, state, and local laws for the organization, and implement a solid understanding of U.S. Government and State Governments’ procurement laws and regulations.
Like all executives at Nava, we are seeking “T-shaped” candidates – people with vertical depth of expertise in legal operations who are strong horizontal leaders and communicators across organizational boundaries. In particular, we are looking for a leader who will deeply understand our goals, business, delivery approach, and mission, before bringing their expertise to the table to help us get there. You bring a solution-oriented mindset, aligning your approach and your teams’ approach to help us creatively achieve business objectives. You are an excellent communicator verbally and in writing, helping teams at Nava trust and partner with this newly-established role to enable productivity, clarity, and speed across the organization.
What You'll Do
- Legal Review and Advice
- Provide legal advice and guidance to company stakeholders as it relates to corporate and contracting matters, business development, product development, data privacy and security, and oversee all general legal matters in accordance with applicable laws and regulations
- Counsel company personnel on issues relating to commercial and government contract compliance, product security, data privacy, intellectual property, and use of open source software
- Spearhead intellectual property initiatives and assist with identifying and drafting applicable contract terms and conditions
- Remain current on legal developments and specific regulations that may impact the company to ensure ongoing compliance while reducing legal risk
Government Contracting- Drive customer growth by using your expertise in federal procurement law to help the Business Development and Delivery teams efficiently capture new contracts, grow existing contracts, set up follow-on opportunities for future contracts, and support contract novations
- Assist with contract drafting and structuring, as well as review of a variety of contractual instruments to support the company’s operations, its clients, and its partners
- Periodically review Requests for Proposals as well as company proposal submissions
- Identify and meet all required compliance standards, as well as responding to and maintaining support for any annual or other audits, including those specifically related to government contractors
Governance and Risk Management- Ensure the company has robust and supportive policies, procedures, and related documentation, including the development of new policies in accordance with organizational goals, industry trends, and labor laws and regulations
- Address corporate governance matters and engage with outside counsel as may be required on specialty matters
- Coordinate with Delivery, People Operations, Finance, and Leadership teams, as well as outside counsel, to address matters of employment law as needed
Company Leadership- Ensure delivery of practical legal advice and counsel which is pragmatic, business-minded, risk-based, and data-driven
- Promote speed, productivity, and solution-oriented collaboration throughout the organization as it relates to legal and contracting decisions, ensuring positive relations between teams and stakeholders internally and externally to Nava
- Advise company leadership on all legal and compliance requirements to support effective implementation of new or improved programs, policies, and business processes
- Nava is a unionized workplace, so this role must ensure Nava properly administers negotiated labor contracts and agreements, ensuring effective working relationships between company management and the union
Required Skills
- The ideal candidate will have significant experience in Government contracting/consulting, technology/software industry, and possess a solid understanding of U.S. Government procurement regulations, with an ability to learn procurement and other relevant legal topics in States where Nava does business or operates
- Bachelor’s degree and Juris Doctorate from an accredited institution
- Active bar license in at least one U.S. jurisdiction
- 8+ years legal experience (in-house, working for a law firm, or combination thereof) advising software or technology companies serving public and private sector clientsIn-depth understanding of professional services business models, intellectual property protections, and compliance with privacy laws
- 8+ years of procurement experience with in-depth knowledge of FAR, DFARS, and other agency contracting supplements
- Experience with policy creation including establishing and overseeing corporate compliance programs and providing relevant training to employees
- Demonstrated transactional experience in negotiating a wide variety of agreements with customers, business partners, and technology vendors
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to translate “legalese” to common terms and plain language
- Build and maintain positive relationships with internal stakeholders, as well as external customers and business partners with whom Nava negotiates
- Ability to independently implement strategies and services and in a fast-paced, dynamic, and growing environment while maintaining alignment across organizational boundaries
- Capacity and resilience to develop, build, and grow strong working relationships at all levels of leadership, management, and the organizationConfidence and proven ability to present challenging concepts to a diverse audience
- Experience with complex and difficult change management, from conception to rollout and communication
- High level of personal integrity, ethics, motivation, and ability to foster mutual respect and inclusion
- Experience building a team, including the ability to attract top talent, grow and manage teams, and delegate accordingly
- Able to partner with People Operations to manage business objectives and risks at the intersection of legal and people policies
Desired Skills
- Technical skills: Proficiency in GSuite, Slack, Zoom, Excel, Apple computers, and other tools used to support a remote-work environment
- Experience in a fast-growing professional services firm and a track record of adapting risk management to the context and business of the firm
Other requirements
- Must have lived in the United States for at least three (3) of the past five (5) years.
- An active green card or citizenship is required.
- Candidates who are offered a job with Nava must possess work authorization which does not require sponsorship by the employer for a visa now or in the future.
- Offer of hire is contingent upon completion of a background check that includes a criminal record history review.
- Applicants selected for this position may be subject to a government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information or applicants who are eligible for security clearances.
Perks working with Nava
- Your well-being is important to us, so we offer highly competitive benefits for medical, dental, and vision
- 20 days of PTO accrued, 12 days paid federal holidays, 5 floating holidays, unlimited sick leave
- 16 weeks of fully paid parental leave and weekly meal deliveries during leave
- Sabbatical Leave
- 401k contributions match at 4% of your salary
- Flexible work arrangements
- $1,000 new home office set up budget, monthly phone allowance
- Monthly partial reimbursement for utilities (where applicable)
- $2,000 annual tuition and professional development budget, on top of a LinkedIn Learning license
- Equity stock options
- Employee referral program
- Commuter Benefits
- Short and Long-Term Disability Insurance
- Life and Accidental Death Insurance
- Diverse, inclusive, highly collaborative, and vibrant culture fostering remote work!
Location
You can work in a hybrid work arrangement from one of Nava’s offices in NYC, DC, or San Francisco. We also have fully remote options if you reside in one of the following states:
Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, DC, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin.
- If you are not living in one of the states listed above, unfortunately, you will not be considered for a position at this time.
Nava PBC equal opportunity employer that is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, age, gender, religious or political beliefs, national origin or heritage, marital status, disability, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, genetic information, pregnancy, status as a protected veteran or any characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion not only reflects our values as a public benefit corporation but also enriches our ability to do our work. Learn more about where we are today and hope to be by 2025.
Please contact the recruiting team at recruiting@navapbc.com if you would like to request reasonable accommodation during the application or interviewing process.
We participate in E-Verify. Upon hire, we will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. This role is required to work from the contiguous United States.
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