Senior legal leadership for China and the broader Asia-Pacific region

NXP is building an unstoppable company, defined by speed, ownership, and innovation, and Legal plays a critical role in enabling that ambition across the business.

We are looking for an experienced regional legal leader who wants to operate close to the business, strengthen Legal leadership across APAC, and help teams move faster with confidence. The APAC Regional Counsel will lead the team of legal professionals in the APAC region, coordinate legal support across the region, serve as a primary bridge between the NXP Legal Department and regional business leadership and provide practical, decision-oriented guidance on strategic initiatives and regional regulatory matters.

This is a role for a lawyer who naturally thinks in outcomes, trade-offs, and enterprise impact, not just in issues and clauses. The successful candidate will combine sound legal judgment with collaborative leadership, strong regional insight, and the ability to build trusted relationships across jurisdictions, functions, and cultures.

The role in context

Legal at NXP is explicitly expected to support and accelerate the company’s Unstoppable ambition. That means helping the business move with momentum, putting risk in perspective and taking ownership for end-to-end outcomes rather than narrowing advice to isolated legal steps.

Based in Shanghai and close to the local business leaders, you will strengthen legal leadership across APAC, with particular focus on the strategic importance of China and the broader regional business environment. You will align local business priorities with enterprise-wide Legal objectives, while ensuring that regional legal support remains connected to global strategy and standards.

What you will do

·   Lead and coordinate Legal support across APAC, setting clear priorities and promoting consistent, high-quality regional execution.

·   Act as a primary bridge between global NXP Legal and regional business leadership, translating enterprise objectives into practical regional action and bringing regional perspectives into global decision-making.

·   Provide legal guidance on strategic initiatives and regional regulatory issues as an active member of relevant China business leadership forums.

·   Drive higher levels of collaboration across jurisdictions and functions, including strong relationships with country management, APAC functional leaders and Legal colleagues worldwide.

·   Ensure alignment between local business priorities and enterprise-wide Legal objectives, balancing the needs of China with those of the broader APAC region and the enterprise.

·   Supervise, mentor, and develop legal talent in the region, creating meaningful growth, succession and leadership opportunities.

·   Build an Unstoppable culture across the APAC legal team by using the advantage of being on the ground, close to the business, and connected to regional stakeholders.

·   Identify opportunities for process improvement and actively drive greater efficiency, scalability, and consistency in APAC legal support.

·   Advise senior stakeholders in fast-moving and unclear environments, framing practical options and helping decisions move forward with speed and sound judgment.

How you are expected to work

Speed: enabling momentum

You help teams reach sufficient alignment to start and keep matters moving without unnecessary rework, handoffs, or escalation. You know where depth is required and where simplicity, regional insight, and judgment create speed for the enterprise.

Ownership: acting like a business owner

You take end-to-end responsibility for the regional matters and relationships you support. You surface risks early, frame clear options, follow through to resolution, and are comfortable acting with authority rather than waiting for perfect information.

Innovation: better answers, not just safe ones

You bring curiosity to complex regional legal and business questions and help design solutions that work across markets and at global scale. You continuously look for better operating models, stronger collaboration, and more efficient legal support without losing sight of what truly needs protection.

Collaboration: one Legal team across borders

You build and leverage relationships with senior stakeholders, country teams, functional leaders, and Legal colleagues. You create alignment across cultures and jurisdictions and develop a regional team that is connected, trusted, and focused on enterprise outcomes.

Who typically thrives in this role

This role tends to fit legal leaders who enjoy being true business partners, are comfortable making judgment calls in global, ambiguous, and fast-moving situations, and balance legal risk with commercial reality. The strongest candidates are energized by enterprise impact, enjoy building teams and networks, and are ready to step into a broader regional leadership role.

Qualifications

·   Law degree from an accredited university and admission to practice in at least one jurisdiction

·   Multiple years of legal experience in a multinational in-house or law firm environment, including leadership responsibility in China or the broader APAC region and experience managing legal teams

·   International education and/or substantial international professional experience

·   Strong understanding of the China and broader APAC business and regulatory environments

·   Fluency in spoken and written Mandarin Chinese and English

·   Demonstrated ability to advise senior leaders, influence across organizational boundaries and exercise sound judgment under time pressure

·   Collaborative leadership style, growth mindset and a strong record of mentoring, developing, and building teams

·   Ability to operate effectively across multiple jurisdictions, functions, and cultures in a dynamic global environment

·   Semiconductor, technology, automotive or other complex global industry experience is a plus

Work model

The role is expected to be based in Shanghai, PRC and to operate close to regional business stakeholders. Regular collaboration across global time zones and travel, both within the region and internationally, 2-4 times per year is expected. The Shanghai office currently operates in a hybrid work environment, with 3 days required in the NXP office and 2 days which may be worked remotely.

Optional self-selection

This role is designed for legal leaders who enjoy momentum, ownership, regional complexity and operating close to the business. Candidates looking for a process-heavy environment with limited ambiguity, limited stakeholder engagement or a narrowly defined country scope may find this role less suitable.

More information about NXP in Greater China...