Senior Counsel, U.s. Public Sector

Celonis Celonis · Data AI · United States +1 · Remote · Legal

Celonis is seeking a Senior Counsel for the U.S. Public Sector to be the primary Legal architect for their government go-to-market strategy. This role involves serving as a Legal business partner to various teams, leading complex contract negotiations, shaping internal policies, ensuring compliance with regulations like FAR/DFARS and FedRAMP, and managing external legal advisors. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in government contracting, a deep understanding of the public cloud space, and expertise in SaaS-specific licensing and regulatory compliance.

What you'd actually do

  1. Serve as the principal Legal business partner to GTM, Information Security, Engineering, Product and Compliance teams to drive the expansion of Celonis’ U.S. Public Sector business.
  2. Lead the drafting, review, and negotiation of complex software licenses, SaaS agreements, teaming arrangements, and partner/reseller contracts for federal and SLED (State, Local, and Education) customers.
  3. Shape internal policies and processes, develop contract templates, and deliver training programs to empower stakeholders and reduce friction in the sales cycle.
  4. Interpret and ensure compliance with FAR/DFARS, agency-specific supplements, and evolving data protection/privacy regulations (e.g., FedRAMP, NIST SP 800-171).
  5. Collaborate with and manage external legal advisors, ensuring cost-effective and high-quality legal services that align with company objectives and standards.

Skills

Required

  • 10+ years of progressively responsible legal experience in government contracting
  • Deep understanding of the public cloud space
  • Practical experience with FedRAMP authorizations
  • Experience with SaaS-specific licensing models
  • Demonstrated expertise in compliance with key regulatory requirements in the SaaS and public cloud space
  • Experience supporting quota-carrying, enterprise-level sales personnel
  • U.S. citizenship required
  • Native or bilingual fluency in English

Nice to have

  • mix of law firm training and in-house experience at a high-growth SaaS or cloud provider
  • Previous military experience a plus
  • Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills
  • High emotional intelligence and business acumen

What the JD emphasized

  • U.S. citizenship required
  • FedRAMP authorizations
  • compliance with key regulatory requirements in the SaaS and public cloud space