Senior Commercial Counsel, Grammarly
$186-275k
Salary dependent on location
More information about location
AI-powered writing assistant
Job no longer available
AI-powered writing assistant
1001+ employees
Job no longer available
$186-275k
Salary dependent on location
More information about location
1001+ employees
Company mission
Grammarly's mission is to improve lives by improving communication.
Role
Who you are
- Embodies our EAGER values—is ethical, adaptable, gritty, empathetic, and remarkable
- Is inspired by our MOVE principles, which are the blueprint for how things get done at Grammarly: move fast and learn faster, obsess about creating customer value, value impact over activity, and embrace healthy disagreement rooted in trust
- Is able to collaborate in person 3 weeks per quarter, traveling if necessary to the hub where the team is based
- Has 5+ years of experience in a demanding and time-sensitive legal role advising high-growth companies on commercial matters. In-house and SaaS experience is a plus
- Holds a JD and has been admitted to the bar with a license to practice law in at least one US state
- Shows a track record of proficiency in commercial technology transactions, including B2B SaaS, direct, channel partnerships, and strategic transactions, ideally on a global scale
- Understands business models, sales motions, global commercial negotiation practices, and revenue recognition standards
- Possesses a practical approach to problem-solving and can counsel internal clients with clear, concise, and creative advice to meet business needs
- Is comfortable leading a deal, with strong and astute negotiation skills, exceptional business and legal issue identification, and problem-solving skills
- Operates autonomously while being a team player who brings a positive, “can do” attitude to the workplace and works collaboratively and passionately for results
- Thrives in an ever-changing, start-up-like environment, works quickly under deadlines, and manages multiple projects, stakeholders, and priorities
- Communicates clearly and empathetically both face-to-face and in writing
What the job involves
- Reporting to Grammarly’s Head of Commercial Legal, our Senior Commercial Counsel will work closely with our Sales, Customer Success, Revenue Operations, Compliance, Support, and Privacy teams, including on meaningful projects to set up Grammarly's B2B business for continued success across all channels, on strategic deals and go-to-market issues, and tactical advice regarding commercial agreements and regulatory compliance
- As a foundational member of the Grammarly Legal team, you will also help develop the culture of the Legal team by exemplifying care for your craft, care for others, and a commitment to finding solutions to complex questions
- Draft, structure, review, negotiate, and advise on various inbound and outbound commercial agreements, including customer and channel sales transactions that drive the company’s revenues, strategic partnerships, NDAs, and vendor agreements
- Work cross-functionally with revenue, partnerships, information security, privacy, and finance teams to navigate customer requirements while balancing Grammarly’s operational process and need for scalability, becoming a trusted advisor across Grammarly
- Advise on risks and liabilities of proposed commercial transactions and implement legal initiatives to meet bold business objectives
- Learn the individual objectives of different parts of the Grammarly business to obtain and maintain a clear view of the company, its mission and values, strategy, and product offerings
- Drive ongoing enhancements of templates, forms, policies, and processes to streamline and simplify deals and product/service terms
- Pursue continuous improvement, scalability, and operational excellence in contract management, workflows, deal processes, and execution
- Handle other issues and projects that arise in growing in-house legal departments as bandwidth permits
- As Senior Commercial Counsel, you will leverage your experience and expertise to counsel and collaborate cross-functionally with teams at Grammarly, all while developing diverse skills and growing the specialized support provided by the Grammarly Legal team
- You will negotiate commercial agreements that power our daily operations and are critical to our growth, all while protecting Grammarly long-term by managing agreements and practices that ensure compliance with company policies and risk tolerance
- Within your first 30 days, you will join the Grammarly Legal team and focus on understanding our legal function and B2B business. You will also be involved in solving interesting legal questions and negotiating at least one complex Grammarly contract
- By month three, you will have developed good relationships with the leaders in various Grammarly B2B teams. You will balance and prioritize the strategic and complex projects you are leading and the contracts you're negotiating
- By month six, you counsel and negotiate across all segments and channels of B2B, supporting other legal team members on their own negotiations. You will have started to develop new playbooks, build upon existing playbooks, and improve form agreements to make contracting more efficient, especially for negotiations with enterprise customers and regulated industries
- By year one, you will be training an analyst or other attorney to assist you on commercial matters and managing crucial legal infrastructure projects cross-functionally. You will also be responsible for proactively supporting at least one business segment
Our take
From professional writing to everyday correspondence, effective communication is critical. Grammarly is an AI-powered writing assistant that helps people write clearly and without mistakes, checking spelling, grammar, and other potential pitfalls.
Grammarly was originally launched as a subscription service for students, although the platform has moved into the mainstream in the last decade. It went freemium in 2015 and now works across more than 500,000 applications and websites, including email clients, enterprise software, and word processors. Paid tiers give users more tools beyond grammar and spelling checks, including things like word choice, sentence rewrites, tone adjustments, fluency, and formality level.
The company has been profitable since the beginning and now has a valuation of more than $13 billion, placing it among the 10 most valuable startups in the US. The AI writing assistant space is heating up, and Grammarly is hoping to defend its position against offerings including Scalenut, Ginger and Microsoft's Editor by the release of its SDK, making it far easier to integrate Grammarly into other applications. So far, this has been used in over 4,000 products and earned excellent ratings and increased user numbers of Grammarly's service.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
44% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 3 rounds)
Nov 2021
$200m
LATE VC
Oct 2019
$90m
LATE VC
Total funding: $400m
Company benefits
- Support for professional development with training, coaching, and regular feedback
- Global, local, and team-specific events and programs
- Catered lunches
- Gym and recreation stipends
- Admission discounts
- Work from home opportunities
- Medical, dental, vision, financial, and other benefits, as well as equity
- Support to set up a home office
- Ample and defined time off
- 401(k) matching
Company HQ
Financial District, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Alex Shevchenko
(Co-Founder & Board Member)Studied at Vienna's International University before receiving an MBA from the University of Toronto. Co-founded MyDropBox.com in 2006. The company was bought by Blackboard Inc. three years later. Co-founded Grammarly in 2009.
Max Lytvyn
(Co-Founder & Board Member)Studied for an MBA at Vanderbilt University before joining Blacboard Inc. as Director of Product Strategy in 2007. Was General Manager and then Partner at Sciworth Labs from 2004 to 2013. Was a Board Member at Uniweb and invested in farmland investment platform FarmTogether.
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