Senior Legal Resource Manager

Role summary/purpose of job

Work collaboratively with the Head of Legal Resource Management, key stakeholders and business services colleagues to implement and embed an optimised work allocation approach across the firm that aligns to practice group needs, business strategy and individual career and development goals.

This role also plays an important role in supporting further expansion and integration of the work allocation and Resource Management function across the global firm, along with ensuring alignment to industry developments (including the global rollout of the firm’s chosen new RM technology tool (“ReMit”).

Overview of the Function

The London Resource Management Team is responsible for work allocation across the London office, and assists in the co-ordination of the function across the firm’s global offices. The team is supporting the expansion and integration of the function globally, alongside continued industry developments (including the continuing rollout of the firm’s chosen RM tool (“ReMit”).

Key responsibilities and deliverables

• Responsibility for fee-earner work allocation for designated practice group(s), including, but not limited to, resourcing options for client and non-chargeable work, directing work to suitable associates, trainees, London paralegals or the Client Delivery Group, as appropriate.
• Develop and sustain strong business relationships with key stakeholders and act as a trusted advisor to partners and associates, ensuring a sound understanding of client, practice group and individual needs to facilitate effective resourcing decisions.
• Be the RM team lead for a designated global practice group, implementing the change management programme to implement ReMit across the various jurisdictions, and drive adoption of the same.
• Oversee the global utilisation for a designated global practice group, in conjunction with those responsible for work allocation locally. Ensure that pockets of capacity around the network are directed to suitable work on global mandates, as appropriate.
• Identify and drive forward areas for improvement and work allocation change initiatives in consultation with the Head of Legal Resource Management, taking the lead on individual projects and working with key business services stakeholders to deliver more efficient operational practices.
• Oversee the designated global PG associate population capacity and identify opportunities to optimise productivity and profitability.
• Maintain oversight of forecasted associate stakeholder hours, and track the same against actuals, highlighting inconsistencies and adjusting workloads as necessary.
• Maintain oversight of associate stakeholder annual leave requests to avoid pinch points in matter lifetimes and ensuring suitable holiday cover is in place where necessary.
• Analyse fee-earning utilisation data, highlighting over- or under- utilisation, and present at / chair meetings with Partner groups to provide effective recommendations for resolving or mitigating resourcing issues/gaps. Pro-actively engage relevant partners and HR leads with specific resourcing issues and/or associate performance management issues as necessary.
• Act as an escalation point for resourcing conflicts and issues, providing effective solutions and/or recommendations for challenges that may arise, in consultation with the Head of Legal Resource Management, as necessary.
• Conduct individual conversations with associates to understand work preferences, and maintain oversight of their career development goals, ensuring skills matrix is updated and relevant.
• Liaise with HR, and other applicable business service functions, to support fee-earner new joiners/movers/leavers/secondments, ensuring suitable work is allocated to fee-earners in or around those periods.
• Work closely with the Early Careers (EC) team (and Trainee Partners as applicable) to facilitate and support Trainee seat and supervisor allocations within the practice group(s) for each Trainee seat move, solicitor qualification process, and alignment of trainee utilisation with learning and development goals.
• Support the placement and management of client secondments, identifying suitable candidates and opportunities. Review business cases for proposed secondments and prepare analysis of relevant costs / benefits.
• Attend associate appraisal moderation meetings and provide feedback from the RM team.
• Oversee ad hoc recruitment of FTC lawyers in consultation with internal and external recruitment teams.
• Support junior member(s) of the team through training, coaching and delegating work.
• Other ad hoc responsibilities that may be required from time to time.

Key requirements

Essential:

• Demonstrated experience of performing a senior work allocation / resource management role or similar.
• Highly effective interpersonal communicator, with the ability to listen, manage expectations and adapt approach accordingly.
• Strong organisation skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities concurrently and act on own initiative to meet tight deadlines.
• Demonstrated experience of analysing and interpreting data to make sounds business recommendations and provide business insights.
• Strong commercial acumen.
• Flexibility and proactivity in approach and an ability to manage through change.
• Able to manage confidential and sensitive people matters discreetly.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Ability to learn and utilise new technologies effectively.

Desirable:

• Prior experience working in a legal, professional services or large corporate environment, with exposure to a partnership is ideal.
• The ability to build strong working relationships with Partners, lawyers and business services colleagues and to persuade, influence and diplomatically challenge a range of stakeholders at varying levels across the firm.
• Sound judgement skills in anticipating and addressing challenging situations, taking a pragmatic and considered approach to analyse the issues and generate effective solutions, knowing when to flag issues and when to manage them independently.
• A diplomatic, collaborative and supportive team working style.
• Resilient and able to remain calm under pressure and when dealing with ambiguity.
• Dedication to meet/ exceed stakeholder expectations, with a focus on continuous improvement.
• Delivery focus and drives forward quality of service.
• Identifies opportunities and champions process improvement.
• Ability to delegate and manage work through others.
• Ability to coach and mentor junior team members.
• Highly competent with the Microsoft Suite, particularly Word, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams and Visio.
• Actively manages personal learning and development.

Inclusion

Freshfields is an equal opportunities employer and all applications received by the firm will be considered by the firm on the basis of their merit alone and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals regardless of background. All offers of employment will be conditional on the candidate having/securing the right to work in the UK and providing the firm with evidence of that right (as required by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006) prior to employment commencing.

Freshfields is a Ban the Box employer. We ask applicants to disclose criminal convictions only when a conditional job offer is made. A conviction does not automatically lead to withdrawal of the offer: we make decisions on a case by case basis and take a number of factors into account (e.g. the role you are applying for and the circumstances of the offence). You would have the opportunity to discuss the matter with us before we make a decision.