Job Description

The Sr. Manager of Legal Operations will lead and optimize the legal department’s operational, financial, and technology initiatives for a dynamic, multi-entity organization. This role is responsible for strategic planning, process improvement, technology administration, financial oversight, and cross-functional collaboration. The ideal candidate will possess strong project management skills, experience with legal technology platforms, and a proactive approach to driving efficiency and value within the legal function.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Planning & Leadership
• Finalize and execute strategic plans for legal and risk management, including historical analysis, current state assessment, future vision, goal-setting, and action planning.
• Plan and facilitate quarterly legal and risk team meetings and manage departmental goal-setting and performance review processes.
• Establish and maintain a legal department playbook and best practices documentation.

• Legal Technology & Systems Administration
• Serve as administrator for Legal Tracker and DocuSign CLM, including workflow optimization, reporting, and user management.
• Oversee the integration of legal technology tools, evaluate new AI solutions for contract lifecycle management, and ensure seamless adoption across entities.
• Collaborate with in-house attorneys to manage contract review turnaround time (TAT) metrics and implement improvements.

• Contract & Vendor Management
• Collaborate with in-house attorneys who have primary responsibility of overseeing the contract review processes, ensuring timely and accurate review by designated analysts.
• Track and report on customer contracts, especially in union locations, and maintain a customer contracts dashboard.
• Build and support an e-Discovery team and ensure compliance with outside counsel (OC) guidelines, including acknowledgement tracking and guideline revisions.
• Track and reduce outside counsel spend, conduct invoice pre-approval audits, and manage billing and invoice inquiries.

• Financial Operations & Reporting
• Analyze and track the legal department’s financial performance, including spend vs. budget, and allocate expenses across multiple entities.
• Prepare and distribute monthly legal exposure and outstanding invoice reports to relevant teams.
• Manage annual financial audit requests and coordinate responses with auditors and AP teams.
• Schedule and lead recurring meetings to review financial tracking and budget performance.

• Cross-Functional & Entity Integration
• Collaborate with in-house counsel to manage legal and risk function integration for newly acquired or merged entities.
• Coordinate with employment lawyers on high-risk matters using AI predictive analytics.
• Ensure all relevant teams have access to necessary shared resources and accounts (e.g., contracts, email, research tools).

• Process Improvement & Team Support
• Identify pain points in legal processes, collaborate with internal stakeholders to develop solutions, and implement process improvements.
• Oversee onboarding for new legal department employees and manage performance evaluations for team members.
• Monitor shared legal inboxes, triage inquiries, and ensure prompt response and resolution.

• Governance & Compliance
• Confirm updates to Board of Directors (BOD) materials and ensure timely distribution of reports and presentations.
• Respond to auditor requests and ensure compliance with financial and legal audit requirements.

• Additional Typical Responsibilities for a Legal Operations Director

• Develop and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) for legal department efficiency and effectiveness.
• Lead the selection, negotiation, and management of legal vendors and outside counsel panels.
• Drive initiatives for knowledge management, document retention, and legal department training.
• Oversee risk management initiatives, including regulatory compliance tracking and policy updates.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and collaboration within the legal team.

Qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree required.

- 7+ years of experience in legal operations, law firm administration, or in-house legal department management.

- Proven expertise in legal technology platforms (e.g., Legal Tracker, DocuSign CLM).

- Strong financial acumen and experience managing legal budgets and spend.

- Excellent communication, leadership, and project management skills.

- Ability to work cross-functionally and manage multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.

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This role is critical in ensuring the legal department operates efficiently, delivers value to the business, and supports the organization’s strategic objectives through operational excellence and innovation.

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