Opportunities

Location: Any Baker McKenzie Office or Center in EMEA

Role Purpose

To drive business and organizational change to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of client service delivery via Gen AI implementation, digital content solutions, and quality.

Baker McKenzie is further modernizing its digital content platforms to better support its lawyers and business professionals by optimizing content and data within the Microsoft environment. This transformational program sits within the context of and aligns with a continued focus on quality.

As part of the broader project team, the role holder is pivotal in supporting these strategic firmwide transformational projects, working with Partners, Lawyers, Business Professionals, and external stakeholders to drive change to people, processes, and technology across the Firm, and provide subject matter expertise in effective transformational change management, stakeholder communication and engagement and implementation of new digital and GenAI solutions to drive efficiencies.

This global position demands simultaneous involvement in various workstreams and programs across different time zones and locations.

Main Responsibilities

• Coordinate large-scale, multi-dimensional global projects while overseeing the implementation of both predefined and new initiatives and solutions, and shaping initiatives as they progress, including overseeing the implementation of a new digital workplace solution
• Drive organizational change and provide comprehensive project and transformational expertise, drawing from the experience of global change programs. Collaborate with program teams to steer project direction and ensure cohesive change management strategies
• Implement proactive stakeholder management strategies, including organizational change, communications, training, and engagement, and tailor deliverables to suit individual audience needs
• Implement a robust communication strategy to keep all parties informed and engaged and foster a collaborative environment that encourages innovation and problem-solving among team members. Utilize internal communications to facilitate change and align project activities with organizational goals
• Identify and allocate resources, both people and material for successful implementation
• Collaborate with various stakeholders to pilot and execute projects to ensure project milestones are met within set timelines, budget, and quality criteria. Ensure all workstreams comply with the established project timelines and budget constraints
• Collaborate with project leads to define goals, actions, and success metrics for each workstream. Conduct regular reviews and adapt strategies as necessary to meet the evolving needs of the project
• Conduct thorough risk and issue analysis and management, with a strong focus on the identification, analysis, response, and escalation of key project risks and issues, with a good understanding of risks in a legal context
• Partner with Technology teams, workstream leads, and SMEs to ensure the identification, transition, and management of content and data takes place effectively and per Firm strategies and best practice
• Coordinate testing, evaluation, use cases, and the deployment of GenAI products for legal work, ensuring adherence to governance and processes
• Assist in the implementation of a comprehensive quality program that aligns with firm-wide standards
• Establish effective tracking systems for monitoring quality metrics across various departments ensuring also appropriate tracking and reporting methods and meaningful responsibility and accountability
• Develop and manage project deliverables and decisions including charters, scope definition, project plans, resource plans, project schedules, status reports, and project dashboards, ensuring compliance against the agreed project framework, methodologies, and governance of the highest quality and meeting or exceed stakeholder needs and expectations

About The Team

Function

The Knowledge function is a firm-wide team of nearly 300 professionals, including Knowledge Lawyers, Information & Research professionals, and various other functional specialists. The Knowledge function helps the firm deliver better legal solutions by producing and providing easy access to high-quality, relevant legal information for lawyers and clients. The focus is on the following areas:

• Content - creating, collecting, and providing access to market-leading precedents, sample documents, practice notes, training materials, and other knowhow for our lawyers and clients, reviewing and updating regularly, to ensure that the content is current and market-leading
• Systems - working with the Technology function to design, develop, and build user-friendly and flexible platforms to store knowhow and deliver it intuitively to lawyers and clients, adopting common systems across all offices and practice/industry groups
• Culture - striving to establish Knowledge as a core part of every lawyer's role, engaging actively with all lawyers in the firm and encouraging them to share their know-how and expertise with colleagues as openly as possible; embracing a "one team" culture within the Firm's Knowledge community ensuring that all team members create and develop high-quality local content while being aligned with our global strategy and approach

This role will report to the Global Director of Knowledge.

The key relationships of this role are with the following:

• Partners, Associates, Knowledge Lawyers, Business Functions, Practice Groups, and external stakeholders/vendors to drive and facilitate business and organizational change across the Firm.
• Functional leadership for Knowledge
• Knowledge Specialists
• External vendors and consultants
• Members of the Technology teams
• Partners and lawyers involved in the programs
• Knowledge lawyers and In-market research librarians
• Knowledge partners

About The Candidate

Technical skills, qualifications and experience

• Extensive experience leading transformation and organizational change programs within a consultancy firm, professional services, legal, or IT industry, with proven expertise in leading teams of project, change, and operational managers
• Experience in a legal environment, professional services, and/or knowledge management, ideally from complex matrix organizations is highly desirable
• Experience with GenAI solutions and leading GenAI evaluation and implementation projects highly desirable
• Project management expertise in business transformation and extensive experience with a wide range of diverse business projects are preferred
  Business acumen and commercial awareness are preferred
• Excellent collaboration skills and comfortable with an agile and iterative testing and implementation process that includes accepting and addressing feedback from a diverse stakeholder group
• Affiliative, and respectful, with strong and influential presentation skills to communicate fact, reason, and vision, establishing credibility, trustworthiness, and dependability
• Excellent communication skills with both team members and internal and external business stakeholders and comfortable mediating between stakeholder needs, business objectives, and technical feasibility
• Extensive experience in stakeholder management at all levels of the organization, has gravitas with senior leadership, adept at tailoring communications to suit specific audiences
• Continued drive for excellence and high quality, despite frequent iterations, changes in priority, scope, and stakeholder dynamics
• Strong ability to navigate ambiguity, offering clear direction and well-founded recommendations
• Meticulous attention to detail

Personal qualities

These personal qualities represent the shared characteristics of high performers across Baker McKenzie, regardless of job level and location.

Know-how

• Demonstrates the ability to identify the real issue, and to anticipate requirements and potential consequences; distills a range of possibilities by thinking in a considered, prudent manner
• Has the capacity to take on new ideas and develop knowledge and think holistically about business and address media, analyst, employee, and client audiences
• Able to move through a variety of tasks requiring different approaches, knowledge, and expertise, with the agility of mind and capacity for analysis and synthesis

Dedication

• Driven by a strong personal sense of integrity and upholds exemplary quality standards
• Prepares thoroughly, takes responsibility, uses initiative, and is self-reliant to ensure work progresses to the fullest extent possible
• Hardworking and diligent with a keen understanding of client demands
• Demonstrates composure when dealing with difficult situations

Personal Impact

• Uses complex, coordinated influencing/negotiation strategies, adapted to people, organizations, and/or the situation, e.g. networks
• Leverages direct reports to facilitate increased collaboration across the organization
• Builds partnerships based on a common agreement that acknowledges individual differences but creates a new commonality beyond root belief large-scale
• Creates a positive impression at all times; develops relationships through collaboration and reciprocity
• Negotiates to achieve mutually satisfactory outcomes; shows good judgment on when to stand strong and when to compromise
• Invests in, nurtures, and builds a network of productive relationships

Humanity

• Respectful to others, regardless of their position, and earns the respect of others by being transparent
• Has care and concern for others and a genuine interest in others as people
• Treats delicate or confidential issues with discretion

Personal qualities

These personal qualities represent the shared characteristics of high performers across Baker McKenzie, regardless of job level and location.

Know how

• Demonstrates the ability to identify the real issue, and to anticipate requirements and potential consequences; distills a range of possibilities by thinking in a considered, prudent manner
• Has the capacity to take on new ideas and develop knowledge and think holistically about business and address media, analyst, employee, and client audiences
• Able to move through a variety of tasks requiring different approaches, knowledge, and expertise, with the agility of mind and capacity for analysis and synthesis

Dedication

• Driven by a strong personal sense of integrity and upholds exemplary quality standards
• Prepares thoroughly, takes responsibility, uses initiative and is self reliant to ensure work progresses to the fullest extent possible
• Hardworking and diligent with a keen understanding of client demands
• Demonstrates composure when dealing with difficult situations

Personal Impact

• Uses complex, coordinated influencing/negotiation strategies, adapted to people, organizations, and/or the situation, e.g. networks
• Leverages direct reports to facilitate increased collaboration across the organization
• Builds partnerships based on a common agreement that acknowledges individual differences but creates a new commonality beyond root belief large-scale
• Creates a positive impression at all times; develops relationships through collaboration and reciprocity
• Negotiates to achieve mutually satisfactory outcomes; shows good judgment on when to stand strong and when to compromise
• Invests in, nurtures, and builds a network of productive relationships

Humanity

• Respectful to others, regardless of their position, and earns the respect of others by being transparent
• Has care and concern for others and a genuine interest in others as people
• Treats delicate or confidential issues with grace and discretion.

Why Join Us?

Baker McKenzie is a truly global law firm. Founded in 1949, we advise many of the world's most dynamic and successful business organisations through our 13,200 people in 74 offices in 45 countries. Yet big does not mean impersonal. We work hard to ensure that everyone knows their role and has the support they need to perform it to the highest standard. Our culture encourages this - how we work, think and behave in a collaborative and fulfilling way.

In London you will be part of a 1,000 person office, which is also our largest office globally. Originally opened in 1961, Baker McKenzie London is well established in the UK as a leading international law firm and is regularly involved in some of the country's most high-profile legal matters. We can offer you the work, pride and experience of being part of a leading law firm but in a local office environment that is hardworking, friendly and supportive.

The strength of the firm and our culture is evidenced by a number of recent awards, including:

• Thomson Reuters (formerly Acritas' Sharplegal) Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index, 2010- 2022 - ranked 1st
• The Times Top 100 Graduate Employers 2021-2022: currently ranked 52nd
• Thomson Reuters ranked the Firm No. 1 for cross-border deals for the last 12 years. More than 70% of our deals are cross-border.
• For the 14th consecutive year, the Firm was ranked first for deals with emerging market involvement, by both number of announced and completed deals.
• Law360 ranked the Firm as one of the 400 Largest US Law Firms in in its annual survey in 2020.
• Identified as one of the Hall of Fame for best law firms for women by Working Mother magazine, 2011-2021.
• Received a a Gold Award in Stonewall's Global Workplace Equality Index of Top Global Employers for LGBTQ+ Inclusion.
• Ranked as one of the Top 20 Employers in the 2023 Social Mobility Employer Index.
• Received Double Certification for earning top marks in the 2022 Corporate Equality Index and Equidad MX of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
• Winner of the Europe Mentorship Programme - International Firm award in the Euromoney Women in Business Law Europe Awards 2021
• Winner of the Gender Diversity International Firm, Talent Management International Firm, and Work-Life Balance International Firm awards in the Euromoney Women in Business Law Asia Awards 2021

Have a look at our YouTube channel to find out more about us!

To Apply

Please click on the Apply icon to start the online application process for this role. We will then be in touch with you once we have reviewed your application.

For more information about this position or to discuss any adjustments you may require during the process please contact in confidence, David Roberts, Recruitment Manager, at David.Roberts@bakermckenzie.com

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Commitment to Inclusion, Diversity & Equity

As the first truly global law firm, diversity and inclusion are foundational to our culture and strategic vision. We are a Firm of individuals from across the globe with different backgrounds, ideas, and points of view who collegially work together to solve complex problems and design practical solutions for our clients. Our multiple perspectives come from many sources, including the diverse ethnicity, culture, gender, nationality, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, parental status, education, social background and life experience of our people.

Our global strategy is focused on our people, our culture, our clients and the communities where we operate. In 2019 we enacted ambitious new targets related to gender, racial and ethnic diversity at the Firm. These targets are viewed as a floor, not a ceiling, to advancing underrepresented groups, and they are backed by a variety of strategic initiatives aimed at achieving our goals. Our strategic vision is supported in London by six active employee led networks which champion diversity, lead on a number of internal campaigns and deliver a range of activity to celebrate differences in identity, inclusion, and key dates throughout the year including: LGBT+ History Month, International Women's Day, International Trans Day of Visibility, Mental Health Awareness Week, Pride, Black History Month, Social Mobility Week, International Day of Disabled Persons and many more!

Baker McKenzie London has been accredited by Disability Confident, joining over 18,000 organisations that have signed up to help change behaviours and cultures in businesses, networks and communities and reap the benefits of inclusive recruitment practices.