Business Manager

Bell Lamb & Joynson Solicitors; Poole; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Woodstock Legal Services in Poole is seeking a Business Manager to act as the operational backbone of our expanding firm, driving efficiency and implementing systems across multiple departments. This role will connect partners, senior fee-earners and business operations to prevent bottlenecks and enable lawyers to focus on client work.

You will oversee management information, budgets and utilisation targets, while coordinating recruitment, facilities, and process improvements to keep the

Qualifications

• Proven experience in business operations within a professional services firm.
• Ability to manage budgets, reporting and utilisation targets.
• Experience coordinating facilities, recruitment and onboarding.
• Strong project management and process improvement skills.

Responsibilities

• Oversee practice management systems and financial reporting.
• Monitor departmental budgets and utilisation targets.
• Coordinate office logistics and facilities management.
• Manage recruitment and onboarding for non-legal roles.
• Project-manage operational improvements and SOP updates.
• Produce management information for partners' meetings.
• Coordinate cross-team initiatives and align priorities.
• Contribute to firm strategy with big-picture thinking.

Skills

Operations management

Budget monitoring

Project management

Financial reporting

Recruitment

Onboarding

Process improvement

Cross-team collaboration

Stakeholder management

Job description

Woodstock Legal Services is a forward-thinking law firm built on the principle that exceptional legal outcomes require exceptional support. We pride ourselves on combining deep technical expertise with a genuine commitment to our people—from partners through to our business operations teams. Our clients trust us because our whole firm operates with integrity, clarity, and genuine care. This is a firm where business support isn't peripheral; it's fundamental to how we deliver for clients.

We're seeking a Business Manager to join our Business Support function in Poole. This is an exciting opportunity to become the operational backbone of a growing practice, working across multiple departments to drive efficiency, implement systems, and build processes that allow our lawyers to focus on what they do best. You'll be someone who understands that in law firms, the margin between smooth operation and chaos is often a single spreadsheet or project going awry—and you'll take genuine satisfaction in preventing that. You'll work with partners and senior fee-earners as a trusted advisor, not just an administrator, and you'll have the authority to shape how our office functions.

Your day-to-day will be genuinely varied. You might oversee practice management systems and financial reporting, work with our finance function to monitor departmental budgets and utilisation targets, coordinate office logistics and facilities management, manage recruitment and onboarding for non-legal roles, and project-manage operational improvements—whether that's updating document management protocols or improving our client communication workflows. You'll produce management information for partners' meetings, coordinate cross-team initiatives, and sometimes simply be the person who keeps everyone aligned when multiple priorities collide. This role requires both big-picture thinking about firm strategy and meticulous attention to detail.

Career progression here is tangible. Business Managers at mid-market law firms often move into Operations Manager, Finance Manager, or Practice Development roles; others have successfully moved into legal PM or BD functions. We genuinely invest in people who show initiative and want to grow, and Poole's proximity to other professional services hubs means the opportunities in the region extend well beyond our practice.