Global BD Lead, LAI

Linklaters; London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a dynamic leader for their global Litigation, Arbitration, and Investigations business development team. In this pivotal role, you will drive strategic initiatives, foster relationships with key stakeholders, and lead a high-performing team focused on growth and innovation. This opportunity promises a diverse array of tasks and projects, allowing you to make a significant impact in a supportive environment that values diversity and inclusion. Join a forward-thinking firm committed to shaping the future of the legal industry while nurturing your professional development and career aspirations.

Benefits

Global Work Experience

Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives

Agile Working Solutions

Mental Health Support

Career Development Programs

Qualifications

• Proven experience in BDM leadership and client-facing roles.
• Strong understanding of marketing legal products and analytics.

Responsibilities

• Lead the execution of a global business development strategy for LAI.
• Drive the use of market insights to inform BD strategy.

Skills

Business Development Leadership

Data-Driven Decision Making

Client Relationship Management

Marketing Legal Products

Stakeholder Management

Analytical Skills

Tools

BDM Technology

Client Analytics Tools

Job description

Linklaters is a global law firm, with 31 offices in 21 countries worldwide. We are one of The Times’ Top 50 Employers for Women, a Working Families Top 30 employer, recognised by Stonewall as the leading employer for LGBTQ+ inclusion, and by the Social Mobility Employer Index as a top employer for advancing social mobility.

We love hearing from anyone who is enthusiastic about changing the Legal industry. Not sure you meet all qualifications? Let us decide! Research shows that women and members of other under-represented groups tend to not apply to jobs when they think they may not meet every qualification, when, in fact, they often do! At Linklaters, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and strongly encourage you to apply.

Purpose

Your role will be to lead the global Litigation, Arbitration, and Investigations (LAI) business development (BD) team. You will play a critical role in building and managing an energised, focused and high-performing global LAI BD team that drives BD initiatives to support the practice’s growth in line with firm strategy.

Key responsibilities and challenges

1. Develop and lead the execution of a global business development strategy for LAI, overseeing all business development activities for this practice.
2. Establish close working relationships with partners and other key stakeholders to agree how BD can support the practice in its strategic and go-to-market objectives.
3. Drive the execution of BD initiatives and ensure these efforts are in support of the practice’s objectives and wider firm strategy.
4. Set targets and establish key performance indicators and metrics to track the effectiveness of BD efforts for LAI.
5. Drive the use of product, market and client feedback and insights to help inform and execute the LAI BD strategy.
6. Support the global LAI BD team to work across BD – and across the firm - to identify and drive cross-selling opportunities.
7. Support the global LAI BD team to prioritise efficiently and effectively to ensure ongoing alignment with the firm strategy and the needs of the LAI practice.
8. Work closely with Sector & Client BD teams to drive the practice’s profile and growth in relation to priority sectors and market opportunities.
9. Work closely with Marketing teams to ensure that client and market engagement strategies and activities support the delivery of global LAI BD priorities.
10. Work closely with Pitching teams to ensure that pitches continuously support LAI to build client relationships and win the right work.
11. Ensure the global team is operating efficiently, making best use of the firm’s systems and processes, working with BDM Operational Excellence and Planning where necessary to support this.
12. Lead and develop a high performing global team, driving talent development and fostering a positive and inclusive team culture.

Your experience

1. Experience in a BDM leadership and/or client-centric and partner-facing role
2. Long-standing experience of data-driven opportunity spotting, driving profitable revenue and embedding business development best practice
3. Client centric mindset focused on relationship growth and the client experience
4. Strong understanding and experience of marketing legal products
5. Experience leading client feedback conversations with senior clients (General Counsel, Heads of Legal and other senior decision-makers)
6. Excellent knowledge of BDM technology and tools, with a good understanding of the impact of future technologies on BD and client analytics and data, and how to use these tools to deliver opportunities.
7. Comfortable with data, analytics and creating a compelling data-driven narrative to get buy in from partners
8. Evidence of developing measurement strategies, performance metrics, and reporting frameworks to drive growth and focus.
9. Possess strong stakeholder management skills, across all levels, internal and external to marketing.
10. Collaborative, with a global mindset and experienced in leading global, cross-functional teams

The Team

You will be welcomed into the BDM function as a critical part of the team reporting into the Director of Product BD.

BDM is a globally diverse group of specialists dedicated to driving revenue growth, nurturing our priority client relationships, strengthening the firm’s reputation.

In this role, you will be supported by and collaborate closely with the BDM leadership team and the broader function beyond. Our team thrives on a collegiate atmosphere with a strong focus on teamwork and collaboration with colleagues.

Alongside our lawyers, the BDM function is committed to creating, developing, and executing business development and marketing initiatives that drive growth and align with the firm's strategic goals.

The role within BDM promises a diverse array of tasks and projects.

You will encounter significant opportunities for learning and growth within a nurturing and supportive environment. We look forward to expanding our team with individuals who share our drive, forward-thinking mindset, and enthusiasm.

What sets us apart

1. We offer a truly global work experience and the opportunity to be involved in strategic projects that drive innovation and shape the future of our business
2. We belong to a firm that embodies its corporate social, environment, and governance responsibility commitments
3. We celebrate diversity, equity, and inclusion so our people can bring themselves to work
4. We advocate speak-up culture to empower our people in sharing their voices and an open-door policy to ensure they are listened to
5. We invest in custom-fit career paths for our people in line with their talents and aspirations
6. We provide agile working solutions to meet the changing needs of our people and our business
7. We are committed to people first relationships based on mutual trust, respect, and appreciation
8. We support the health and wellbeing of our people, providing a safe space to talk about emotions and mental health with access to expert advice as needed
9. We invest in developing leaders of the future who demonstrate emotional intelligence and a passion to discover, coach and develop the talents of others

Technical Skills

This list of duties and responsibilities above is not exhaustive. It is intended to describe the general content of, and requirements for, the performance of this job. As such, the role may also include the undertaking of additional tasks as required.

Application Policy

Applications and CVs (direct or via agency) are only accepted online via the portal. Queries related to our roles must be directed to the relevant recruitment team and not the partners, practices or stakeholders ([e-mail] for legal roles or [e-mail] for business team roles).