Business Operations Manager

Sterlington; Lisboa; Remote; EUR 111,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Sterlington PLLC, a premier US law firm, seeks a Business Operations Manager to implement AI workflows and manage the Head of Firm Management portfolio. The role sits at the heart of the firm’s strategy, planning cycles, and external relationships, ensuring priorities are visible, decisions are timely, and commitments are delivered without friction.

You will own inbound requests, design operating cadences, and prepare decision-ready briefs while coordinating with partners, senior lawyers, and

Qualifications

• Experience in business operations, chief of staff, strategy or operations roles working directly to a senior leader, with authority to act
• Track record of creating a way of working rather than inheriting one inside someone else's framework
• Judgment you can explain with a method for deciding on behalf of others
• Professional services, law firm or equivalent complex stakeholder environment is a strong plus
• Native or full professional English fluency
• Structured, systems-oriented mindset with clarity without over-engineering
• Discretion and composure handling sensitive information

Responsibilities

• AI-driven process improvement and tooling integration.
• Demand and priority management of partner requests and firm issues.
• Leadership operating rhythm through committee prep, planning cycles and reviews.
• Decision support with concise briefs and status summaries.
• Stakeholder management across partners, senior lawyers, and external parties.
• Execution ownership of initiatives end-to-end and reporting on progress.
• Risk mitigation by anticipating gaps and delays

Skills

Ops to senior leader

Proactive process design

Decision making

Law/PS experience

English proficiency

Systems thinking

Discretion

Job description

Our Firm: Sterlington PLLC is a full-service law firm focusing on complex corporate, litigation, executive compensation, and private wealth matters. As a firm, we focus on the economic as well as the legal aspects of our matters.

Reports to: Head of Ops

Location: 100 % remote

Department: Legal Administration

Type: Independent Contractor

Our Firm: Sterlington PLLC is a full-service law firm focusing on complex corporate, litigation, executive compensation, and private wealth matters. As a firm, we focus on the economic as well as the legal aspects of our matters.

Among other strengths, Sterlington is the ultimate law firm for founders, senior executives, and UHNWIs as well as their related businesses.

Learn more at: www.sterlingtonlaw.com/

The Opportunity

Sterlington is looking for a Business Operations Manager to implement AI workflows and run the execution layer of the Head of Firm Management's portfolio. The Head of Firm Management leads the firm and sits on its management committee, and the portfolio spans every function: strategy, partner matters, planning cycles, firm-wide initiatives and external relationships. This role sits at the center of that portfolio, ensuring that priorities are visible, decisions are made on time, and commitments are delivered without friction.

You will be accountable for what reaches the Head of Firm Management and what is resolved before it does. That means holding a live view of every open commitment across the portfolio, converting a continuous inbound flow into a ranked and decided list, and closing out what does not require her. Where the cadence for a workstream does not yet exist, you will design it in partnership with the Head of Operations so that it is consistent with how the rest of the firm runs.You will ensure that the operational dimension of the firm's leadership is reliable, anticipatory, and unobtrusive, working in alignment with the broader support infrastructure of the firm, never duplicating it.

What You'll Do:

• AI-Driven Process Innovation: Drive continuous improvement by refining workflows for greater efficiency and scalability, integrating AI tools in a measured, high-judgment manner to enhance tracking, summarization, briefing preparation and internal coordination.
• Demand and Priority Management: Own the inbound flow of partner requests, firm issues and external approaches. Decide what reaches the Head of Firm Management, what is redirected, and what is closed out, with a reason attached to every call.
• Leadership Operating Rhythm: Run the cadence of firm leadership: management committee preparation, planning cycles, leadership meetings and reviews. Translate the firm's planning and reporting cycles into a working rhythm for the portfolio, and design what does not yet exist.
• Decision Support: Prepare concise, decision-ready briefings, committee papers and status summaries that allow the Head of Firm Management to act quickly and with confidence, then drive execution on those decisions.
• Stakeholder Management: Coordinate across partners, senior lawyers, business services and external parties, serving as the primary liaison on her behalf, driving follow-through, accountability and timely escalation where needed.
• Execution Ownership: Take initiatives she does not have the capacity to run, own them end to end, and report on them once rather than continuously.
• Risk Mitigation: Anticipate gaps, misalignments and potential delays, and resolve them before they surface.

What We're Looking For

• Experience in business operations, chief of staff, strategy or operations roles working directly to a senior leader, with the authority to act rather than to relay
• A track record of creating a way of working rather than inheriting one, inside someone else's framework rather than around it
• Judgment you can explain: a method for deciding on another person's behalf, including declining requests from senior people while keeping the relationship intact
• Professional services, law firm or equivalent complex stakeholder environment is a strong plus
• Native or full professional English fluency required
• Structured, systems-oriented mindset: you introduce clarity without over-engineering
• Discretion and composure. You will hold the firm's most sensitive information

At Sterlington, we believe that world-class talent has no boundaries. We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment where unique perspectives are valued and every individual has the opportunity to thrive. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply.