Operations Manager, Southeast Asia

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer; Singapore; Hybrid; SGD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer seeks an experienced Operations Manager for Southeast Asia to lead office operations across Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta. You will drive client services, facilities management and legal support, partnering with senior stakeholders to elevate service quality, efficiency and engagement.

A strategic leader comfortable with AI and regional projects will excel in this role. The role requires a degree in Business and Administration, 10+ years in office management, and

Qualifications

• Degree in Business and Administration or related field.
• 10+ years' experience in office management with local and remote staff.
• Experience in a professional services firm.
• Strong people management and leadership of high-performing teams.
• Ability to drive strategic change and leverage AI.
• Passion for client service and exceptional external client experience.
• Strong facilities management with 24x7 operations experience.
• Excellent spoken and written English.

Responsibilities

• Lead Southeast Asia Office Operations across Singapore, Bangkok, Jakarta.
• Oversee Client Services, Facilities Management, Document Services and Legal Support.
• Collaborate with senior stakeholders to improve service quality, efficiency and engagement.
• Proactively leverage AI technology and drive regional Office Operations projects.

Skills

Office management

People management

Strategic change

AI technologies

Client service

Facilities management

English proficiency

Security & continuity

Education

Degree in Business and Administration

Job description

We are seeking an experienced and commercially astute Operations Manager, Southeast Asia to lead the operational excellence of our Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta offices.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Operations Director, Asia & Australia, you will play a pivotal leadership role in ensuring the efficient delivery of office operations across Southeast Asia. You will oversee client services, facilities management, document services and legal support functions, while partnering closely with senior stakeholders to enhance service quality, operational efficiency and employee engagement.

You will be responsible for:

• Efficient delivery of Southeast Asia's Office Operations functions. Comprised primarily of Client Services (reception, meeting rooms and catering), Facilities Management, and Document Services. This also includes supporting Office Operation’s Global Centres of Excellence, comprised of Corporate Real Estate Management, AV/VC, Physical WHS, Document Production, Travel Management and Office Operations Project Delivery.
• Effective management of the Southeast Asia's Legal Support (secretary) function, including collaboration with partners to deliver efficient secretary allocations and workloads.
• Proactively improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Southeast Asia Office Operations and Legal Support functions, including levering AI technology to the maximum extent. This may also include leading some Office Operations Projects or Services at the regional level.

To be successful in this role, you will ideally have:

• Degree in Business and Administration or related fields.
• 10+ years' experience with office management roles including local and remote staff management.
• Previous experience in a professional services firm.
• Very strong people management skills including leading high performing teams and influencing others.
• Able to drive strategic change including leveraging AI and emerging technologies.
• Genuine passion for client service, aligning with the firm's objective of providing all external clients with an exceptional experience.
• Strong facilities management experience, including in environments requiring some degree of 24x7 operational coverage, and direct experience with physical security and business continuity.
• An excellent level of spoken and written English. Able to confidently get message across to senior audiences, present with clarity, energy, confidence and enthusiasm.

We are committed to attracting people from all backgrounds and creating a respectful and inclusive culture where everyone thrives. We see this as essential to our success, including our ability to innovate and achieve sustained high performance. This is a key part of our Values—Human, Bold, and Outstanding.