Chief Operating Officer, Law Firm Back Office

RiseMe; Phoenix (AZ); On-site; USD 126,000 - 154,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Signing bonus

Full benefits package

On-site Phoenix team

Job summary

Righi Fitch Law Group in Phoenix, AZ, is seeking an Executive Director to run the business side of the firm. This is the most senior operating role after equity partners, responsible for back office, HR, finance, IT, and administration, leading through team leads.

You will set priorities, recruit and develop staff, manage budgeting and billing workflows, and drive growth with the partners. The role requires experience running operations in a law or professional services firm and a track record

Qualifications

• 8+ years of operations HR leadership, including 3+ years running the business side of a law firm or professional services firm of 20+ people.
• Strong leadership ability and energy, with hands-on experience in HR, payroll, recruiting, and employee relations.
• A track record of owning a budget and growing the bottom line through staffing and process decisions.
• Working knowledge of law-firm billing and collections, including timekeeping standards, pre-bill review, and client billing guidelines; insurance defense and e-billing experience strongly preferred.
• Strong technology fluency and comfort leading change; experience with Clio and AI-assisted timekeeping tools is a plus.
• Sound judgment, discretion, and the ability to have direct conversations with attorneys and staff.
• Bachelor's degree.

Responsibilities

• Lead the firm back office: with all lines of reporting ultimately leading to you.
• Partner through our managed services vendor to leverage centralized resources that drive growth.
• Manage full-cycle recruiting and onboarding for paralegals, legal assistants, and staff, including managing outside recruiters, and partner with our managed services on attorney hiring so headcount keeps pace with client growth.
• Own accountability across the back office. Set and reinforce operating standards for all back-office employees, create clarity of performance expectations, and win new business.
• Direct daily business operations: office administration, facilities, business registrations, firm insurance, and records.
• Own the annual operating budget with the Managing Partners; monitor efficiency ratios and prepare management discussion and analysis.
• Drive the billing cycle through the finance lead - timely time entry, pre-bill review, carrier billing-guideline compliance, regular rate increase requests, WIP follow-up, and collections.
• Lead firmwide HR: performance management, compensation and benefits, engagement, employee relations, payroll, and compliant employment practices.
• Manage IT workflows with the firm's IT manager and managed services provider, and drive adoption and continuous education of practice management, AI-assisted timekeeping, and e-billing tools across the firm.
• Translate firm strategy into a clear one-page plan and quarterly OKRs, and hold the firm accountable to them.

Skills

Operations leadership

HR leadership

Budget management

Billing and collections (law firm)

Technology fluency

Clio experience

AI-assisted timekeeping tools

Communication and discretion

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Clio

AI timekeeping tools

Job description

Righi Fitch Law Group in Phoenix, AZ, is seeking an Executive Director to run the business side of the firm. This is the most senior operating role after equity partners, responsible for back office, HR, finance, IT, and administration, leading through team leads.

You will set priorities, recruit and develop staff, manage budgeting and billing workflows, and drive growth with the partners. The role requires experience running operations in a law or professional services firm and a track record