Director of Research and Knowledge Services

ALA Gateway; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Vision Insurance

Life Insurance & ADD policies

Short & Long Term Disability Insurance

401(k) Profit Sharing plans

Parking/Transportation Stipend

Section 125 Plan

Paid Holidays

Paid Time Off (PTO)

Annual Discretionary Bonus

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

Employee Wellness Program

Tuition Reimbursement

529 Plans

Job summary

Thompson Coburn LLP is seeking a Director of Research and Knowledge Services to lead the firm’s library and knowledge services, driving strategy for research, current awareness, and AI-enabled workflows across practice groups. You will manage a diverse team, select research tools, and partner with lawyers and business professionals to deliver high-value, billable research and intelligence.

After an initial training period, the role offers a hybrid-remote schedule.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Library Science or equivalent is required.
• JD or MBA or equivalent professional experience in law or research-intensive environments may be considered.
• 8+ years of progressive experience in legal research, leadership, knowledge management or information services; 5+ years in leadership at a large firm.
• Experience building or repositioning a research/knowledge function with ROI demonstrated.
• Hands-on experience evaluating AI-powered legal research tools in production.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute a multi-year strategic vision for transforming the Firm's library function into a modern research and knowledge services team.
• Partner with practice group leaders to identify research, data and workflow needs for each practice.
• Lead, develop, and manage a diverse team of research and information professionals.
• Oversee selection, deployment, and optimization of research resources based on analytics and demand.
• Lead evaluation, pilots, and adoption of AI-enabled research tools (e.g., Harvey, Westlaw, LexisNexis, Bloomberg Law, Vital Law).
• Develop AI research protocols to improve quality, reduce friction, and enhance client service.
• Develop firmwide approaches to valuing research and cost recovery; align with client billing guidelines.
• Manage budget planning, cost control, and ROI analytics for these services.

Skills

Legal research

Knowledge management

Competitive intelligence

AI-enabled research

Change management

Stakeholder communication

Education

Master’s degree in Library Science

JD or MBA or equivalent

Tools

Westlaw

LexisNexis

Bloomberg Law

Vital Law

Harvey (AI)

Job description

The Gateway Chapter’s Career Center provides information on employment opportunities for legal management professionals and other legal positions in the St. Louis metropolitan area. Positions available in the St. Louis area, along with a brief description, are listed below. To look at job postings outside of St. Louis, visit https://jobs.alanet.org/

Director of Research and Knowledge Services

Job Posting
Sep. 2, 2026

Thompson Coburn, a large full-service law firm with offices in eight (8) cities across the U.S., is in search of a full-time exempt Director of Research and Knowledge Services to join itsSt. Louisoffice.With over 450 attorneys and experience in 50 areas of law, Thompson Coburn is regularly recognized for providing clients with outstanding value and service. Driven by our core values of integrity, innovation and diversity, we collaborate and work in a welcoming, fast-paced, and inclusive environment.

Under the leadership of the Chief Information Officer, the Director of Research and Knowledge Services will set the strategy for legal and business research, knowledge management, current awareness, competitive intelligence, and AI-enabled research workflows that support the firm’s lawyers, business professionals, clients, and practice groups. This role will also be responsible for modernizing service delivery, developing practice-specific knowledge services, and expanding the use of AI-enabled tools to deliver billable, client-facing work product. After an initial period of training, this position is eligible for a hybrid-remote work schedule.

Key Responsibilities:

• Defines and executes a multi-year strategic vision for transforming the Firm’s library function into a modern research & knowledge services team that delivers high-value, billable, research, intelligence, knowledge management, and workflow to the Firm’s practice groups.
• Partners with practice group leaders to identify research, knowledge, data, current awareness, precedent, experience, and workflow needs specific to each practice.
• Leads, develops, and manages a diverse team of research, knowledge, and information professionals.
• Oversees the selection, deployment, and optimization of all research resources informed by usage analytics, practice-group demand, and emerging product capabilities.
• Leads the evaluation, pilot, governance, adoption, and scaling of AI-enabled research and workflow tools, including Harvey and AI capabilities within platforms such as Westlaw, LexisNexis, Bloomberg Law, and Wolters Kluwer Vital Law.
• Develops responsible AI research protocols partnering with Information Services, Risk Management & Compliance, and practice leaders to identify AI-enabled use cases that improve research quality, reduce friction, support lawyer workflows, and enhance client service.
• Develops a firmwide approach to capturing the value of research and knowledge services, including cost recovery, matter-based research support, billable service models where appropriate, and alignment with client billing guidelines.
• Manages budget planning, cost control, and financial performance using ROI analytics and practice-aligned investment priorities.
• Monitors developments in legal AI, legal research, knowledge management, and information services, and recommends appropriate adoption, governance, and investment strategies.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Required:

• Deep understanding of legal research, business research, competitive intelligence, current awareness, legal analytics, docket/legislative/regulatory tracking, and practice-specific knowledge needs.
• Strong knowledge of major legal and business research platforms, including Westlaw, LexisNexis, Bloomberg Law, Wolters Kluwer Vital Law, including their AI-enhanced features and API/integration capabilities.
• Demonstrated success leading organizational change including cultural transformation, team restructuring, and adoption of new service models with strong change-management and communication skills.
• Practical understanding of AI-assisted legal research, generative AI, prompt design, retrieval-augmented research, source validation, hallucination risk, confidentiality, and human-in-the-loop review.
• Understanding of knowledge management methods, including taxonomy, metadata, experience capture, precedent management, practice portals, enterprise search, and knowledge curation.
• Ability to lead projects, develop strategic plans, establish priorities, and achieve measurable outcomes.
• Strong communication and stakeholder-engagement skills, with the ability to present complex information clearly and effectively.
• Must have the ability to read, write and communicate in fluent English; ability to compose documents in the appropriate business style using correct grammar and spelling; ability to communicate clearly using proper grammar and diction including online video meetings and audio communications including telephone calls, in person discussions, and online audio calls.
• Must possess a high level of professionalism and interpersonal skills so as to be able to work well with employees at all levels within the organization and maintain all information in the strictest confidence. Required to use tact and diplomacy when dealing with others.

Experience and Education Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in Library Science, Information Science, Knowledge Management, Legal Technology, Data/Information Management, or equivalent required.
• JD, MBA, advanced degree, or equivalent professional experience in a law firm, in-house legal department, professional services, or research-intensive environment may be considered.
• Minimum of 8 years of progressively responsible experience in legal research, law library leadership, knowledge management, information services, or legal technology with at least 5 years in a leadership role at an Am Law 200 firm or equivalent professional services environment required.
• Proven success repositioning or building a research/knowledge function, including service redesign, increasing stakeholder engagement and service utilization, while demonstrating ROI to firm leadership preferred.
• Hands-on experience evaluating, deploying, and governing AI-powered legal research and workflow tools in a production environment preferred.
• Track record of designing innovative, technology-enabled workflows that measurably improved efficiency, client service, or revenue contribution preferred.
• Experience developing metrics, dashboards, service benchmarks, cost recovery models, or billable service approaches preferred.
• Familiarity with law firm economics, billing practices, and partnership structures preferred.

Thompson Coburn LLP is a large, full service, multi-state firm with offices in Birmingham, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, St. Louis, Southern Illinois, and Washington D.C. At Thompson Coburn, our behavior and the expectations we have of ourselves are guided by the values that we hold in the highest regard: integrity, a passion for excellence, a focus on serving the client, a value of diversity, innovation, creativity, trust, and loyalty. Within the Firm, we value each other as people and colleagues. In addition to the exceptional working environment and a competitive salary, Thompson Coburn provides the following benefit options to qualifying employees:

• Medical Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Life Insurance & ADD policies
• Short & Long Term Disability Insurance
• 401(k) Profit Sharing plans
• Parking/Transportation Stipend
• Section 125 Plan (Pre-tax premiums and medical reimbursement)
• Paid Holidays
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Annual Discretionary Bonus
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Employee Wellness Program
• Tuition Reimbursement
• College Savings Plan Deductions (529 Plans)

The Gateway Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators is a separate legal entity from the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA). ALA licenses the use of its name, mark, logos and other protected properties to chapters that are in good standing. ALA disclaims all liability or responsibility whatsoever for the actions, representations and liabilities of the Gateway Chapter, specifically including those of any nature whatsoever arising from or out of the content of other features related to the Gateway Chapter website. In no event shall ALA be deemed the guarantor of the Gateway Chapter.