Senior Legal BD & Growth Leader

Dinsmore & Shohl LLP; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 162,000 - 198,000; Full time

Job summary

Dinsmore & Shohl LLP is seeking an experienced Business Development professional in Chicago to advance strategy and opportunities across client relationships and markets. You will coordinate pitches, research, and cross-department initiatives to support growth and client service.

You will partner with leadership, coach attorneys, and manage CRM-driven pipelines to deliver measurable outcomes. A strong background in professional services and senior-level relationship management is essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business, communications or related field; JD or MBA a plus.
• Ten+ years of progressively responsible business development or marketing experience; strongly preferred in a law firm or professional-services environment.
• Demonstrated ability to build trusted relationships and collaborate with attorneys, firm leaders, and professionals across offices.
• Working knowledge of business development planning, pitches, proposals, client and market research, and relationship-management practices.

Responsibilities

• Partner with practice group and department leaders to develop practical business development strategy aligned with firm priorities and client needs.
• Help attorneys identify opportunities within existing client relationships, prospective clients, referral networks, and target markets.
• Coordinate planning discussions and convert ideas into actionable steps with owners, timelines, and measurable objectives.
• Manage strategy through pipelines; prepare pitches, proposals, RFP responses, and presentations with relevant differentiators and messaging.
• Provide market, industry, client, and competitive research to inform client planning and opportunity assessment.
• Coach attorneys one-on-one and in small groups for client conversations, meetings, and relationship-building activities.
• Collaborate with communications, events, digital, and other departments to align thought leadership and programs with business objectives.
• Maintain accurate opportunity and relationship data in CRM and promote adoption of shared processes.

Skills

Relationship building

Presentation skills

Written and verbal communication

Strategic planning

CRM familiarity

MS Office proficiency

Independent work

Cross-office collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business, communications

JD or MBA a plus

Tools

CRM software

Proposal management

Market research tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Dinsmore & Shohl LLP is seeking an experienced Business Development professional in Chicago to advance strategy and opportunities across client relationships and markets. You will coordinate pitches, research, and cross-department initiatives to support growth and client service.

You will partner with leadership, coach attorneys, and manage CRM-driven pipelines to deliver measurable outcomes. A strong background in professional services and senior-level relationship management is essential.