Sr. Manager Legal Recruiting

Goodwin Procter Boston; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 185,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision insurance

Retirement & Savings Plan

Paid vacation and holidays

Professional development opportunities

Employee recognition programs

Wellness programs

Job summary

Goodwin Procter Boston is seeking a Lateral Associate Recruitment Lead for California to shape talent strategy, partner with office and practice leaders, and build pipelines across key practice areas. You will oversee lifecycle recruitment, mentor recruiters, and drive process improvements across California offices.

You will travel to other Goodwin locations as needed, collaborate with external search firms, and contribute to notable hires in high‑stakes sectors.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree and 8-10+ years of direct legal recruiting experience required in a law firm.
• Strong planning, organizational and relationship-building skills across multiple offices.
• Experience leading recruiting operations, process improvements, and data-driven decision making.
• Travel to other Goodwin office locations and professional conferences as needed.
• Proficiency with recruiting software and ATS platforms such as LawCruit, Workday, Flo.

Responsibilities

• Lead the lateral associate recruitment strategy and execution for all California offices.
• Build and maintain strong pipelines across key practice areas using market intelligence.
• Advise firm leadership on market trends, competitive intelligence, and recruiting best practices.
• Manage full lifecycle recruitment: candidate identification, interviews, and offers.
• Develop strategic relationships with local and national legal search firms.
• Oversee California recruiting operations, ensuring consistent service and candidate experience.
• Mentor recruiting professionals across multiple offices and drive process improvements.
• Plan on-campus and summer associate activities for California offices and engage with law schools.

Skills

Project management

Stakeholder management

Team leadership

Communication skills

Data-driven recruiting

Talent sourcing

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

LawCruit

Workday

Flo

Job description

Join Goodwin’s Global Operations Team, and make a real impact on a global scale. At Goodwin, we work with some of the world’s most successful and innovative investors, entrepreneurs and disruptors in the life sciences, private equity, real estate, technology and financial industries, and where they converge. As part of the Global Operations Team – all business professionals at the firm – you’ll collaborate with colleagues from varied backgrounds and experiences, fostering an environment where cross-functional learning, networking, and collaboration are at the core of what we do. Here, we’re not just supporting a law firm; we’re partnering with attorneys and clients to deliver cutting‑edge solutions in high‑stakes litigation and dispute resolution, world‑class regulatory compliance and advisory services, and complex transactions. Our commitment to integrity, ingenuity, agility, and ambition drives us, and we’re proud to have been recognised as the “Best Business Team” by The American Lawyer. This is your opportunity to grow professionally in a dynamic, global environment, surrounded by forward‑thinking peers.

What You Will Do:

Lateral Associate Recruitment Lead the lateral associate recruiting strategy and execution for all California offices, partnering closely with office, practice group, and Industry Group leadership to identify talent needs and develop proactive hiring plans.

Build and maintain strong lateral associate pipelines across key practice areas, leveraging market intelligence, industry relationships, and targeted sourcing strategies.

Serve as a trusted advisor to firm leadership on lateral market trends, competitive intelligence, and recruiting best practices.

Manage the full lifecycle lateral associate recruitment process, including candidate identification, assessment, interviews and offer strategy.

Develop and maintain strategic relationships with local and national legal search firms, ensuring alignment with firm hiring priorities and quality standards.

California Office Oversight Provide leadership and oversight for recruiting operations and initiatives across all California offices, ensuring consistent execution, service delivery, and candidate experience.

Manage, develop, and mentor recruiting professionals across multiple offices, fostering a collaborative, high‑performing team culture.

Establish and implement best practices, workflows, and processes that drive operational efficiency, consistency, and scalability across the California region.

Law School Hiring & Summer Associate Program Oversee the planning and execution of on‑campus recruiting and law school engagement activities for California offices, including interview programs, callback processes, and offer management.

Oversee all aspects of the California Summer Associate Program, including hiring strategy, orientation, work allocation, evaluations, professional development, and engagement programming.

Manage mentoring initiatives and feedback processes to enhance development, engagement, and retention.

Collaborate with internal stakeholders to strengthen the firm’s visibility, reputation, and recruiting presence at targeted law schools and within the broader legal community.

Oversee recruiting operations related to candidate management, interview coordination, evaluations, offer administration, and candidate communications.

Partner with Human Resources, Conflicts, Professional Development, and other administrative teams to facilitate hiring, onboarding, compliance, and integration activities.

Manage relationships with external vendors and service providers supporting recruiting programs and events.

Lead and participate in firmwide recruiting initiatives, process improvement efforts, and strategic recruiting projects.

Prepare and present recruiting updates, hiring trends, and performance metrics to office and firm leadership.

Perform other duties and special projects as assigned.

Who You Are:

Bachelor’s Degree and 8-10+ years of direct legal recruiting experience required within a law firm environment.

Travel required to other Goodwin office locations and professional conferences, as requested.

Working knowledge of recruiting software and applicant tracking systems; LawCruit, Workday, and Flo expertise strongly preferred.

Exceptional planning and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and stakeholders simultaneously in a fast‑paced environment.

Proven ability to lead, develop, coach, and motivate high‑performing teams across multiple offices and geographic locations.

Demonstrated success managing complex recruiting operations and driving consistent processes, service standards, and performance across a distributed team.

Strong project management and strategic execution skills, with the ability to lead firmwide initiatives, implement process improvements, and deliver measurable results.

Outstanding relationship management skills with the ability to influence and build credibility with attorneys, business professionals, firm leadership, and external partners.

Excellent communication and interpersonal skills; ability to interact effectively with candidates, all levels of firm personnel, and a variety of external entities.

Strong analytical and problem‑solving abilities, with experience leveraging data, metrics, and market intelligence to inform decision‑making and drive recruiting strategy.

Ability to exercise sound judgment, navigate ambiguity, and make thoughtful decisions in a highly collaborative and client‑service‑oriented environment.

Demonstrated commitment to fostering an inclusive, collaborative, and high‑performing team culture.

#LI‑NC1

Benefits and More

• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Life and disability insurance
• Retirement & Savings Plan
• Emergency back‑up child and adult care
• Paid vacation, sick time off, and holidays
• Professional development and career advancement opportunities
• Employee recognition and reward programs
• Employee wellness and assistance programs
• Employee discounts and perks

This position is eligible for overtime: No

The Target Salary Range For This Position Varies By Location And Is Commensurate With Relevant Experience:

$185,000.00 - $220,000.00

Professional career paths at Goodwin offer you more – and less – than you might expect. You’ll find less hierarchy and more meritocracy. You’ll have more chances to work across departments and offices, and fewer roadblocks to getting the job done. We believe people are happiest when they’re not limited by a ‘that’s how we’ve always done it’ approach, so we encourage a more imaginative and collaborative working environment.

Our Global Operations Team – what we call our GO Team – brings a level of professionalism, enthusiasm and commitment to work each and every day. Goodwin embraces responsible and ethical use of AI in the Hiring Process.

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