Strategic Training & Development Advisor

Pdclegal; Minneapolis, Northern (MN, KY); Hybrid; USD 123,000 - 159,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive pay and benefits

Parental leave

Wellbeing programs

Education and college advising

Job summary

Dorsey & Whitney in Minneapolis, MN is seeking a Training and Development Advisor to shape how attorneys learn, grow, and excel. You will partner with practice groups to surface skill gaps and translate insights into targeted training strategies aligned with firm priorities.

You will design competency models, curate content, and work with leadership to deliver scalable programs that elevate performance across the firm.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and at least 6 years of related law firm experience or JD with at least 3 years in legal talent development.
• Strong understanding of law firm practice, workflows, and the competencies required for success across levels and practice areas.
• Ability to build credibility and trusted relationships with senior professionals in a high-performance environment.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills; ability to present ideas clearly and persuasively to diverse audiences.
• Experience with needs assessments and structured stakeholder engagement.
• Interest in leveraging AI and technology tools to support attorney learning and development.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a key contact for practice groups, developing knowledge of their work, culture, and talent priorities.
• Build relationships with Practice Group Leaders, Practice Group Directors, partners, and associates to discuss development needs.
• Conduct structured needs assessments across practice groups to identify skill gaps, training priorities, and developmental opportunities.
• Translate practice group objectives and attorney feedback into actionable training strategies and priorities.
• Partner with practice group leaders, the Professional Development Director, and the Director of Legal Talent Management on the development, implementation, and maintenance of practice-group specific competency models and benchmarks.
• Work collaboratively with the Professional Development Manager to translate practice group competency frameworks and feedback into discrete learning initiatives.
• Identify and curate content from internal subject matter experts, external vendors, and other resources to support identified practice group learning priorities; advise on training resources to address individual associate training needs.
• Source and vet internal and external trainers; coordinate with third-party providers to schedule and deliver specialized workshops.
• Partner closely with the Professional Development Manager on overall training program design, implementation, and evaluation.
• Contribute to the department’s broader efforts to build a structured, scalable infrastructure for attorney development, including workflows, templates, and documentation standards.
• Assist in the development of tools and resources that facilitate effective ongoing feedback and development conversations.
• Support Professional Development and Firm-wide special projects and initiatives as needed.
• May perform other duties not listed above.

Skills

Stakeholder engagement

Needs assessments

Program design

Relationship building

Consultative coaching

Project management

Instructional design

Education

Bachelor’s degree

JD

Tools

Learning Management Systems

PD technology platforms

AI tools for learning

Job description

Dorsey & Whitney in Minneapolis, MN is seeking a Training and Development Advisor to shape how attorneys learn, grow, and excel. You will partner with practice groups to surface skill gaps and translate insights into targeted training strategies aligned with firm priorities.

You will design competency models, curate content, and work with leadership to deliver scalable programs that elevate performance across the firm.