Role: Strategic and Business Operations Manager
Location: Birmingham, UK
Role Type: Full-time, Permanent
About the Firm:
Our client is one of the UK’s largest and most highly regarded Intellectual Property firms, delivering specialist legal services tailored to the unique needs of a diverse client base.
The Role:
A leadership opportunity has arisen for a Strategic and Business Operations Manager to provide overarching strategic and operational direction across the firm’s Patent Paralegal, Trade Mark Paralegal, and Business Support Administration functions.
Reporting directly to the Equity Partner and Trade Mark Attorney, this senior role carries direct line management responsibility for a multidisciplinary team of over 35 reports. The remit focuses on shaping team structures, driving operational excellence, and acting as a trusted advisor to senior stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities:
- People Leadership & Development: Lead, coach, and manage a large multidisciplinary team of paralegals and administrators, driving engagement, performance management, and talent development.
- Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement: Review and optimise team structures, workflows, and working practices, championing innovation and process efficiency (including AI adoption).
- Strategic Workforce Planning: Design and deliver short-, medium-, and long-term workforce strategies, utilising management information and workflow data to align resources with future business growth.
- Stakeholder Engagement: Build trusted relationships with Partners, Department Heads, and Team Managers to align operational priorities with firm objectives.
- Governance & Service Delivery: Maintain robust operational controls and ensure high service standards across all support functions.
Key Skills & Experience:
- Significant senior operational leadership experience within a professional services environment, managing multidisciplinary teams.
- Strong coaching, performance management, and employee relations expertise.
- Demonstrable track record in organisational change, transformation, and business planning.
- Strong commercial acumen and analytical capability, with confidence using performance and workflow data to inform decision-making.
- Knowledge of the Intellectual Property profession (Patent and Trade Mark processes) and familiarity with systems such as Inprotech or iManage would be highly advantageous.
- Relevant management or leadership qualifications are preferred.
How to Apply
If you are an ambitious operations leader looking to make a strategic impact within a top-tier legal environment, we would love to hear from you. Please submit your application with your CV.
