Associate Director, Business Development Performance & Pursuits

Proskauer•New York, NY

15h•$230,000 - $270,000•Onsite

About The Position

Proskauer is seeking an Associate Director, Business Development Performance & Pursuits to join its Business Development, Marketing & Communications team. The role leads the Firm’s strategic pursuits, opportunity and pipeline management, performance reporting, and business development budget oversight. It establishes data standards, processes, and governance for capturing, evaluating, pursuing, and measuring opportunities across practices and offices, and analyzes pipeline, pursuit, conversion, return-on-investment, and budget data to help prioritize opportunities and investments. The role works closely with the Business Development Officer, business development leaders, lawyers, practice and department chairs, and colleagues across the Firm. It manages the Proposals Manager and may manage additional direct reports. The position oversees pipeline governance and data quality; produces performance reporting and analysis; develops methods to assess pursuit conversion and return on investment; leads the Proposals team and significant firmwide pursuits; and oversees business development budget planning, monitoring, and recommendations. It also serves as the business development function’s business lead for requirements in the Firm’s next-generation CRM initiative, partners on current system improvements and training, applies technology to improve efficiency, and supports team development and consistent processes. The position requires regular physical presence in Proskauer’s offices at least three times per week, or more if Firm policy or business needs require. The anticipated compensation range is $230,000–$270,000. Actual compensation depends on factors including qualifications, relevant experience, education, certifications or licenses, and, where applicable, location.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required.
Minimum of 10 years of business development, proposals and pursuits, or business development operations experience.
Minimum of 3 years of people management experience, including demonstrated ability to establish priorities, manage workload, and develop team members.
Demonstrated experience leading complex RFPs, panel submissions, and cross-practice or multi-office pursuits from strategy through submission and follow-up.
Experience developing or improving pipeline management, reporting, data governance, or pursuit processes in a complex, decentralized organization.
Strong analytical skills, including advanced Excel proficiency and experience with data visualization or dashboard tools such as Power BI or Tableau.
Experience supporting budget planning, forecasting, or other financial management processes.
Ability to synthesize complex information, translate data into practical recommendations, and communicate effectively with senior lawyers and Firm leadership.
Ability to communicate recommendations clearly, exercise sound judgment, influence stakeholders, facilitate decisions, and constructively challenge established approaches when appropriate.
Excellent writing, editing, presentation, and communication skills, with strong attention to detail.
Collaborative and service-oriented approach, with flexibility to manage multiple complex priorities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven, global environment.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in business, analytics, or a related field.
Experience preferably within an AmLaw 100 or global law firm, or another professional services organization.
Familiarity with law firm business development systems such as Intapp Foundation, InterAction, or comparable CRM and experience-management platforms.

Responsibilities

Own the Firm’s business development pipeline and governance, including opportunity types and stages, ownership, data standards, workflows, handoffs, and outcome tracking; maintain data quality across business development and experience-management systems.
Lead regular pipeline reviews with the Business Development Officer and business development leaders, identify priority, stalled, and at-risk opportunities, confirm follow-up, and prepare recurring pipeline reports.
Define and document business development metrics and reporting standards; deliver monthly pipeline and pursuit dashboards, quarterly leadership performance reports, and an annual year-end review.
Analyze opportunity volume and type, sources of work, participation across practices and offices, cross-practice collaboration, lawyer involvement, and client and sector trends.
Translate findings into recommendations for practice and department leaders on business development priorities, staffing, and planning; prepare analyses for leadership discussions, team meetings, and client relationship reviews; track and report progress against priorities.
Develop a framework to assess return on investment and conversion across pursuits, campaigns, events, sponsorships, hospitality, and thought leadership.
Work with Finance to connect business development activity to opportunities, new matters, billings, and client growth where feasible; analyze wins, losses, and conversion trends and recommend resource and investment priorities.
Lead the Proposals team and oversee significant firmwide pursuits, including RFPs, panel reviews and rate submissions, relationship reviews, and cross-practice or multi-office pitches, including London and European opportunities.
Establish and improve consistent pursuit processes from intake and kickoff through review, submission, and follow-up; develop go/no-go criteria and help leaders assess strategic fit and resource needs.
Coordinate with Client Value, Conflicts, Competitive Intelligence, legal counsel, and other relevant teams; gather client background, matter and billing history, and market research to support pursuit teams.
Develop pursuit strategies, themes, and executive summaries; coach partners and other senior lawyers on positioning and presentation preparation.
Maintain reusable proposal resources, including a content library, approved responses, capability statements, templates, and final submissions; review pursuit outcomes and apply lessons learned.
Oversee the annual business development budget process by setting timelines, templates, and standards; work with business development leaders and practice group co-chairs on requests and proposed changes, and present prioritized recommendations to the Business Development Officer and Firm leadership.
Monitor spending, forecasts, and variances; flag budget risks; oversee applicable transfer, reclassification, and approval processes; and partner with Finance on budget reviews and year-end close.
Connect budget and return-on-investment information to decisions about events, sponsorships, hospitality, memberships, and campaigns.
Serve as the business development function’s business lead for pipeline, pursuit, and reporting requirements in the Firm’s next-generation CRM initiative, partnering with Marketing Technology and Information Technology.
Partner with Marketing Technology on field design, guides, and training for current systems such as Foundation and InterAction; improve data quality and workflow consistency across business development systems.
Develop and deliver training and user guidance to support adoption of tools and processes; evaluate and apply technology, automation, and AI tools to improve proposal efficiency, content reuse, and reporting.
Manage the Proposals Manager and any additional direct reports assigned to the function by setting priorities, balancing workload, and supporting performance and career development.
Establish clear intake, prioritization, response, and escalation practices, and strengthen pursuit and data capabilities across the broader business development team through training, playbooks, and coaching.