Central Knowledge Management Lawyer - Transactions

Sidley Austin LLP•Chicago, IL

13d•Onsite

About The Position

The Central Knowledge Management Lawyer (“Central KM Lawyer”) will be responsible for leading and supporting the development of the knowledge strategy for various transactional practice groups within the firm not supported by an existing dedicated KM Lawyer. The Central KM Lawyer will work with the Knowledge Management Director to assist a number of Global Practice Groups (“GPGs”) and Practice Area Teams (“PATs”). The Central KM Lawyer will focus on spearheading and designing processes for the collation of research materials, standard forms, model documents, matter profiles, other data compilations and precedents. In collaboration with KM partners from the various GPGs and PATs, the Central KM Lawyer will be a centralized resource to enable the transactional GPGs and PATs to operate more efficiently, which will produce both time and cost savings and provide additional value-add for clients. The Central KM Lawyer will coordinate the implementation of firm-wide KM efforts by collaborating with the various transactional KM Partners and Knowledge Management Director to create best practices, to achieve consensus on standards of operational efficiency, and to develop measures of success for the transactional KM program while promoting a culture of knowledge-sharing and practice innovation.

Requirements

Juris Doctor from an ABA accredited law school.
A minimum of 4 years of experience as a transactional lawyer in a large law firm environment.
Admitted to practice law in Illinois in good standing.
Strong organizational skills
Strong attention to detail
Good judgment
Strong interpersonal communication skills
Strong analytical and problem solving skills
Able to work harmoniously and effectively with others
Able to preserve confidentiality and exercise discretion
Able to work under pressure
Able to manage multiple projects with competing deadlines and priorities

Nice To Haves

Prior experience using Foundation.

Responsibilities

Work closely with the KM Partners and GPG leadership to establish and track KM goals and objectives.
Collaborate with members of the GPGs and PATs to assess current and relevant KM needs.
Develop, define and implement procedures to meet those needs and establish a method for consistent review of the KM strategy.
Communicate regularly with other KM Lawyers and Specialists at the firm to share best practices.
Improve the design and functionality of the Transactional GPGs’ and PATs’ collaboration site(s), and facilitate the creation and maintenance of the collaboration site’s searchable knowledge repositories, including exemplar forms, templates for policy and procedures, precedents, memos, research, business development materials and other helpful content, including industry updates and client alerts.
Assist in the automation of standard forms and templates for the Transactional GPGs and PATs.
Work with the Transactional GPGs’ and PATs’ lawyers to generate knowledge content and facilitate the sharing of knowledge and information in general.
Implement procedures for generating, maintaining, updating, accessing and disseminating information (including forms and precedent) and other materials to ensure consistent advice and reflect the most up-to-date changes in applicable laws, regulations and best practices.
Develop and implement consistent and effective means of communicating the availability and location of the Transactional GPGs’ and PATs’ knowledge resources.
Work with the Knowledge Management Director, KM Partners and members of the GPGs and PATs to evaluate the practice’s current KM-related efforts to identify and prioritize new projects that will contribute to the efficiency of the practices.
Develop and promote workflow improvements for common legal processes within the Transactional GPGs and PATs.
Assist in business development efforts for the Transactional GPGs and PATs, including compiling, organizing, and making available client pitch materials, identifying relevant issues and developments for clients, and preparing contributions to client-facing publications (e.g., bulletins, newsletters, etc.).
Constantly communicate with the lawyers to establish legal project management processes to track information at all stages of a matter and conduct post-matter reviews of lessons learned in order to update knowledge content and to obtain information in determining what knowledge resources are most relevant.
Monitor, inform, and update the Transactional GPGs and PATs with regard to important legal and industry developments and trends through training, advisories, email updates and other processes.
Identify legal or business trends and suggest innovative methods to deliver services to clients more effectively.
Draft and collect thought leadership materials and presentations, including training materials, memos, alerts, practice notes, industry updates, and reports from attendance at CLEs and conferences.
Develop and present training for the Transactional GPGs and PATs on the firm’s various technology platforms including, but not limited to practice specific collaboration sites, that tailor the technology for the unique needs of the groups.
Identify possible gaps in substantive training relevant to the Transactional GPGs and PATs, and coordinate with Learning and Development to develop, organize and deliver (individually or with others) training, which may include workshops and off-site training.
Assist in efforts to compile relevant internal and external trainings for the GPGs and PATs.
Work with the KM department to evaluate, test and deploy innovative technology to reduce manual data collection, automate document creation, assist with legal research, and to otherwise support the practices.
Other duties as required by the practices.