Director of Knowledge Management

Seyfarth Shaw LLP • Chicago, IL

4d

About The Position

Seyfarth is seeking a visionary Director of Knowledge Management (KM) to design, build, and lead the firm’s next-generation KM function within the Office of Innovation & Strategic Design.
This is a high-impact, firmwide leadership role responsible for defining how knowledge is captured, structured, shared, and applied across a global platform of approximately 1,000 lawyers. Reporting directly to the Chief Innovation & Strategic Design Officer (CISDO) and working in close partnership with the Chief Data & AI Officer (CDAIO), the Director of Knowledge Management will translate the firm’s innovation strategy into a scalable, sustainable KM program that strengthens attorney experience, client value, and firm competitiveness.
This role is ideal for a strategic, hands-on leader who thrives in a design-led, collaborative, and change-oriented environment and is excited to build a modern KM function from the ground up.

Requirements

• 10+ years of experience in knowledge management, innovation, legal operations, or related disciplines within a law firm or professional services environment.
• Demonstrated success leading KM programs, transformation initiatives, or enterprise-scale change efforts.
• Experience working directly with senior partners, practice leaders, and firm executives.
• Strong familiarity with document management systems, KM platforms, legal research tools, and emerging AI-enabled technologies.
• Experience with data governance, taxonomy development, metadata standards, or information architecture (strongly preferred).
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to influence, build trust, and drive adoption in a partner-led environment.
• A strategic mindset paired with a practical, hands-on approach to execution.
• High professional integrity, sound judgment, and the ability to manage sensitive and confidential information.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary architect of the firm’s knowledge management strategy, working closely with the CISDO to translate innovation vision into a practical, firmwide KM operating model.
• Collaborate across the Office of Innovation & Strategic Design to ensure KM principles are embedded in service design, product development, and process improvement initiatives.
• Partner with the Chief Data & AI Officer to align KM assets with the firm’s data ecosystem, supporting analytics, semantic search, automation, and responsible AI initiatives.
• Help to establish firmwide taxonomy, metadata standards, and knowledge architecture that balance consistency with attorney autonomy.
• Oversee existing or the selection of new KM-related platforms and tools in partnership with Innovation, Data, and IT teams, including the DMS, knowledge portals, search tools, and collaboration systems.
• Drive continuous improvement in knowledge findability, search performance, and reuse.
• Assess and support adoption of AI-enabled KM tools grounded in authoritative, trusted content.
• Build, mentor, and lead KM professionals as the function grows, while fostering strong collaboration with Research & Library Services and other operational teams.
• Define and track KPIs related to KM adoption, reuse, efficiency, data quality, and client value, and report regularly on impact and ROI to firm leadership.

Benefits

• Seyfarth provides competitive salary and benefits at all levels, and a culture that embraces innovation, collaboration, and the entrepreneurial spirit of its professionals.
• Our teams work together to define and deliver a distinctive client experience, and we invest in the people, systems, and ideas that shape the future of legal services.
• At Seyfarth, everyone plays a role in driving excellence.
• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision insurance, and 401(k).

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed