Director of Legal Recruitment & Retention

City of New York•New York City, NY

About The Position

The Bronx District Attorney’s Office (BXDA) seeks an experienced, highly organized, and detail-oriented Director of Legal Recruitment and Retention to help lead the attorney and intern talent lifecycle, from recruitment and hiring through onboarding, mentorship, professional development, engagement, and retention. Reporting to the Chief of Legal Recruitment and Retention, the Director develops and executes a comprehensive, data-driven talent strategy to build sustainable pipelines for future attorneys and professional staff while supporting the success and engagement of the Office’s current legal workforce. The Director contributes to the strategic leadership and operational oversight of the Legal Recruitment and Retention Bureau and helps sustain a positive, inclusive, high-performing work culture. The role is the central authority for attorney and intern recruitment operations and retention initiatives, collaborating with bureau chiefs, executive staff, training leadership, academic institutions, and external partners. Periodic travel is required for law school outreach events, job fairs, on-campus interview programs, and other recruitment engagements. The position requires a bachelor’s degree and four years of qualifying full-time community liaison, community organization, or community relations experience, including at least two years in a broad administrative or policy-making capacity with responsibility for a large community service program or activity. An alternative high-school-diploma-and-experience pathway is provided, as are specified education substitutions. All candidates must have a high school diploma or equivalent and two years of qualifying broad administrative or policy-making experience. The City of New York describes itself as an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and maintaining a workplace free from discrimination and harassment based on legally protected status or characteristics.

Requirements

A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university and four years of satisfactory, full-time community liaison, community organization, or community relations experience, including at least two years in a broad administrative or policy-making capacity involving responsibility for planning, organizing, coordinating, developing, evaluating, or administering a large community service program or activity; or an accepted alternative qualification pathway.
Alternatively, a four-year high school diploma or equivalent and eight years of satisfactory full-time qualifying community liaison, community organization, or community relations experience, including at least two years in a broad administrative or policy-making capacity with the specified program responsibilities.
Education and/or experience equivalent to the stated pathways may qualify, subject to the specified substitution rules and minimum requirements.
All candidates must have a four-year high school diploma or equivalent and two years of full-time experience in a broad administrative or policy-making capacity with the specified responsibilities.
Ability to support strategic planning and operational oversight of recruitment, retention, and talent-development initiatives.
Strong interpersonal, communication, and relationship-building skills and ability to collaborate across organizational levels.
Ability to exercise discretion, diplomacy, sound judgment, and professionalism when handling sensitive matters.
Ability to travel periodically for recruitment events and related engagements.

Responsibilities

Support the Chief of Legal Recruitment and Retention in advancing the bureau’s strategic vision, priorities, and performance objectives.
Contribute to day-to-day bureau management and operations, including coordination of workflows, timelines, and deliverables.
Supervise and mentor assigned recruitment, retention, and administrative staff, supporting accountability, workload management, and professional development in alignment with bureau leadership direction.
Assist in developing, implementing, and refining bureau policies, procedures, and internal workflows.
Oversee and coordinate NYCAPS personnel transactions related to attorney hiring, onboarding, transfers, and other personnel actions, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance with applicable procedures.
Partner with bureau leadership to design and implement recruitment strategies for entry-level and lateral attorneys across all bureaus.
Support and coordinate end-to-end hiring processes, including workforce planning, outreach, application review, interviews, background checks, offers, and onboarding logistics, subject to leadership guidance and approvals.
Assist in managing attorney and intern recruitment pipelines and contribute to recruiting interns at high school, college, law school, and graduate levels.
Build and maintain relationships with law schools, colleges and universities, bar associations, affinity organizations, and community partners to strengthen and diversify recruitment pipelines.
Coordinate, support, and attend job fairs, career fairs, and on-campus interview programs; serve as a point of contact for academic institutions on recruitment events, scheduling, interview logistics, and follow-up.
Assist with recruitment calendar planning, including prioritizing schools, conferences, and outreach opportunities aligned with pipeline and diversity goals.
Assist in developing, executing, and improving mentorship and internship programs for interns, entry-level attorneys, and lateral hires.
Support mentorship and internship program design, including learning objectives, supervision models, evaluations, and feedback mechanisms, in partnership with training staff, bureau leadership, and supervisors.
Monitor program participation and feedback and elevate findings and recommendations to bureau leadership.
Support retention strategies focused on engagement, career progression, organizational integration, and workforce sustainability.
Assist with administering and analyzing stay interviews, exit interviews, surveys, and other feedback tools to identify trends and potential attrition risks.
Provide insights and recommendations on workforce morale, engagement, and culture to the Chief and executive leadership.
Support planning, coordination, and delivery of legal staff professional development, including onboarding, integration, and ongoing learning initiatives.
Support initiatives that foster a positive, inclusive, and respectful work culture.
Demonstrate strong interpersonal, communication, and relationship-building skills in collaboration across roles, bureaus, and leadership levels.
Cultivate external partnerships that advance recruitment, pipeline development, and the Office’s reputation as an employer of choice.
Handle sensitive matters with discretion, diplomacy, sound judgment, and professionalism.
Perform other duties as assigned.