Professional Development Specialist

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP•New York, NY

1d•$110,000 - $130,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Professional Development Specialist supports professional staffing and development of associates and counsel in the Energy & Infrastructure practice. The role contributes to attorney staffing coordination and assignments, talent engagement initiatives, mentoring, performance management, and efforts to provide a positive and consistent attorney experience across the practice. The Specialist is a trusted point of contact for attorneys and escalates complex talent-related matters to Legal Talent management as appropriate. The position reports primarily to the Manager, Legal Talent, with a secondary reporting line to the Firm’s Director, Legal Training and Development. It works closely with staffing partners, Professional Development Managers, the Legal Talent team, and other professional service colleagues.

Requirements

5+ years of relevant experience, including prior experience in a law firm and/or staffing experience.
Strong oral and written communication skills.
Superior judgment and the ability to handle confidential information discreetly.
Ability to interact well and build professional relationships, using a collaborative approach with all levels and departments.
Ability to self-direct, manage multiple priorities, analyze needs, and implement solutions.
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail for long- and short-term projects and responsibilities.
Experience with Word, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, and other legal personnel and recruiting applications.
Flexibility to adjust hours to meet departmental needs.
Professionalism and a commitment to providing quality service to internal firm members and departments, as well as external clients and vendors.

Nice To Haves

Legal AI familiarity.

Responsibilities

Partner with staffing partners and Professional Development Managers to monitor and promote equitable attorney utilization across the practice group.
Evaluate staffing requests and recommend resource allocations based on attorney availability, experience, skills, utilization, and desired exposure to matters and teams.
Build relationships with mid-senior associates through in-person meetings, telephone calls, and Zoom meetings.
Help provide attorneys with varied matter opportunities while balancing professional growth and client needs.
Promote consistent experiences and equitable assignment distribution across the practice area.
Maintain and analyze staffing databases, utilization reports, charts, and related metrics.
Monitor associate availability and utilization trends, and prepare reports and recommendations for staffing and resource planning.
Coordinate cross-office staffing, secondments, and other staffing initiatives with staffing partners and Legal Talent colleagues as appropriate.
Coordinate staffing introductions, welcome meetings, lunches, internal communications, integration, and onboarding activities for new associates, counsel, and lateral hires.
Update applicable group lists and onboarding resources.
Monitor and track absence time, maintain vacation calendars, coordinate matter-team coverage during attorney absences, and track vacation carryover.
Build trusted professional relationships with staff attorneys, associates, and counsel through regular check-ins, learning about their professional experiences, development objectives, availability, engagement, and well-being.
Identify engagement, retention, staffing, and professional development opportunities or concerns, recommend appropriate actions, and escalate matters to Legal Talent management when necessary.
Work with the Legal Talent team to pair associates and counsel with mentors and partner advisors.
Ensure associates and counsel connect with mentors and advisors and discuss ongoing professional development goals.
Provide a feedback loop among associates and counsel, Legal Talent, and group partners.
Collaborate with the Director of Practice Management to plan and facilitate team-building events.
Assist in monitoring associate compliance with firm and professional policies, including CLE and bar exam requirements.
Ensure associates and counsel receive thorough evaluations and developmental objectives.
Assist with verbal intake of partner feedback and update the VI feedback tracking system.
Participate in talent review discussions and help prepare materials, reports, and analyses related to attorney performance and development.
Coordinate with professional service team members, including the Director of Practice Management, Knowledge Management Lawyer, and Training and Development Manager, to advance practice group initiatives.
Analyze and maintain accurate data and reporting in staffing and talent management systems.
Work on ad hoc projects as needed.