Senior Professional Development Specialist

Job Summary & Objectives The Senior Professional Development Specialist supports the professional staffing and development of associates and counsel within the Energy & Infrastructure practice, including, but not limited to, staffing, talent engagement initiatives, and mentoring. The Senior Professional Development Specialist serves as a key resource in advancing attorney staffing coordination and assignments, development initiatives, mentoring programs, talent engagement efforts, performance management processes and helping ensure a positive and consistent attorney experience across the practice.

The Senior Professional Development Specialist will report primarily to the Manager, Legal Talent, and have a secondary reporting line to the Firm’s Director, Legal Training and Development. The role acts as a trusted point of contact for attorneys while escalating complex talent-related matters to Legal Talent management as appropriate.

Staffing Partner closely with staffing partners and Professional Development Managers to monitor, assess and help maintain an equitable level of attorney utilization across the group. Evaluate staffing requests and make recommendations regarding resource allocation, matching staffing needs with the appropriate attorney resources based on availability, experience, skills, utilization, and desired exposure to various matters/teams. Build rapport with mid-senior associates by means of in-person meetings, telephone calls and Zoom meetings.

Provide associates with the opportunity to work on a variety of matters while balancing growth opportunities with client needs. Strive to maintain consistency of experiences and equitable distribution of assignments 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 to support staffing decisions and resource planning.

Coordinate with staffing partners and Legal Talent colleagues regarding cross-office staffing, secondments, and other staffing initiatives, as appropriate. Onboarding Coordinate and facilitate 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. Managing Absence Time Monitor and track absence time and maintain vacation calendars. Coordinate necessary matter team coverage during attorney absences.

Track vacation carryover. Facilitating Associate Life/Engagement Develop trusted professional relationships with staff attorneys, associates, and counsel through regular check-in meetings; gain an understanding of professional experiences, development objectives, availability, engagement, and overall well-being. Identify engagement, retention, staffing, or professional development opportunities or concerns and recommend appropriate actions, escalating matters to Legal Talent management when necessary. Mentoring/Advisor Program Work closely with the Legal Talent team to pair associates/counsel with mentors and partner advisors.

Ensure associates/counsel are connecting with their respective mentors and advisors and engaged in dialogue about ongoing professional development goals. Provide an active feedback loop between associates/counsel, Legal Talent, and the partners in the group. Collaborate with the Director of Practice Management to plan and facilitate a variety of team-building events to foster connectivity. Assist in monitoring and maintaining associate compliance with firm and professional policies (e.g., CLE, bar exam, etc.)

Legal Talent Support Performance Reviews Ensure that each associate/counsel has thorough evaluations and developmental objectives. Assist with verbal intake of feedback from partners. Update VI feedback tracking system. Participate in talent review discussions and assist in preparing materials, reports, and analyses related to attorney performance and development. Coordinate regularly with other professional service team members (e.g., Director of Practice Management, Knowledge Management Lawyer, Training and Development Manager, etc.)

to further practice group initiatives. Analyze and maintain accurate data and reporting within staffing and talent management systems. Work on ad hoc projects as needed.

Bachelor's degree…