Head of Executive Office, EMEA at Herbert Smith Freehills

The Opportunity

Key internal relationships

• Managing Partner, EMEA
• Executive Partner, EMEA, UK and US
• Director, Regional Executive, EMEA, UK and US
• Members of the EMEA Executive and Office Managing Partners in the region
• Practice Group Heads of/Managers
• Partners and Senior Business Services Leaders across the region

Key Responsibilities:

Regional Management

• The Head of Executive Office, EMEA is the trusted advisor for the Managing Partner, EMEA, providing senior strategic support on all matters which impact the EMEA region. The role is to provide support and guidance to the Managing Partner and leadership of the EMEA region, recognising the many demands on their time and alleviating the pressure by taking work 'off their desks'.
• Working alongside the Director, Regional Executive, EMEA, UK and US, and to enable the support of the development and growth of the EMEA region, the Head of the Executive office will be expected to build exceptional internal relationships with those listed above and wider. This will enable the Managing Partner to focus on strategic alignment and implementation within EMEA. Collaboration with people in and across the EMEA region will be key to the successful delivery of this role.
• The successful candidate will need to gain an intimate understanding of the firm and the culture and business objectives of the EMEA region and be capable of quickly building credibility with both partners and business services members. With direction from the Director, EMEA, UK and US as necessary, they must be able to work with and through others, forming close working relationships with the relevant leadership teams.
• The candidate will also support the Managing Partner by taking ownership of regional communications (including drafting Global Council and Global Exec papers, where necessary, and assisting in the preparation of agendas and papers for EMEA Exec meetings and supporting the creation of content and key messages for regional comms e.g. regional partner meetings, townhalls) and play a role in supporting the firm's wider strategic development, including bringing the regional perspective and participating in regional or global working groups as required.
• They will, when required, coordinate and collaborate with other practice group Heads of/senior leaders (such as Business Finance, BD or HR), on standalone projects and cyclical processes. Providing the principal support for
• the Managing Partner in progressing the work necessary to deliver on the EMEA Growth Plan, the demands will vary across the different practices and offices which make up the EMEA region.
• This is a varied role which provides exposure to a wide range of tasks from the strategic to the more operational and the candidate therefore needs to be extremely comfortable moving across this working spectrum, taking ownership to progress key actions, on their own or with others

Responsibilities in more detail (but not limited to):

• Working closely with other strategic roles across the firm, but particularly the Director, EMEA, UK and US and others in practice management or related roles to enable the Managing Partner to deliver the priorities for the region
• Together with the Managing Partner, attending all management and regional meetings (where required) ensuring that meetings are well organised, agendas are set, actions are agreed and followed up, and relevant information is cascaded
• Supporting the Managing Partner and Business Development leads to prepare and/or update any annual business plans and relevant practice/sector area business plans as well as ensuring implementation and follow up where necessary
• Providing and co-ordinating the analysis of information enabling the Managing Partner to make informed decisions
• Leading and delivering individual initiatives as required by the Managing Partner which may include a review of current capability and platform and what might be required to deliver on their respective strategies but may also include any initiatives relating to partners, and/or their teams
• Supporting effective communication within the region and from the Managing Partner to teams. This may include organising wider regional meetings, conferences etc.
• Supporting the Managing Partner and Business Finance in monitoring the efficient performance of the region against target, as well as contributing to budget preparation and re-forecasting where required
• Preparing business reports, draft partner level communications and presentations and/or speeches for the Managing Partner or other partners as required
• Ensuring the firm's policies and processes are followed and implemented appropriately as required
• More generally, making things happen in a complex, matrix environment and ensuring efficient operational management of the region

Skills, Qualifications & Experience:

• Strong academic background. Educated to degree level with a professional or post-graduate qualification; ideally having a law degree or relevant legal experience
• Knowledge, experience and gravitas to engender the confidence of the partners, coupled with the interpersonal skills to make and articulate strategic views and to be able to contribute to decision-making
• Experience of working with senior stakeholders in a professional services context with a good understanding of macroeconomic factors across this region
• Is comfortable with complexity and nuance as well as having strong influencing skills
• Experience of leading change initiatives
• Proven experience of leading and implementing projects
• Highly motivated self-starter with strong organisational and project management skills