Senior Legal Recruiting Manager

Gunderson Dettmer has an opening for a Senior Legal Recruiting Manager in our Silicon Valley office. The Senior Legal Recruiting Manager will support the Director of Legal Recruiting and oversee lateral and entry-level legal recruiting. The Senior Legal Recruiting Manager will partner with talent management leaders; supervise a team of coordinators and assistants; drive the attorney hiring process and related initiatives; and collaborate with the firm’s attorneys and business professionals.

Job Responsibilities

• Manage the recruitment process for lateral associates, including: coordinate with local Hiring Partners and Practice Group Leaders, conduct outreach to and build professional relationships with search firm recruiters, strategically source candidates via internal referrals and targeted searches, review and screen candidate materials, manage the interview process, liaise with senior management on offer approvals, oversee candidate offer process and due diligence follow-up, work with HR and Immigration team on candidate sponsorship needs.

• Drive efforts and manage entry-level recruitment, including: coordinate with local Hiring Partners and law school teams, partner with law school career services offices and student organizations, plan for student outreach and events, develop and execute plan for on-campus engagement, set hiring targets, and oversee the interview and offer process.

• Plan and execute the West Coast Summer Associate Program, including but not limited to: oversee pre-onboarding communications, plan and execute orientation, trainings, events, work assignment process and evaluation collection, lead Summer Associate Committee meetings.

• Compile and utilize recruitment statistics and market trends in order to report on and optimize recruitment processes.

• Implement best hiring practices and recommend improvements to policies and processes.

• Partner with the Director of Legal Recruiting to implement firm and team strategic goals.

• Manage Legal Recruiting budget and reimbursement approvals.

• Oversee approval of attorney Legal Recruiting investment hours.

• Develop and lead interviewer trainings and new attorney Legal Recruiting orientation.

• Provide training, supervision, feedback, evaluations and mentorship to legal recruiting team members.

• Collaborate with Marketing and Diversity and Inclusion teams to develop Legal Recruiting brochures, swag and firm collateral.

• Oversee development and distribution of the quarterly Legal Recruiting Newsletter.

• Manage, train, evaluate, mentor and motivate direct reports, contributing to their development and advancement by setting standards, goals and expectations for expected and successful performance.

• Other duties and projects as assigned.

Job/Education Requirements

• The ideal candidate will have a bachelor’s degree and 5+ years of prior legal recruiting experience in a law firm.

• Prior supervisory experience.  

• Ability to work under pressure, prioritize competing demands, manage projects from inception to completion and meet various deadlines in a fast-paced environment.

• Superior written, organizational and communication skills.

• Excellent interpersonal skills to interact effectively with attorneys and professional staff at all levels and in differing jurisdictions.  

• Ability to work in a collaborative, team-oriented environment.

• Use of good judgment and discretion.

• Ability to work across multiple offices, travel as needed and work overtime, as needed.

• Knowledge of legal employment issues. 

• Ability to understand unconscious bias and its effect on recruiting and hiring. 

• Ability to set priorities, work independently and handle a variety of duties effectively under time constraints. 

• Resourceful ability to find creative solutions and avenues to fulfill the firm’s recruiting needs. 

• Highly proactive and responsive. 

• Proficiency in using social media platforms to promote the firm’s recruiting efforts. 

• Ability to develop and analyze reports and projections regarding market trends in diversity, legal recruiting and retention. 

• Ability to quickly and comfortably understand workflow and can document and improve it efficiently. 

• Experience with an applicant tracking system, such as LawCruit or viRecruit, and running data for reports. 

 
Preferred Requirements:  

• Member of professional organizations (such as NALP).  

• Experience with HRIS systems (preferably Workday).   

Status

• Full Time, Exempt.

• Hybrid.

The annualized base salary range for this position is expected to be $175,000.00-$200,000.00. While this range reflects the minimum and maximum value for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations, the offer for the successful candidate for this position will be based on job related capabilities, applicable experience, and other factors such as work location. Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only and do not include bonus, benefits, or related incentives for which this position is eligible.  

In addition to offering competitive salaries, we also offer an excellent benefits package, which includes comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage; 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan; Flexible Spending Account, Paid Time Off and fertility and family building support.

Gunderson Dettmer is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran, and basis of disability or any other federal, state or local protected class.