Director of Legal Engagement

With 500+ professionals and 350+ business professionals, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP (www.manatt.com), is a multidisciplinary, integrated national professional services firm known for quality and an extraordinary commitment to clients. The Firm’s groundbreaking approach—bringing together legal services, advocacy and business strategy—differentiates Manatt from its competitors and positions the Firm to provide a distinct and compelling value proposition.

Opportunity

The Director of Legal Engagement & Optimization will be a senior member of the Talent team, responsible for partnering with Business Group Leaders, Business Unit Leaders, and Attorney Leadership to drive strategic attorney staffing, workload optimization, development alignment, and talent sustainability across the Firm’s legal practices.

This role plays a critical connective function between practice leadership, practice management, recruiting, and training and development, performance and advancement teams to ensuring that the Firm’s attorney resources are deployed effectively in support of client service, attorney growth, and Firm profitability.

Key Responsibilities

Attorney Staffing, Utilization & Optimization

• Develop and implement the Firm’s attorney staffing and resource optimization strategy, aligning matter demand, pipeline projections, attorney skill sets, seniority mix, and development needs with client service requirements across practices and offices.

• Establish and maintain staffing policies, workflows, and governance structures to support consistent, transparent, and equitable attorney work allocation.

• Analyze matter pipelines, demand forecasts, and utilization trends to identify staffing risks, hiring needs, leverage opportunities, and structural constraints.

• Collaborate with Business Group Leaders, Business Unit Leaders, and designated staffing attorneys to oversee attorney work assignment processes and proactively manage capacity, utilization, and workload balance.

• Track and interpret key attorney staffing and utilization metrics, translating insights into actionable recommendations that support productivity while balancing attorney development, engagement, and well-being.

Attorney Development & Performance Management

• In close partnership with Training and Development and Performance and Advancement teams, support the attorney performance review cycle by helping ensure reviews are timely, calibrated, and grounded in workload and matter experience data.

• Collaborate with Practice Leaders to identify high‑performing attorneys as well as attorneys facing specific challenges, facilitating targeted coaching, mentoring, or development interventions.

• Support the implementation of review feedback and development plans, working with Talent Team members to align attorneys’ matter exposure with growth and advancement goals.

Integration, Engagement & Retention

• Partner with Strategic Growth, Legal Training, Practice Management and other business professionals to shape and support the successful onboarding, integration, and engagement strategies for all non-partner attorneys and paralegals. 

• Partner with Business Directors on leading initiatives to enhance engagement, retention, and career satisfaction across attorney populations.

• Take an active role in the Summer Associate Program, including but not limited to, being the point person for the Summer Associates, Summer Chairs, Work Allocation Coordinators and Mentors; strategically plan the Summer Associate target numbers and interview all potential Summer Associates.

• Serve as Business Professional representative on Associate Leadership Committee.

• Manage and administer policies related to non-partner attorneys, including in office attendance, hours, and bar admission policies. Provide hands-on support for attorney transitions, including internal moves, practice transfers, leaves, visas, secondments and separations, and coordinate outplacement or transition support when applicable. Ensure streamlined coordination and clear communication of firmwide policies, procedures, and available resources.

Compensation & Advancement

• Oversee annual salary and bonus programs for Associates, Staff Attorneys, Paralegals, and Specialists in close collaboration with CEO, CLO and COO.

• Advise partners and leadership on compensation decisions by analyzing performance data, market considerations, and internal equity.

• Provide strategic guidance and support related to advancement decisions, role changes, and career progression.

Recruiting, Hiring & Onboarding

• Partner with Practice Leaders and Strategic Growth to identify attorney hiring priorities and role profiles, ensuring hiring decisions reflect evolving practice needs and capacity forecasts.

• Contribute to the design and execution of a robust onboarding and integration experience for new attorneys, supporting early engagement, productivity, and long‑term retention.

Culture, Inclusion & Attorney Experience

• Collaborate with the Firm’s Diversity & Inclusion function to champion initiatives that support an inclusive, equitable attorney experience and strengthen engagement across practices.

• Partner with HR and Benefits teams to promote attorney well‑being and sustainable workload practices.

• Support exit interviews and feedback analysis to identify systemic improvement opportunities related to attorney engagement, workload, and development.

Qualifications

• JD required; additional graduate degree (e.g., MBA) a plus.

• 12+ years of experience in a law firm or client‑centered professional services environment, with demonstrated responsibility for attorney staffing, practice management, or resource optimization.

• Deep understanding of law firm economics, including utilization, leverage, realization, and the attorney life cycle.

• Strong analytical capability, with experience leveraging financial, utilization, and workforce data to inform strategy and decision‑making.

• Proven ability to build credibility with attorneys and partners, and to influence across seniority levels, including equity stakeholders.

• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information and drive alignment.

• Highly collaborative, proactive, and comfortable operating in a matrixed, multi‑office environment.

• Executive presence, judgment, and discretion in handling confidential and sensitive matters.

• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines.

• Advanced proficiency in Excel, PowerPoint, and Word; experience with staffing or practice management systems preferred.

• Ability to travel as needed.

The base annual pay range for this role is between $200,000-$260,000. The base pay to be offered will vary and depend on skills and qualifications, experience and location.  A full range of medical, financial and/or other benefits dependent on the position will also be offered.

EEO/AA EMPLOYER/Veterans/Disabled

Manatt is an equal opportunity employer, dedicated to a policy of non-discrimination in employment on any basis including race, color, physical or mental disability, religion, creed, national origin, citizenship status, ancestry, sex or gender (including gender identity, gender expression, status as a transgender or transsexual individual, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), age (over 40), genetic information, past, current, or prospective service in the uniformed services, sexual orientation, political activity or affiliation, genetic or and any other protected classes or characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law. Consistent with the American Disabilities Act, applicants may request accommodations needed to participate in the application process.