The Law Society of Ireland is seeking to appoint a Small Practice Business Support Executive, on a 2 year fixed term basis, who will take responsibility for delivering a range of business development supports to sole practitioner firms and other small practice firms. The person appointed will be employed within the Department of Representation and Member Services and she/he will report to the Head of Support Services.
Job Context
In 2018, the Law Society of Ireland conducted a Market Study to determine what could be done to better support solicitors working in sole practitioner firms and other small practices – particularly in rural areas. During 2019 the Small Practice Support Project (SPSP) is being rolled out and the person appointed to this role will be responsible for continuing initiatives commenced by the SPSP. The candidate will also set up and operate further initiatives that extend what the Law Society of Ireland does to support small practices in the areas of business development and efficiency.
Main Duties & Key Responsibilities
The successful candidate will carry out the following duties in line with the Society’s standards and strategic objectives and as directed by the Head of Support Services.
Initial Responsibilities
• Develop and regularly publish a Small Practice Business Bulletin and other publications as required.
• Manage the content on the Small Practice Business Hub on lawsociety.ie.
• Manage relationships with partner organisations that the Law Society forms in order to support small practice firms.
• Set up and run events for small practices including an annual conference.
• Set up and manage initiatives that promote the value of small practices.
• Investigate the viability of establishing an online small practice forum similar to SoloNet in Canada and GPSOLO in the USA.
• Produce and make available to members a Start Up kit for establishing a practice.
• Produce a plan and execute it to set up a mentoring programme that will be available to small practices.
• Look at options open to Support Services about how we can assist small practices in the area of information technology development.
Duties
• Develop long term plans for initiatives that have been set up by the SPSP, get agreement on these plans and then execute.
• Research matters and propose plans for new initiatives to support small practices, produce detailed plans and then execute.
• Liaise with other Departments and Committees internally to progress initiatives.
• Develop and deliver workshops and other information provision initiatives in order to support small firm practitioners with business development information.
• Engage in regular publicity and promotion of small practice support matters.
• Produce information in different formats to provide small firm practitioners with guidance on business development and business transition matters.
Provide assistance to the Head of Support Services and the Director of Representation and Member Services as and when required.
Knowledge & Skills
• At least 4 years’ professional experience.
• Minimum Bachelor’s Degree required in a business discipline.
• Good understanding of how small enterprises – and legal practices in particular – are effectively managed and developed.
• Knowledge of business marketing and how marketing plans are formulated.
• Experience in writing articles, publishing bulletins and other publications.
• Ability to write on business matters, proof read and edit documents in a timely manner.
• Excellent PC skills specifically with Microsoft Office.
• A high level of integrity and trust with confidential information.
• An adaptable approach to work and an ability to work unsupervised.
• Approachable and demonstrating a collegial manner in all dealings.
• A proven record of commitment to professional and client service excellence.
• Good knowledge of the legal profession.
Remuneration & Benefits
• Salary (DOE)
• Excellent working conditions
• Training & development opportunities
• Pension
How to Apply
Send your CV and cover letter to Recruit@lawsociety.ie. Please include salary expectations in your application.
Appointment to this role is subject to the candidate’s eligibility to work in Ireland without any restrictions.
Closing date
Close of Business 31 January 2020.
We thank you for your interest in the Law Society of Ireland and your interest in this role. Due to the level of response required, only successful candidates who are shortlisted will be contacted by the HR department. For more information on our Data Protection policies please send a request to recruit@lawsociety.ie.