Role purpose

To support all activities to drive the effective procurement and management of business and legal research tools and databases. The role-holder will manage a portfolio of products in alignment with the global and regional Information & Research (I&R) strategies and global Procurement strategy and guidelines. They will assist the Information Product Management (IPM) Service Owner and global IPM Lead with vendor management initiatives with an increased focus on return on investment and value-add.

In this role, the individual will drive the procurement and management of practice, functional, global and regional products and subscriptions for the firm’s practice groups and functions, ensuring they deliver value and ROI for the firm. They will proactively monitor and manage the products’ usage, support vendor management initiatives, and strengthen relationships with key vendors.

Main responsibilities

Service Orientation

• Build and nurture strong internal relationships across Knowledge and Information & Research, Procurement, Finance, Technology and Operations teams and external relationships with suppliers of practice, regional and global information resources and products to ensure effective collaboration and mutual success
• Support regional I&R teams in managing, negotiating and reviewing supplier contracts for products, including those with AI capabilities, per global Procurement guidelines and budget parameters, and achieving practice, global, regional, and local office savings targets
• Utilize effective communication and persuasive techniques to influence stakeholders and drive positive outcomes in projects and initiatives. Cultivates responsive, positive and productive relationships, delivering value through effective communication with stakeholders and key relationships
• Promote the I&R services, and IPM and AI policies, processes, and guidelines in practices and regions
• Contribute substantively to providing IPM services by working on Knowledge projects and initiatives as required

Knowledge & Expertise

• Possess and maintain expert knowledge of the suite of I&R resources and products offered by the Firm globally, regionally and locally, promoting their value, features, and functionality to other Knowledge colleagues, business professionals and lawyers
• Manage access requests and troubleshoot access issues for the Firm’s portfolio of products, delegating as appropriate. Answer questions relating to licensing issues and provide advice on appropriate use, ensuring adherence to the Firm’s policies on use
• Conduct thorough data analysis to identify trends, patterns, and insights that inform business decisions and strategies
• Help implement global and regional guidelines for new product requests, curating business cases, conducting trials, product assessments and gathering feedback. This also includes product cancellations and rationalisations
• Lead on trialling new products, engaging with stakeholders, budget managers and potential users to include post-trial surveys and reaching evidence-based business decisions
• Lead on the delivery of information resources and product outreach and training plans, including tailoring training to educate specific groups and meet specific needs
• Commit to continuous improvements of IPM policies and processes to incorporate efficiencies, new procedures, upgrades and changes to best practice
• Where appropriate, assist with reviews and analyses of practice, functional, global and regional I&R subscription budgets, and support the Knowledge leadership with the global Knowledge budget, to achieve best outcomes between budget parameters and appropriate product mix

Operational Efficiencies, Quality and Risk Mitigation

• Support the Service Owner with the management of service-related issues and stakeholder feedback, troubleshooting and delivering continuous service improvements to maintain quality assurance and minimise business impact and risk, escalating any challenges promptly where appropriate
• Leverage AI and other digital solutions to enhance productivity, drive innovation, and improve the quality of outputs across practice groups, sectors and business functions
• Support with the planning, scheduling, prioritizing and delivering all routine and non-routine work and the effective delivery of IPM enquiries and requests, providing oversight and guidance as required
• Act as internal champion for Knowledge, I&R and GenAI products and tools, ensuring that business professionals and lawyers engage with them effectively
• Champion the appropriate use of all products by agreed terms and conditions of use, mitigating reputational damage to the firm, with a specific emphasis on GenAI

Travel requirements: No traveling required

Function

The Knowledge function is a firm-wide team of nearly 300 professionals, including Knowledge Lawyers, Information & Research professionals, and a variety of other functional specialists. The Knowledge function helps the firm deliver better legal solutions by producing and providing easy access to high-quality, relevant legal information for both lawyers and clients. The focus is on the following areas:

• Content – creating, collecting and providing access to market-leading precedents, sample documents, practice notes, training materials and other know-how for our lawyers and clients, reviewing and updating regularly, to ensure that the content is current and market-leading
• Systems – working with the Technology function to design, develop and build user-friendly and flexible platforms to store know-how and deliver it intuitively to lawyers and clients, adopting common systems across all offices and practice/industry groups
• Culture – striving to establish Knowledge as a core part of every lawyer’s role, engaging actively with all lawyers in the firm and encouraging them to share their knowhow and expertise with colleagues as openly as possible; embracing a “one team” culture within the Firm’s Knowledge community ensuring that all team members create and develop high quality local content while being aligned with our global strategy and approach

You will report to: Service Owner, Information Product Management Services

Your direct reports, if any: N/A

Key relationships:

• Global Information Product Management Lead
• Regional I&R Leads and In-Market I&R Teams
• Center IPM teams
• Knowledge Specialists for I&R and GenAI
• Knowledge Functional leadership
• Knowledge Partners, Knowledge Lawyers and KM Managers
• Procurement, Finance, Operations and Technology Leads & Managers

Technical skills, qualifications and experience:

• Relevant experience of knowledge, technology, Information and research procurement in a professional services environment, ideally law firms
• Extensive experience in dealing with information suppliers and vendors, negotiating pricing and contracts at a regional and/or global level
• Expert knowledge and understanding of a diverse set of knowledge and information resources
• Proficient and experienced with utilizing and managing knowledge, information & research tools and platforms, including AI, as well as proficiency with data analysis
• Working within a large and complex, matrixed environment with multiple stakeholders and interest groups
• Able to manage multiple stakeholders, build strong relationships virtually, communicate effectively, comfortable working in a large, complex environment, credible and persuasive
• Excellent organizational skills; ability to prioritise and manage time to meet deadlines
• Demonstrated ability to drive results and a sense of urgency in executing against the objectives
• Proven ability to influence, interact and consult with senior leaders, strong collaboration skills and effective stakeholder management
• Persuasive communication skills and strong presentation skills

Personal qualities

These personal qualities represent the shared characteristics of high performers across Baker McKenzie, regardless of job level and location.

Know-how

• Demonstrates the ability to identify the real issue, and to anticipate requirements and potential consequences; distills a range of possibilities by thinking in a considered, prudent manner
• Has the capacity to take on new ideas and develop knowledge and think holistically about business and address media, analyst, employee, and client audiences
• Able to move through a variety of tasks requiring different approaches, knowledge, and expertise, with the agility of mind and capacity for analysis and synthesis

Dedication

• Driven by a strong personal sense of integrity and upholds exemplary quality standards
• Prepares thoroughly, takes responsibility, uses initiative, and is self-reliant to ensure work progresses to the fullest extent possible
• Hardworking and diligent with a keen understanding of client demands
• Demonstrates composure when dealing with difficult situations

Personal Impact

• Uses complex, coordinated influencing/negotiation strategies, adapted to people, organizations, and/or the situation, e.g. networks
• Leverages direct reports to facilitate increased collaboration across the organization
• Builds partnerships based on a common agreement that acknowledges individual differences but creates a new commonality beyond root belief, large-scale
• Creates a positive impression at all times; develops relationships through collaboration and reciprocity
• Negotiates to achieve mutually satisfactory outcomes; shows good judgment on when to stand strong and when to compromise
• Invests in, nurtures, and builds a network of productive relationships

Humanity

• Respectful to others, regardless of their position, and earns the respect of others by being transparent
• Has care and concern for others and a genuine interest in others as people
• Treats delicate or confidential issues with discretion

About Baker McKenzie

Complex business challenges require an integrated response across different markets, sectors, and areas of law. Baker McKenzie’s client solutions provide seamless advice, underpinned by deep practice and sector expertise, as well as first-rate local market knowledge. Across more than 70 offices globally, Baker McKenzie works alongside our clients to deliver solutions for a connected world.

We are committed to promoting diversity and inclusion for all. Our unique international culture is reflected in the drawing together of a worldwide family of individuals from diverse cultures and backgrounds in all of our offices. We encourage the best people — regardless of race, religion, or belief, if any, gender, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, or age — to fulfill their professional aspirations with us.

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