Recruiting a Senior Business Development Manager for a leading international law firm
The challenge
A leading international law firm in London required a new Senior Business Development Manager to cover a 12-month maternity leave contract. The role was particularly critical as it sat within the firm’s largest practice area, reporting directly to the Head of Business Development and managing two direct reports.
Initially, the firm attempted to recruit independently but faced challenges in securing the right candidate. Given the competitive market for senior business development professionals, they engaged Carter Murray after an unsuccessful direct search.
The key challenges included:
- Finding a high-calibre candidate with legal sector experience, ideally within the relevant practice group
- Ensuring the candidate had team management experience
Securing a high-quality fixed-term contract (FTC) hire who could start within two months to allow for a proper handover
The solution
To find the right candidate within a tight timeframe, we took a proactive and multi-channel approach.
- We advertised the role across multiple platforms, including our website and LinkedIn
- We conducted a targeted headhunt and leveraged our internal database to identify candidates that matched the firm’s requirements’
- We reached out to a high volume of our contacts asking for referrals
When presenting the opportunity, we focused on key selling points:
- The chance to work at a highly regarded law firm
- A leadership opportunity, managing a team and reporting into the Head of Business Development
- The personalities and the culture of the existing team
- The potential for the role and what made this role stand out over all the other roles in the market
The outcome
After consulting with the firm’s HR team and the incumbent, we quickly covered the market through advertising and direct outreach.
Within a month, we had:
- Delivered a shortlist of seven candidates
- Secured two strong finalists, who both progressed to final interview stages
- Successfully placed a candidate who was able to start swiftly, ensuring a smooth transition and extended handover period
The placed candidate has now settled into the role and is successfully supporting the firm’s largest practice area, delivering business development initiatives and managing the team effectively.
TESTIMONIAL
“Eloise filled a recent requirement of a Senior Business Development Manager at our firm. Eloise was great during the whole process. We had a difficult and urgent requirement in which she was able to supply us with suitable candidates which matched the brief. Eloise was very responsive throughout the process and showed great candidate control. I would highly recommend her in this space as she is an expert in her field.”
RoleS
Senior Business Development Manager
Region
London
Industry
International Law Firm