Our client is a full-service commercial law firm based in London’s legal district. They have more than 60 partners and over 300 employees. The Finance department is made up of a central management team, Cashiers, Billing and Credit Control teams.
Due to expansion, they now have an opening for a Working Capital Manager to join their team on a permanent basis. Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer the Working Capital Manager role heads up a team of twenty seven staff based across London, Cardiff and Belfast. The Working Capital Manager will be responsible for all aspects of the firm’s billing, e-billing and credit control including the overseas offices. The Working Capital Manager is supported by a Credit Control Manager, a Billing Manager and an E-Billing Manager who have day to day responsibility for managing the teams. This role is heavily project based to drive the firm’s aspiration to become a Tech enabled law firm.
Responsibilities
- Taking responsibility for the firm’s Working Capital Management and driving forward initiatives to reduce the firm’s lock-up. This will include the end-to-end billing process and credit control process. This is currently a key area of focus in the firm.
- Ensuring the team establish strong working relationships with all partners through regular review meetings to ensure that focus is maintained on timely billing and debt collection in order to meet agreed targets and billing timetables.
- Chairing the firm’s Finance Committee, which meets monthly to review the firm’s exposure, set credit limits for clients, and review any process changes that impact working capital management.
- Member of the Data Governance Committee, which meets quarterly to review data across the firm concerning compliance and risk implications.
- Ensuring that regular billing patterns, and where possible monthly billing cycles, are established taking care that any special billing arrangements are observed.
- Ensuring use of the firm’s e-billing hub is maximised and e-billing polices are adhered to.
- Working with the firm’s external debt collection agency to collect problematic debt.
- Accepting responsibility and taking ownership of operational issues, finding practical solutions and escalating problems where appropriate. This will involve liaison with the finance systems team.
- Involvement in the firm’s quarterly reporting routines, including reporting progress against the firm’s strategic objectives and lock-up targets.
- Setting charge out rates including leading the annual review process and review of historic rates.
- All aspects of team management, including appraisals, recruitment and encouraging the team to develop within their roles, supported by the Credit Control Manager, Billing Manager and e-billing Manager.
Candidate Profile
- Reviewing the firms billing workflow, this was rolled out to the firm in October 2021 and we have applied a cyclical change review process to ensure that maximum benefits are realised from the new system.
- E-Billing Hub review and system integration.
- Establishing alternative billing approaches for non-standard service items.
- Reviewing rate structures to achieve a consistent approach firm-wide.
- Enhancing and simplifying reports used for lock-up and broader financial management decisions.
- Reviewing the use of Elite’s credit control module alongside alternative market solutions to optimise the credit control process.
- A review of the New Joiner training for Finance across Partners, Fee Earners and Business Services teams.
Important Notice
It is Career Legal’s policy, as a matter of courtesy, to respond to all applications within three working days. However because of the volume of applications, we are sometimes unable to respond to individual candidates. If we have not contacted you within three working days your application has been unsuccessful and your details have not been retained. Please apply for any other position that you may see in the future. Thank you.
Career Legal is a Recruitment Agency and is advertising this contract vacancy on behalf of one of its Clients.
