Director of Business Development (Palo Alto)

Director of Business DevelopmentCooley is seeking a Director of Business Development to join the Marketing and Client Development team.Position summary: This role is part of the Business Development Team, which leads the firm’s business development efforts in the market, in close partnership with Marketing, to build relationships, generate opportunities, and support growth across priority clients, prospects, and sectors. Responsible for engaging directly with key clients, strategic pursuits, and firm leadership to drive business growth, strengthen market presence, and translate competitive intelligence into actionable strategies. Specific duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: Position responsibilities: Regional Strategic Leadership: Set the business development agenda for each market in alignment with firm priorities, maintaining total oversight of pipeline health, activity levels, and revenue trends across the region. Market Growth & Executive Engagement: Support priority client relationships and strategic opportunities by engaging directly in the market where senior business development involvement is required to open doors or advance complex work. Agile Resource & Strategy Management: Continuously evaluate results and market conditions to adjust strategies and reallocate resources, ensuring the team remains focused on the highest-value activities and growth levers. Integrated Marketing & BD Alignment: Drive total alignment between regional BD and Marketing efforts, ensuring that outreach, events, campaigns, and follow-up activities are executed as a single, coordinated motion. Execution Discipline & Follow-Through: Instill a culture of consistency across the region, implementing the structure and systems necessary to improve follow-through on leads and ensure reliable execution of the growth plan. Team Leadership & Talent Development: Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team of BD professionals across the region, setting clear performance expectations and reinforcing rigorous accountability for results. Cross-Firm Connectivity: Partner with firm leaders, partners, and enabling teams to ensure regional efforts are seamlessly connected to broader firm capabilities and global strategic priorities. Market Intelligence & Feedback: Maintain high visibility in the market to stay ahead of competitive developments, sharing real-time client feedback and market insights to inform firm-wide investment and strategic decisions. Collaborative Market Coordination: Act as the primary bridge between regional activity and the firm’s centralized resources, ensuring a unified one-firm approach to client engagement and market-facing initiatives. People Leader: Serve as direct supervisor and mentor to direct reports Provide day-to-day supervision of direct reports, ensure compliance with assigned work hours and monitor for compliance with all firm and department policies. Manage staffing coverage, review and process time logs/time off requests Support business professional development and continued educational opportunities In collaboration with immediate supervisor and central HR, participate in hiring, performance appraisals, counseling, termination and other employee lifecycle events All other duties as assigned or required Skills and experience: Required: After orientation at Cooley LLP, exhibit proficiency in the Microsoft Office suite, iManage and other firm applications Ability to work extended and/or weekend hours, as required Ability to travel, as required 10+ years of directly relevant exempt-level experience (e.g., marketing or business development), with 5+ years of management experience in relevant roles Market-facing presence including a leverageable network Commercial instinct and proven relationship building skills, including strong working knowledge of enterprise CRM ecosystems (e.g., Salesforce) Proven track record of effective leadership Bachelor’s degree Preferred: Prior legal industry or professional services experience Competencies: Entrepreneurial by nature Excellent attention to detail Approaches tasks through a lens of quality and consistency Approaches tasks through a digital first lens Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills with ability to facilitate and solve problems Ability to organize, prioritize and coordinate multiple activities often under tight timelines Takes a consultative approach to set goals, drive projects, and achieve outcomes Strong judgment Team-player with collaborative spirit Unwavering ability to handle and maintain confidentiality regarding firm information, projects, client data High level of professionalism at all times Demonstrated ability to lead through influence and develop talent Proactive, analytical mindset Effective presentation skills Cooley offers a competitive compensation and excellent benefits package and is committed to fair and equitable employment practices. EOE.The expected annual pay range for this position with a full-time schedule is $280,000 - $340,000.Please note that final offer amount will be dependent on geographic location, applicable experience and skillset of the candidate. We offer a full range of elective benefits including medical, health savings account (with applicable medical plan), dental, vision, health and/or dependent care flexible spending accounts, pre-tax commuter benefits, life insurance, AD&D, long-term care coverage, backup care for children and/or adults and other parental support benefits. In addition to elective benefit options, benefited employees receive firm-paid life insurance, AD&D, LTD, short term medical benefits as well as 25 days of Paid Time Off (“PTO”) and 10 paid holidays each year. We provide generous parental leave and fertility benefits. New employees will attend a detailed benefit orientation to learn more about our many benefits and resources.SummaryLocation: San Francisco; Santa Monica; Los Angeles; Palo Alto; Colorado; Seattle; San DiegoType: Full time