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Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP

Client Relationship Manager

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Overview

Client Relationship Manager

Penningtons Manches Cooper is a leading UK and international law firm, recognised for combining legal expertise with a deep understanding of our clients’ commercial objectives. With over 400 specialist lawyers, we provide a full-service offering tailored to the needs of businesses and individuals, delivering high-quality, practical legal advice across a range of sectors.

Our Marketing and Business Development team plays a central role in driving the firm’s strategic growth ambitions. Comprising 28 dedicated professionals, the team has been recognised as a finalist for Best Business Support Team at the British Legal Awards in both 2024 and 2025, reflecting its impact in delivering commercially focused and innovative BD initiatives across the firm and a testament to its collaborative approach.

The role

We are seeking a Client Relationship Manager to play a key role in shaping and delivering the firm’s client and referrer programmes at an important stage of their development.

This is a newly created role, offering an exciting opportunity to help embed and evolve a structured, firmwide approach to client and referrer relationship management. Working closely with the Senior Client Experience Manager, partners and the wider Business Development team, you will be responsible for driving the day-to-day delivery of client and referrer initiatives, ensuring momentum, consistency and measurable impact.

This role will act as a critical link between strategy and execution supporting partners in managing priority relationships, while helping to build a sustainable and scalable client programme for the future.

Responsibilities

Client and Referrer Relationship Management

  • Support partners in developing and maintaining strong relationships with priority clients and referrers
  • Manage a portfolio of key client and referrer accounts, ensuring agreed plans are implemented and actions are progressed
  • Act as a central point of coordination, maintaining regular engagement and ensuring continuity across relationships
  • Help identify opportunities to strengthen relationships, mitigate risk and enhance client experience

Programme Development and Delivery

  • Play a key role in shaping and embedding the firm’s client and referrer programmes
  • Support the ongoing development of frameworks, processes and best practice to ensure consistency across the firm
  • Contribute to the evolution of the programmes, identifying opportunities for enhancement based on feedback and performance
  • Help ensure the programmes are practical, sustainable and aligned to the firm’s strategic objectives

Account Planning and Coordination

  • Support the development and delivery of structured client and referrer account plans
  • Coordinate cross-practice engagement, ensuring a joined-up and consistent approach across teams and jurisdictions
  • Track delivery against agreed actions, maintaining momentum and accountability
  • Prepare briefing materials and updates to support partner engagement

Insight, Reporting and CRM Development

  • Improve client and referrer insight through structured data gathering and analysis
  • Produce clear, data-led insights and recommendations to support relationship development and growth
  • Support the effective use and development of client relationship tools and systems (including CRM as it evolves)
  • Contribute to establishing consistent reporting and measurement of client programme effectiveness

Stakeholder Engagement and Enablement

  • Work closely with partners to support effective relationship management, providing structure, coordination and follow-through
  • Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders across practice groups and business services teams
  • Help reduce administrative burden on partners by ensuring consistent planning, tracking and reporting
  • Support the Senior Client Experience Manager in enabling a more strategic, forward-looking approach

Continuous Improvement and Best Practice

  • Capture and share best practice across client and referrer management activity
  • Help identify opportunities to improve processes, tools and ways of working
  • Contribute to building a consistent, high-quality approach to client relationship management across the firm
  • Support the transition to a more structured and sustainable model of client programme delivery

Essential & Desirable Criteria

  • 3-5 years' experience in a client relationship role, ideally within legal or professional services
  • A collaborative and adaptable approach, with a willingness to work in a developing and evolving environment as we drive our client and referrer programme forward
  • Confidence working with senior stakeholders, including partners
  • A proactive and commercially minded approach, with an passion for client development and relationship management
  • Ability to coordinate activity across teams and drive momentum
  • Strong organisational and project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple workstreams and stakeholders
  • Strong analytical skills, with the ability to turn data and insight into practical recommendations
  • Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal

What You’ll Gain

  • The opportunity to help shape and build a firmwide client and referrer programme from an early stage
  • A high-impact role where your contribution will directly influence client growth and retention
  • Direct exposure to partners and involvement in managing high-value client relationships
  • Experience of both the strategic and operational aspects of client relationship management
  • The chance to develop skills in account planning, client insight and programme delivery
  • A collaborative and supportive environment, with clear opportunities for development and progression

Why Join Us Now

This is a particularly exciting time to join. With the recent launch of our client programme and continued development of our referrer programme, we are focused on building a more structured, insight-led and sustainable approach to relationship management.

This role has been created to ensure we can fully realise the value of these investments providing dedicated support to drive consistent delivery, strengthen relationships and unlock growth opportunities across the firm.

This is a unique opportunity to play a central role in shaping how the firm manages and develops its most important relationships.

Working Arrangements

The firm operates a hybrid agile working policy, enabling employees to work from home (or another UK location) for up to 50% of their time.

At our firm, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is a priority and at the heart of everything we do. We actively want to attract a diverse workforce and welcome applications from everyone, from all backgrounds. We are committed to promoting an inclusive culture where everyone can be their full selves and experience being seen and heard. You can find out more about our firm’s commitment, initiatives and Pennclusion committees here.

We ensure that there are equal opportunities and treatment for all job applicants and employees, at all stages of the recruitment process and employment, regardless of age, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, disability, race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and social background. We aim to provide adjustments for people who have a disability, long-term health condition (including mental health) or neurodiversity. If you would like to request an adjustment, please contact Sam.Austin@penningtonslaw.com