Chief Information Officer

We have an exciting opportunity for a Chief Information Officer (CIO) at Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP. We are searching for someone who wants to be a valued contributor and member of a talented and dynamic team of lawyers, paralegals and business professionals.

The Chief Information Officer (CIO) is the firm's most senior technology executive, responsible for the full spectrum of information technology and innovation strategy, operations, and governance. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, the CIO leads two integrated functions: a broad operational IT organization spanning infrastructure, cybersecurity, cloud, core applications, and end-user computing; and an Innovation department driving AI adoption, legal technology strategy, research, data analytics, and practice group alignment. The CIO will be central to realizing the firm's ambition to deliver tech-enabled legal service—leveraging AI and emerging technologies to make service delivery to its global client base better, faster, and more cost-effective.

This position is the single accountable executive for how technology is deployed, consumed, and continuously evolved across the firm. The CIO translates firm strategy into technology investment, manages a complex multi-hundred tool vendor ecosystem, and ensures that both operational resilience and competitive innovation remain core capabilities.

The role requires a proactive leader equally fluent in infrastructure reliability and AI-driven transformation, who can build trust with partners and associate-level attorneys alike, and who understands the distinctive competitive, regulatory, and ethical environment of a large global law firm.

Key Responsibilities:

Technology Strategy \& Executive Leadership

• Defines and executes a unified technology and innovation strategy aligned to the firm's business plan, client service commitments, and competitive positioning—with a mandate to advance tech-enabled legal services.
• Serves as a trusted advisor to firm leadership on technology operations, investments, risks, and capabilities—translating complex topics for attorneys and business professionals.
• Represents IT and Innovation on firm governance bodies including the AI Governance Committee, Risk Committee, Executive Committee, and Global Board.
• Monitors competitive intelligence across peer firms and alternative providers and positions the firm to lead in adoption of transformative capabilities.
• Anticipates structural disruptions, including generative AI impacts on the lawyer leverage model and economics, ensuring technology supports adaptation and evolving client expectations.

Innovation \& AI Adoption

• Leads the Innovation function, overseeing AI strategy, legal tool deployment, and lifecycle of evaluation, piloting, and adoption across practice groups.
• Supports the AI Governance Committee, ensuring responsible deployment, confidentiality compliance, and ethical AI use.
• Drives attorney-facing AI adoption with practice leaders to improve matter quality, reduce cycle time, lower cost-to-serve, and differentiate client deliverables.
• Oversees evaluation, procurement, and performance of legal AI tools and research platforms.
• Develops and maintains AI governance frameworks, including usage tracking by client and matter.
• Cultivates a culture of continuous innovation and urgency across lawyers and business professionals.

Legal Technology \& Practice Group Alignment

• Aligns technology capabilities to Practice Group needs to improve outcomes.
• Oversees legal research platform strategy including vendor selection, training, and integration.
• Leads data analysis and legal analytics for practice management, pricing, and business development.
• Governs data integration architecture, including data lake strategy and API integrations.
• Owns the firm’s intranet platform as a knowledge and communication hub.

Technology Training \& Change Enablement

• Oversees technology training for onboarding, adoption, and proficiency.
• Designs training suited to attorneys, including just-in-time and on-demand formats.
• Leads change management for major deployments to ensure readiness and adoption.
• Measures and reports adoption metrics.

Infrastructure \& Operations

• Oversees design and reliability of LAN, WAN, cloud, and AI infrastructure.
• Owns Azure environment governance, FinOps, and cost optimization.
• Ensures availability and performance of core applications (iManage, Interaction, Aderant, Microsoft).
• Directs AV and conferencing infrastructure.
• Leads desktop engineering, deployment, and lifecycle management.
• Oversees mobile device management and endpoint security.
• Drives patching and vulnerability remediation with the CISO.

Cybersecurity \& Risk Governance

• Oversees security through the CISO, ensuring compliance with client, regulatory, and insurance expectations.
• Fosters a risk-aware culture, especially regarding AI and confidentiality.
• Maintains best practices for data retention, e-discovery, and breach preparedness.
• Provides cybersecurity reporting to leadership.

Service Delivery \& User Experience

• Oversees user support, helpdesk, and onboarding.
• Defines service levels and continuous improvement programs.
• Ensures onboarding supports rapid productivity.
• Supports attorney productivity across mobile, remote, and client environments.

Vendor, Contract \& Financial Management

• Manages vendor portfolio, contracts, renewals, and spend.
• Leads budget planning and financial accountability.
• Drives portfolio rationalization and cost visibility.
• Manages strategic vendor relationships.

Project Management \& Program Delivery

• Oversees PMO for methodology, planning, and communication.
• Prioritizes projects aligned to strategy and capacity.
• Leads complex programs including migrations and integrations.
• Applies rigor to Innovation initiatives with defined outcomes.

People Leadership \& Organizational Development

• Leads and develops a high-performing IT and Innovation team.
• Fosters accountability, curiosity, and service excellence.
• Defines organizational structure and career frameworks.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Required

• 15\+ years in technology leadership, including 5\+ years in senior roles (CIO, CTO, etc.).
• Experience leading IT operations and innovation in a legal or professional services environment.
• Expertise in infrastructure, cloud (Azure), endpoint management, and applications.
• Experience scaling AI tools with strong governance.
• Experience managing large vendor portfolios and budgets.
• Ability to influence executive and partner audiences.
• Experience with cybersecurity governance.
• Strong program management experience.

Preferred

• Experience with iManage, Aderant/Elite, and Microsoft 365\.
• Experience with legal AI tools and research platforms.
• Data architecture and integration experience.
• Familiarity with legal analytics and business development tools.
• Experience with office expansions and global organizations.
• Azure operations experience.
• Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or advanced degree a plus.
• Relevant certifications (CISSP, CISM, ITIL, PMP) a plus.

Core Competencies

• Strategic vision across IT and innovation in a partnership environment.
• Executive presence with attorneys and leadership.
• Ability to lead change and integrate teams.
• Judgment in cybersecurity, AI governance, and vendor management.
• Collaborative leadership across functions.
• Clear communication of complex concepts.
• Market awareness of legal technology.
• Balance of speed and risk management.
• Operational discipline and accountability.

This is a hybrid role and will require on-site presence 3 days per week. The salary ranges for this position vary depending on the geographic location and other factors such as experience, internal equity, market data, and job-related considerations. The range for this position is from $375,000 - $920,000, with offers contingent upon the various factors. The firm’s compensation strategy includes not just a base salary but also comprehensive benefits such as healthcare, paid time off, discretionary merit bonuses, life and disability insurance, retirement plans and tailored learning opportunities.

Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion within our Firm and in the larger legal profession. We believe that diverse skills, knowledge and viewpoints make us a stronger firm. Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP maintains a policy of affording all employees and applicants equal employment opportunities without regard to actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity or expression or transgender status), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital or familial status, domestic violence victim status, ancestry, amnesty, citizenship status, ethnicity, military and veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Unlawful discrimination, harassment and retaliation will not be tolerated in any of the Firm’s offices or any other work-related setting. Qualified individuals with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation in order to apply for a position or to enable them to perform the essential functions of a position for which they are otherwise qualified. EEO.