Legal Operations Manager in London

£65,000 - £75,000 plus benefits

Reports to: Lead Senior Solicitor

Directorate: Research & Innovation

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time 35 hours per week

Location: Stratford, London - High Flex (1-2 days per week in the office)

Closing date: Friday 24th April 23:55pm

Recruitment process: Competency-based interview process with task. Interview date: Approximately week commencing 4th May 2026

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer. We are excited to offer a newly created opportunity for a Legal Operations Manager to join our Research & Innovation Legal team. This is a pivotal role with real scope to make a meaningful impact, shaping how we deliver legal services that support life‑changing research.

In this role, you will lead continuous improvement across our Research & Innovation legal operations and systems. You will play a key part in reviewing and developing our legal operating model and strategy, identifying opportunities to streamline processes, optimise existing technologies, and explore innovative new technical solutions. Working closely with the Director of Legal, Lead Senior Solicitors, and stakeholders across the organisation, you will design, deliver, and communicate transformative change. Together, you will redefine how we deliver legal services, establish best practice, and embed smarter, more effective ways of working across the function. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who thrives on improvement, collaboration, and making a tangible difference within a purpose‑driven organisation.

About Cancer Research Horizons: As the world’s biggest medical research charity, we have helped bring eleven new cancer drugs to market. However, there is still an urgent need to bring more effective treatments to patients faster. We have recently developed a new approach to driving therapeutic innovation through the creation of Cancer Research Horizons (CRH). We have brought together Cancer Research UK’s established drug discovery teams under one organisation and leadership team, combining our unique pipeline of cancer biology expertise and access to CRUK’s world-class academic network, cutting edge technology platforms and clinical expertise to 1) Bring new treatments to patients faster and 2) Tackle the biggest challenges in discovering cancer drugs by seeking out more radical ideas and embracing risk in our bid to achieve success. Based at sites across the UK, you will be joining over 200 staff from both industrial and academic backgrounds, all dedicated to bringing forward the day we cure cancer.

What will you be doing?

• Operational Strategy & Process Improvement: Review, develop, and innovate the legal service model to improve efficiency and effectiveness. Lead process mapping, workflow design, and implementation of best practices, including contracting and approval processes, playbooks and operating procedures. Identify opportunities for continuous improvement and operational excellence across legal services. Oversee design, development, and maintenance of process documentation, governance strategies, and workflows.
• Technology & Legal Tech Integration: Develop and implement a long‑term roadmap for legal technology and AI adoption and optimisation, ensuring alignment with organisational priorities and R&I Legal needs. Manage integration of legal technology and AI tools within existing systems, working closely with suppliers and internal technology teams to ensure smooth deployment and interoperability. Evaluate, pilot and roll out new technologies - such as case management systems, intake portals, automation, document‑intelligence tools, knowledge-management and other AI‑enabled solutions - addressing operational challenges across R&I Legal and wider organisation. Design and prototype lightweight custom AI solutions where required, lead responsible implementation (including governance, risk and compliance considerations), deliver stakeholder training, and monitor emerging AI capabilities to drive continuous improvement.
• Data & Business Intelligence: Develop high-quality management information and reporting processes. Work with senior team members to collect, analyse, and present relevant metrics to inform strategic decision-making. Use AI‑assisted analytics tools where appropriate to enhance reporting, trend analysis and decision‑support insights.
• Knowledge Management & Training: Facilitate knowledge hubs, templates, and best practice materials to prevent knowledge loss. Work with Learning & Development to deliver training, presentations, and demonstrations on legal tech and new processes.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborate with senior leaders and cross-functional teams to design and communicate transformative changes. Assisting the Director of Legal in preparing and delivering impactful communications to foster collaboration, ensure consistency and build user confidence, including roll-out plans, service updates, and training materials. Build and maintain good working relationships across the organisation. Coordinate internal team operations - including regular team meetings, documentation, scheduling, and action‑tracking, and support governance of the departmental budget through structured monitoring, reporting, and alignment with Finance.

What are we looking for?

• Significant experience in legal operations or project/change management.
• Experience identifying, piloting or implementing AI or automation tools within in-house legal teams or comparable environments.
• Ability to design or customise AI‑based solutions (e.g., utilising LLMs, prompt‑engineering, automation platforms, or basic scripting) is a plus.
• Strong understanding of legal technology and its application to improve workflows, including knowledge of market leading vendors, and core use cases.
• Excellent project management, prioritisation, and organisational skills.
• Ability to influence and communicate effectively at all levels, including leadership.
• Analytical and problem-solving skills with experience in business intelligence and data-driven decision-making.
• Strategic thinker with a genuine interest in solution design and innovation.
• Commitment to Cancer Research UK’s mission and values.

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do:

• Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination.
• Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism.
• Human: Act to have a positive impact on people.
• Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively.

We are looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

If you are interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience, we would still love to hear from you.

What will I gain?

We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals. You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page.

How do I apply?

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won’t be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you fairly and objectively. For more information on this career opportunity please visit our website or contact us. For more updates on our work and careers, follow us on: Linked In, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.