Pembury Legal

Pembury Legal A recruitment and strategy consultancy focusing on the legal services and business support spheres.

10/09/2026

Summer’s over, routines are returning and September can feel like a bit of a reset.

After a busy first part of the year and, hopefully, some time away from work over the summer, now can be a useful moment to take stock.

Are you still working towards the goals you set yourself?
Are you getting the development and opportunities you want?
And what would you like to achieve before the end of the year?

This week’s Top Tips shares 6 ways to reset your career focus after summer and become a little more intentional about the months ahead.

Importantly, a career reset doesn’t automatically mean looking for a new job. It might mean having a conversation with your manager, taking on a new project, developing a skill, or simply getting clearer about what you want next.

Sometimes, though, it can also be useful to understand what’s happening outside your current firm.

As specialist recruiters within legal business services, we’re always happy to provide an informed perspective on the market, progression, salaries and the opportunities we’re seeing across Risk & Compliance, Knowledge and other business services functions.

If September has got you thinking about your career, feel free to reach out to Adam Shookhye or Louise Grimes at Pembury Legal for a confidential, informal conversation.










Most organisations have values. They might talk about collaboration, respect, inclusion, integrity or putting people fir...
09/09/2026

Most organisations have values. They might talk about collaboration, respect, inclusion, integrity or putting people first. And those values can be an important statement of what an organisation wants to stand for.

But culture isn't created by the words themselves. It's created by what people experience every day.

It's how colleagues communicate when workloads are high.
How managers respond when someone makes a mistake.
Whether people feel comfortable speaking up.
Whether good work is recognised.
How different teams and roles are treated.

And whether the behaviours people see around them actually reflect the values on the page.

This can be particularly important within law firms, where people across fee-earning and business services teams often work in demanding, fast-paced environments.

A firm's stated values might help describe its culture, but everyday behaviours are what bring those values to life.

And from a recruitment perspective, culture can be difficult to understand from a job description or careers page alone. Asking the right questions during the interview process, understanding how a team operates and getting a sense of the people you'll be working with can all help build a much clearer picture.

Because ultimately, culture isn't just what an organisation says it values. It's what its people experience.








AI is reshaping business services roles in law firms. But what does that mean for people?The pace of AI & Innovation acr...
03/09/2026

AI is reshaping business services roles in law firms. But what does that mean for people?

The pace of AI & Innovation across the legal sector has accelerated considerably, and the conversation is increasingly moving beyond the technology itself to how it is changing roles, skills and career paths.

For those working across Risk & Compliance, Knowledge and wider law firm business services, the impact is becoming increasingly visible.

Existing roles are evolving. New positions and career paths are emerging. And AI & Innovation responsibilities are becoming increasingly embedded within established business services functions.

Our latest article, “How AI is Reshaping Business Services Roles?”, looks at how this changing landscape is affecting both candidates and law firms. From the new roles and opportunities appearing across the market, to the way AI & Innovation is becoming embedded within more traditional business services roles and changing the skills and capabilities firms need.

While dedicated AI & Innovation roles are emerging, AI capability is also becoming an increasingly important part of established business services roles. The opportunity for many professionals lies in combining that capability with the knowledge, experience and judgement they already bring to their area of expertise.

👉 Read the full article here - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-ai-reshaping-business-services-roles-pemburylegal-kdlte

If you're considering how AI & Innovation could shape your career, team or future hiring plans, Pembury Legal would be very happy to have a conversation.






AI may be powered by technology, but its impact within law firms is moving far beyond the technology team.As firms move ...
02/09/2026

AI may be powered by technology, but its impact within law firms is moving far beyond the technology team.

As firms move from experimenting with AI to embedding it into legal and business workflows, we’re beginning to see something particularly interesting happen: traditional skill sets are starting to converge.

Legal expertise + AI fluency.
Knowledge + innovation.
Risk and governance + technology.
Commercial thinking + AI-enabled client delivery.
Change management + AI adoption.

And this will likely have a significant impact on how roles develop in the years ahead.

That doesn’t mean everyone needs to become a technologist, or that AI expertise suddenly replaces the specialist knowledge people have built throughout their careers. Quite the opposite.

As AI becomes more capable, understanding the legal, commercial and operational context in which it is being used becomes increasingly important.

For Risk & Compliance professionals, that means greater involvement in AI governance, controls, confidentiality and technology risk.

For Knowledge professionals, it means playing a more central role in connecting trusted legal knowledge, precedents and expertise with AI-enabled workflows.

For Innovation and Transformation professionals, it requires turning AI capability into practical workflows and helping people adopt them successfully.

And across business services more broadly, there is likely to be growing value in professionals who can understand both their own specialism and how AI could change the way that specialism operates.

The future skill set may therefore be less about being an expert in everything and more about being able to operate confidently across traditional boundaries.

That combination of specialist expertise + AI fluency + human judgement could become one of the most valuable professional skill sets within the modern law firm.

AI literacy is no longer just a technology skill. Increasingly, it’s becoming a career skill.










For many, today's Summer Bank Holiday offers a welcome opportunity to switch off, spend time with family and friends, or...
31/08/2026

For many, today's Summer Bank Holiday offers a welcome opportunity to switch off, spend time with family and friends, or simply enjoy an extra day away from the usual routine. For others, it's still very much a working Monday.

Either way, this point in the year can be a useful moment to take stock.

With summer drawing to a close and September just around the corner, there are still four months of the year ahead of us. Plenty of time to make progress on the goals we've set, rethink the ones that no longer feel quite as important, or simply approach the months ahead with a little more clarity.

Resetting doesn't have to mean making big changes. Sometimes it's just about taking a moment to recognise what's going well, what could be better and where you want to focus your energy next.

So whether you're enjoying the Bank Holiday today or you're at your desk, we hope you find a little time to pause and recharge.






27/08/2026

You can be happy in your role and still be open to a conversation.

Being approached about an opportunity doesn’t mean you need to be unhappy, actively job searching, or ready to hand in your notice.

Sometimes an unexpected opportunity simply gives you a reason to stop and think: Would this be worth exploring?

This week’s Top Tips looks at 6 signs an opportunity might be worth a conversation, even if you weren’t looking.

And that’s an important distinction: exploring an opportunity isn’t the same as deciding to leave.

As specialist recruiters, part of our role is to give you the context and insight you need to make that decision. We can talk you through the firm, the team, the opportunity, the market and how it might fit with your longer-term ambitions, and sometimes the conclusion will be that staying exactly where you are is the right choice.

There’s no harm in being curious.

If an opportunity has recently made you stop and think, or you'd simply like to understand what else might be out there, speak to Adam Shookhye or Louise Grimes for a confidential conversation.










There’s a lot to be said for feeling comfortable in your role.You know the firm, you know the people, you’re good at wha...
26/08/2026

There’s a lot to be said for feeling comfortable in your role.

You know the firm, you know the people, you’re good at what you do, and there’s reassurance in knowing what Monday morning is going to look like.
And if you’re still learning, developing, and enjoying your work, that comfort can be a very good thing.

But sometimes comfortable can quietly become too comfortable.

Perhaps the opportunities to develop have slowed down. You’re no longer being challenged. Your responsibilities haven’t changed for some time. Or you’ve started wondering what else might be possible for your career.

Leaving that familiarity can feel like the bigger risk. But staying somewhere you've outgrown has risks of its own.

Skills can stop developing. Confidence can plateau. And opportunities that might broaden your experience or move your career forward can pass you by.

That doesn’t mean you should move simply for the sake of moving.

It means occasionally asking yourself an important question: Am I comfortable because I’m genuinely happy here, or because change feels uncomfortable?

There’s a big difference.

Sometimes staying is absolutely the right decision. Sometimes exploring what else is out there is the first step towards your next stage of growth.







25/08/2026

✨ New Job Alert – Head of Financial Crime | London

An exciting opportunity for an experienced financial crime professional looking to take the next step into a highly influential leadership role within an international law firm.

Take ownership of the firm’s global approach to AML, sanctions and wider financial crime risk, shaping strategy, leading an established function and advising senior stakeholders on complex matters.

With hybrid working, international exposure and a competitive six-figure salary, this is an excellent opportunity for someone looking for genuine strategic influence and the chance to make their mark.

Read more about this exciting position by clicking the link below and apply, or reach out to us on LinkedIn for a confidential discussion.

https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4458702626





There isn't one definition of a good work-life balance.For some, it's being able to switch off at the end of the working...
24/08/2026

There isn't one definition of a good work-life balance.

For some, it's being able to switch off at the end of the working day. For others, it's having flexibility around family commitments, making time for the things they enjoy, or simply knowing when they need to take a break.

And what feels balanced today might look completely different six months from now.

Careers change. Responsibilities change. Life changes.

The important thing isn't trying to achieve someone else's version of balance. It's finding something that feels sustainable for you and recognising when that balance needs to shift.

As we head into another working week, perhaps the goal doesn't always need to be doing more.

Sometimes it's about finding a way of working that allows you to do your best work while still making space for everything else that matters.






20/08/2026

✨ New Job Alert – Commercial Legal & Risk Manager | London | 18-Month FTC

An exciting opportunity for an experienced lawyer, ideally with an employment law background, to join a global legal services platform.

Take on a varied role spanning commercial contracts, legal risk, compliance and legal innovation, working closely with senior stakeholders and gaining exposure to international matters. This is a fantastic 18-month FTC for a commercially minded lawyer looking to broaden their experience within a dynamic and innovative legal environment.

Read more about this opportunity by clicking the link below and apply, or reach out to us on LinkedIn for a confidential discussion.

https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4456490864






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