Hicksons| Hunt & Hunt is a commercial law firm that assists government, companies, organisations, and individuals throughout Australia to create sustainable value through legal and commercial advice, services, and solutions. Our breadth of expertise is reflected in our diverse practice groups and complemented by our industry and sector focus. With offices in Sydney, North Ryde, Newcastle and Griffith, we work across geographies with smart technology to keep connected to our clients.

We pride ourselves on our energy and authenticity to drive client solutions, attract and develop talent and serve our broader community. With a strong history of providing exceptional legal advice, we consider ourselves to be visionary thought leaders who have harnessed our history and experience, emerging as a market-leading legal and advisory business.

The Role

The Corporate Services Manager is responsible for the delivery of office services and facilities management across Hicksons’ Sydney, Newcastle and Griffith offices. The role ensures that premises, building services, front-of-house, and core administrative support operate efficiently, safely and in a way that supports Hicksons’ client service standards and strategic objectives.

The Corporate Services Manager also leads the development, implementation and ongoing maintenance of business continuity planning for office operations so that the firm can continue to operate effectively in the event of disruption.

The role works closely with senior leaders across Technology, Risk, People & Culture and Events and is highly visible within the business.

Key Responsibilities

•     Provide operational leadership to maintain a high standard of building presentation across the Sydney, Newcastle and Griffith offices.
•    Ensure optimal operation of building plant and equipment, including coordination with building management and external service providers.
•    Coordinate office facilities management including lease administration, equipment procurement, workplace layout and liaison with landlords and building managers.
•    Maintain accurate records relating to facilities and services, including service registers, maintenance logs and compliance certifications.

•    Oversee the delivery of office services and administrative support, including front-of-house, concierge and office support teams, to ensure a consistent, high-quality service experience for internal and external clients.
•    Supervise and develop service centre and concierge/front-of-house staff, including delegation of responsibilities, coaching, performance monitoring and succession planning.
•    Manage reception and meeting room operations, including room allocation, set-up and client hosting standards.

•    Oversee procurement activities for office services, facilities and catering, ensuring quality, value for money and compliance with risk and statutory requirements.
•    Manage preferred supplier lists, negotiate and review contracts, and maintain a robust service and contract register.
•    Manage office services and catering supplies inventory and ensure efficient ordering, storage, waste reduction and cost control.
•    Oversee travel policy and processes relevant to office services (for example, staff travel in connection with office operations or events).

•     Lead the development, documentation and regular review of business continuity plans for office services and facilities across all locations, in consultation with Risk, Technology and other stakeholders.
•     Identify and assess operational risks to office and facilities services (including premises, utilities, critical suppliers and physical access) and propose and implement mitigation strategies.
•     Establish and maintain procedures and checklists for incident response, office evacuation or relocation and rapid restoration of core office functions.
•    Coordinate and document periodic business continuity testing (for example, loss of premises, failure of building services or critical supplier outage) and drive remediation of any gaps identified.
•     Ensure alignment of office-services business continuity arrangements with firm-wide risk management and crisis management frameworks.

•    Ensure compliance with relevant Australian work health and safety legislation, regulations and industry standards across all offices, in partnership with the firm’s Risk and People & Culture teams.
•    Maintain and oversee WHS structures, processes and reporting for office services and facilities (including incident reporting, safety inspections and emergency warden arrangements).
•    Work with building management and external providers to ensure statutory inspections, certifications and maintenance are up to date (for example, fire safety and essential services).
•    Promote and support sustainability initiatives in relation to premises, procurement and office services (for example, energy and water efficiency, responsible waste management and sustainable purchasing choices).

•    Oversee maintenance of key office information, including contact lists, headcount reports, office maps, organisational structures, nameplates and other documents or registers as required.
•    Work closely with Technology to support IT infrastructure requirements relating to office services and facilities (for example, meeting room technology, printing and building access systems).
•     Identify opportunities to improve organisational efficiency, streamline administrative processes, reduce operational costs and enhance service delivery to partners, staff and clients.
•     Implement and champion new systems and technologies that support office services and facilities operations, including training and change management for relevant staff.

•    Assist with the coordination of internal and client-facing firm events and meetings, including allocation of rooms, set-up of audio-visual and IT equipment, catering and staff resourcing.
•    Work closely with the Events team to ensure seamless delivery of events hosted within Hicksons’ offices.

•    Lead, mentor and develop the national office services team, providing clear direction, feedback and development opportunities to uplift capability across roles and functions.
•    Build strong working relationships with senior leaders and key stakeholders, including Partners, Practice Group Leaders and functional heads (Technology, Risk, People & Culture and Events).
•   Model Hicksons’ values and expected behaviours, contributing to a positive, service-oriented culture focused on client service, collaboration, continuous improvement and accountability.

What You Offer: 

•    Proven leadership experience in office services, corporate services or facilities management roles, ideally within a professional services environment.
•    Strong operational and process-oriented mindset, with the ability to identify and implement efficiencies across multiple locations.
•    Demonstrated experience in supplier and contract management, including negotiation, performance management and cost control.
•    Experience in developing or implementing business continuity, crisis management or incident response processes (or a strong aptitude and interest in leading this workstream).
•    Solid understanding of work health and safety obligations in an office environment and experience embedding practical WHS processes.
•    Experience supporting or leading sustainability initiatives in an office or facilities context.
•    Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build strong relationships and influence stakeholders at all levels.
•    Strong organisational and problem-solving abilities; able to manage competing priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced setting.
•    Proficiency in using office and facilities management systems and willingness to adopt new technologies.
•    Flexibility to travel between Sydney, Newcastle and Griffith and to support after-hours events or incidents as required.

What we offer:

Hicksons|Hunt&Hunt fosters a diverse and inclusive environment, we capture innovative ideas from our people to build on our business; we welcome your creative ideas to optimize the way we work. We offer a range of benefits and social opportunities to support growth, development and internal networking and collaboration within the firm, collectively celebrating our success through recognition and reward programs. 

Supporting you:

• Potential unearthed – We pride ourselves on enabling you to achieve your career aspirations. Offering tailored 1:1 mentoring, access to our E-learning platform with role base training, internal and external workshops and complete transparency around our promotional pathways program. 
• The right resources – Our workplace is supported by smart technology, paper-light processes, collaborative teams and a healthy values-based culture that will see you perform at your best.
• Flexi-work options – We understand life is not 1 size fits all. Explore options for hybrid work, part time hours, compressed working weeks, and more.
• Performance based rewards and incentive bonuses – our incentive program is designed to reward our employees and support our high-performance culture. 
• Hicksons + Benefits – 16 weeks paid gender-neutral parental leave for eligible employees, education assistance, Employee Assistance Program, Birthday leave and #4U leave, plus access to everyday discounts through our corporate discount schemes, and novated leasing.
• Life at Hicksons|Hunt &Hunt – Contributing to our community is part of our Vision; the firm provides you with the opportunity to contribute to the firm’s corporate social responsibility activities through our pro-bono program. 
• Awards – The 2024 AFR Partnership Survey named Hicksons as the industry leader with the highest proportion of Female Partners for the second year running. In addition, Hicksons has been recognised ABA employer of choice winners (2020, 2023 and 2024).  

To have a confidential discussion on the role and our offering, please contact Zahra Nowrouz Tafreshi, Talent Acquisition Manager *************@hicksons.com.au