Legal Operations Lead – AI and Innovation

POSTED: 11th June 2026 STARTING DATE: As soon as possible FULL TIME, ROTTERDAM MISSION TO METRICS The Ocean Cleanup is a global nonprofit that develops and scales solutions to rid the world’s oceans of plastic, driving systemic change, and creating a lasting positive impact for people, wildlife, and the planet. The Legal Department supports deployments across 8+ countries, manages a complex governance structure, and operates at the intersection of international law, government affairs, and operational delivery. The Legal Department is scaling. You will build the operational infrastructure that makes that possible: the systems, processes, technology, and workflows that enable a lean team to operate with the effectiveness of a much larger legal function. This is a new function. There is no playbook. You will create it. THE ASSIGNMENT As Legal Operations Manager, you will build legal operations end-to-end. You will design and implement the systems, processes, reporting infrastructure, contract management framework, and technology-enabled workflows that allow the Legal Department to operate with clarity, efficiency, and scale. Technology fluency, including AI and automation, is essential. We are looking for someone who has already applied these tools in practice, understands where they create genuine value, and can successfully drive adoption within a team of experienced legal professionals. You will challenge existing ways of working and demonstrate impact through measurable results. Alongside your operations mandate, approximately 20% of your time will be dedicated to direct legal support, including drafting and negotiating contracts, supporting river programme operations, and providing substantive legal assistance across the team. This hybrid profile is intentional: we want someone who understands legal work from the inside, not just as a process to optimize. YEAR 1 OBJECTIVES Build and implement a legal intake and matter management system that becomes the team's single source of truth. Deliver technology-enabled workflows, including AI and automation tools, that create measurable efficiency gains across legal work. Establish reporting and KPI infrastructure that provides the General Counsel with clear visibility into legal workload, priorities, risks, and performance. Professionalize outside counsel management, including matter intake, budgeting, spend tracking, and performance oversight. Deliver core contract infrastructure, including templates, playbooks, approval workflows, and contract management processes.

Legal Operations (80%) Own and build the Legal Operations function. Design and implement legal intake, matter management, and reporting systems that provide leadership with visibility into legal priorities and workload. Identify, evaluate, pilot, and embed technology, AI, and automation tools across legal workflows, including contract review, research, drafting, regulatory monitoring, and knowledge management. Build and maintain legal reporting, metrics, and KPI dashboards aligned with departmental and organizational objectives. Own and continuously improve contract infrastructure, templates, playbooks, approval workflows, and contract management processes in partnership with legal counsel. Develop and maintain process documentation, including playbooks, escalation frameworks, operating procedures, and knowledge resources. Drive standardization, simplification, and automation across recurring legal processes. Coordinate cross-functional workflows connecting legal, compliance, governance, deployment, and operational teams. Manage relationships with external legal counsel, including matter scoping, instructions, budgeting, spend tracking, and performance management. Support departmental planning, management reporting, OKR tracking, and governance processes. Supervise the Legal Working Student, including onboarding, prioritization, development, and day-to-day guidance. Act as the department's lead for legal innovation, identifying practical opportunities to improve legal service delivery through technology, AI, and operational excellence. Legal Support (20%) Draft, review, and negotiate contracts supporting river programme deployments and broader operational activities. Provide substantive legal support on day-to-day operational legal matters. Support legal work relating to river programme expansion and implementation. Conduct legal research, regulatory analysis, and jurisdictional mapping across multiple countries. Assist the Legal Team with contract, governance, compliance, and operational legal projects as required. PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS “Even if you don’t meet every professional qualification listed, we strongly encourage you to apply if you believe you have the right skills, experience, and motivation to contribute to our mission. We recognize that talent and potential come in many forms, and we value diverse perspectives and unconventional career paths. If you’re passionate about the work we do and confident in your ability to make an impact, don’t hesitate to submit your application—we’d love to hear from you”  7–10 years of experience in legal operations, operations management, legal practice, or a combination thereof. A proven track record of building and improving operational functions is more important than a specific title. Demonstrated experience implementing technology, automation, and AI-enabled solutions in a professional environment, with measurable results. Proven systems-builder who has designed and implemented operational processes that scaled and achieved lasting adoption. Experience with legal technology platforms, such as contract management, matter management, e-signature, knowledge management, reporting, or workflow automation tools. Strong analytical and data-driven mindset, with the ability to translate information into actionable insights and decisions. Demonstrated ability to lead change and drive adoption of new systems, processes, and technologies across professional teams. If legally qualified, experience with international contracts, operational deployments, infrastructure projects, or nonprofit environments is an advantage. Excellent English language skills, written and spoken; Dutch is a plus. PERSONAL QUALIFICATIONS Builder and change agent, energized by creating something new and capable of bringing experienced colleagues along with you. Naturally technology-oriented, with strong judgment on when tools, automation, and AI can meaningfully improve outcomes. Process-minded and highly organized; when you encounter a recurring challenge, your instinct is to build a better system. Equally comfortable operating strategically and hands-on; you design the framework and help implement it. Comfortable working in ambiguity and capable of creating structure, clarity, and momentum where little exists. Collaborative, pragmatic, and trusted by colleagues across disciplines and levels of seniority. Intrinsically motivated by The Ocean Cleanup's mission and excited by the opportunity to build something with lasting impact. ADDITIONAL DETAILS  Starting date – As soon as possible Location – Rotterdam, The Netherlands Conducting a pre-employment check may be part of this recruitment process. 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