Collections Manager

Wilson Sonsini is the premier legal advisor to technology, life sciences, and other growth enterprises worldwide. We represent companies at every stage of development, from entrepreneurial start-ups to multibillion-dollar global corporations, as well as the venture firms, private equity firms, and investment banks that finance and advise them. The firm has approximately 1,100 attorneys in 17 offices: 13 in the U.S., two in China, and two in Europe. Our broad spectrum of practices and entrepreneurial spirit allow exceptional opportunities for professional achievement and career growth.

As the firm continues to grow, we are building a more disciplined, data-driven approach to revenue and receivables management.  Reporting to the Senior Director of Revenue, the Collections Manager will lead the firm’s execution discipline for resolution of aged receivables, accelerate cash realization, and enhance financial accountability to payment terms and timeframes.  This role begins as the functional manager and primary owner of the collections process, with the opportunity to build and lead a team as the function scales and demonstrates results. The Manager will partner closely with Revenue, Billing, Finance Technology, Department Leaders and Members to further develop and refine the collections and risk mitigation capabilities of the Firm.  The role carries real decision authority within defined limits and the judgment to know when a balance must be escalated rather than resolved independently.

This is a hybrid role with 3 days per week of office attendance in the firm’s Palo Alto and/or San Francisco offices. 

Responsibilities:

• Establish a clear aged receivables ownership model for the Revenue Management team, defining owners of delinquent accounts by client, practice, and collections segment, and ensuring application of the collections playbook in support of the firm’s Financial Policy
• Lead Financial Policy compliance, executing escalation paths, and resolution playbooks for aged receivables, including prioritizing material client balances, ensuring timing and certainty of payment, taking required account collections actions, and surfacing key decision points for firm leadership
• Develop a structured operating cadence for monthly, quarterly and year end collections campaigns, with clear reporting, accountability, and follow through to payment
• Scale the collections function from status tracking and targeted intervention to broad and coordinated collections actions to maximize payment opportunities and mitigate risks of nonpayment of ongoing work
• Lead the identification, prioritization, and resolution of aged receivables risks, especially high-dollar, high-sensitivity, slow moving or complex balances
• Develop tools and reports to surface emergent risks early, before matters become materially aged or require acute intervention, especially by reinforcing a culture of monthly payments across the Firm’s client base
• Support partners in sensitive client conversations with clear economics, practical options, and disciplined resolution strategies
• Negotiate directly with clients on complex AR workouts, including payment plans, settlements, timing agreements, dispute resolution, and structured repayment plans
• Evaluate and manage relationships with external payment solution providers, including electronic payment platforms, card processing, and client payment-plan or financing options, to make it easier for clients to pay and to accelerate cash realization consistent with the Financial Policy
• Drive adherence to Financial Policy limits on payment terms, discounting, write-offs, and deferred payments, and exercise defined decision authority over credit and collections actions within established thresholds, including blocking new matters, halting work, or approving continued work at a managed scale for delinquent clients, and escalating balances above those thresholds to the appropriate governing authority for decision
• Translate the firm's established Financial Policy into practical execution tools (collections playbooks, escalation tactics, and field guidance) that Members and the Finance Department can apply consistently
• Coach Revenue Management and Account Managers, including client assessment, partner communication, written outreach, phone negotiation, escalation judgment and client sensitivity
• Contribute as a leader to a culture of appropriate urgency, accountability, judgment and calm persistence

Qualifications:

The ideal candidate combines financial judgment, operational rigor, negotiation skill, technology fluency, and practical leadership.  This role must be able to work directly with partners and clients, structure AR workouts, and engage payment partners.  The preferred candidate will provide critical design input and promote development and adoption of AI capabilities that enhance outreach, surface emergent exposure, and support quarterly campaigns.  This position requires an ability to accurately review contracts, summarize key factors and identify problematic accounts with limited supervision.

• Minimum 7 years of experience in collections at a big law firm, with at least 4 years in firm wide collections management role, or equivalent
• Bachelor’s degree in finance, business, information technology, or related field (master’s degree or MBA preferred)
• Strong financial judgment and comfort operating in high-stakes professional services environment
• Excellent negotiation skills, including the ability to handle difficult client or partner conversations without becoming rigid, emotional or deferential
• Operationally disciplined: acts independently, investigates thoroughly, demonstrates resourcefulness, follows through, tracks commitments, closes loops, and helps ensure clarity in the Firm’s collections program
• Ability to balance firmness with diplomacy
• Strong analytical instincts, comfort with data, dashboards, segmentation, and performance metrics
• Technology adopter, especially around AI, promotes workflow automation and scaling of client outreach and collections tactics
• Executive presence with partners, finance leaders, and senior business services leaders
• Clear written and verbal communication
• Ability to simplify complex AR issues into crisp options and recommended actions
• Low-ego leadership style: practical, steady, accountable, and team-oriented
• Bias toward action and driving results through consistency and persistence

The primary location for this job posting is in Palo Alto, but other locations may be listed. The actual base pay offered will depend upon a variety of factors, including but not limited to the selected candidate’s qualifications, years of relevant experience, level of education, professional certifications and licenses, and work location. The anticipated pay range for this position is as follows:

Palo Alto, San Francisco: $131,750 - $178,250 per year.

The compensation for this position may include a discretionary year-end merit bonus based on performance. We offer a highly competitive salary and benefits package.

Benefits information can be found here. Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE).