What Legal Ops Leaders Shared at Consero
Legal Ops teams sit at the center of one of the most important relationships in a legal department: the partnership with the General Counsel.
At Consero, Sarah Fercho, Senior Advisory Director at Priori, led a conversation with Legal Ops leaders from across industries on what it really takes to build effective GC partnerships during times of change. The conversation brought together leaders across different team sizes and reporting structures, but with one shared reality: when a trusted GC relationship works, Legal Ops becomes a strategic force. When it doesn’t, everything gets harder.
Below are the key themes that emerged from the discussion.
GC transitions are the real test
Nearly every panelist pointed to GC transitions as a pivotal moment in their Legal Ops experience. Internal promotions, following a GC to a new organization, or stepping into a role alongside new leadership all require Legal Ops teams to adapt quickly.
In larger departments, panelists recommended using pulse surveys, benchmarking, and data to onboard new GCs quickly and clarify where support was needed. In smaller teams, the approach was more personal and immediate, relying on close collaboration, clear processes, and frequent communication to establish trust early.
Across both large and small departments, one theme held steady: Legal Ops often acts as the institutional anchor during leadership change, translating uncertainty into structure and helping the GC move forward with confidence.
Trust is built through consistency, not proximity
While some panelists worked closely with their GCs in-person and others operated fully remotely, proximity was not the deciding factor in strong partnerships. Consistency was.
Regular updates, structured reporting, and clear dashboards help GCs feel confident in how decisions are being made and how work is progressing. Several panelists emphasized the importance of creating a single source of truth, reducing friction and allowing the GC to focus on strategic issues rather than operational noise.
Many panelists also noted that one of Legal Ops’ most impactful roles is helping the GC communicate effectively with executive leadership. Providing clear narratives, reliable data, and thoughtful context not only builds trust but reinforces Legal Ops as a true strategic partner.
Earning a seat at the table looks different everywhere
Legal Ops roles are not positioned the same way across every organization, and not every Legal Ops leader reports directly to the GC. Some of the panelists described being moved between managers to support leadership development, while others had consistent access to leadership conversations.
Influence follows value, not title. Legal Ops leaders earn a seat at the table by owning high-impact work, surfacing cross departmental insights others can’t, and consistently connecting legal operations to broader business outcomes.
Particularly in smaller teams, credibility came less from hierarchy and more from expertise, follow-through, and process discipline. Influence was built over time through reliability and clarity.
Prioritization is where partnership becomes visible
Although time did not allow for a deep discussion of prioritization, it is one of the clearest indicators of a strong GC partnership.
When everything feels urgent, Legal Ops often becomes the lens through which competing demands are clarified. The role shifts from executing requests to helping the GC understand tradeoffs, capacity limits, and downstream impact. That clarity enables better decisions and more focused leadership.
In larger organizations, this can mean balancing enterprise wide expectations and stakeholder pressure. In smaller teams, it may involve protecting focus and preventing burnout. In both settings, Legal Ops leaders who help shape priorities rather than absorb them demonstrate strategic partnership in action.
What Legal Ops leaders should take away
There is no single model for partnering effectively with a GC. Team size, industry, and reporting structure all influence how the relationship takes shape. But the fundamentals remain consistent.
Strong GC partnerships are built through clarity, consistency, and the ability to bring structure to complex decisions. As moderator, Sarah Fercho guided the conversation toward these practical realities, drawing on more than two decades of Legal Ops leadership to highlight what works in real organizations today.
For Legal Ops leaders navigating GC changes, the message was clear. You don’t need a perfect structure to be a strategic partner. You need intention, discipline, and the confidence to show up as one.
