Legal Document Production Team Leader
SmartPA
Hirezar Summary for South African Applicants
This fully remote full time position at SmartPA explicitly welcomes applicants based in South Africa. As a remote position, you can work from anywhere in South Africa — whether you're based in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, or a smaller town.
Job Description
key responsibilities and skills
TheLegal Document Production Team Leaderis responsible for leading a high-performing document production team while maintaining exceptional standards of accuracy, quality, and turnaround. The role combines people leadership, operational oversight, and a strong focus on continuous improvement to ensure a consistently high level of client service.Team Leadership
* Lead, coach and support a team of legal document production specialists, setting clear expectations and performance standards
* Conduct regular 121's, team meetings, and performance discussions to support engagement, accountability, and development
* Provide hands-on support with complex or high-risk document production tasks as required
* Oversee the day-to-day team operations, ensuring workloads are effectively planned, delegated, and delivered to agreed service levels
* Maintain the highest standards of accuracy, output, and turnaround across all document production work
* Act as the first point of escalation for workflow challenges, quality concerns, or client expectations
* Provide hands-on support with complex document production where required
* Ensure the team meets or exceeds individual and team targets and service level agreements (SLAs)
* Champion best practice and support the adoption of new technology and tools
* Monitor productivity, quality, and team performance; investigate errors and addressing issues constructively
* Identify opportunities to improve workflows, processes, and ways of working, supporting implementation of changes
* Maintain clear process documentation and encourage knowledge sharing across the team
* Follow up all client concerns and queries effectively, representing issues on behalf of the account manager where needed.
* Build and maintain strong day-to-day relationship with the client
* Support with service reviews, contributing to positive client outcomes and long-term partnerships
skills
We're looking for someone who:
* Has proven ability to lead, coach and develop a team in a high-standards, client-focused environment
* Has strong organisational and workload management skills, able to prioritise competing tasks while maintaining quality and accuracy
* Has excellent communication skills, able to engage confidently and professionally with stakeholders at all levels
* Demonstrates a proactive approach to identifying process improvements and contributing ideas to enhance workflows, team performance, and client outcomes
* Has high attention to detail and commitment to accuracy across all document production work
* Has strong problem-solving and decision-making skills, including handling escalations effectively
* Has the ability to monitor team performance, provide constructive feedback, and support continuous learning
* Is comfortable with adopting new technology and tools
experience
Essential:
* Minimum of 3+ years' experience in legal document production
* Minimum of 2+ years' team management experience
* Demonstrated experience producing, reviewing, and managing complex documents, including advanced word function (styles, templates, tracked changes, formatting)
* Proficiency in MD Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) and familiarity with legal/document tools such as PDFdocs, DocuSign, and digital dictation software
* Experience meeting tight deadlines while maintaining high standards of accuracy and attention to detail
* Proven track record of building constructive working relationships and collaborating effectively within a team
* Flexible and adaptable, thriving in a fast-paced environment and able to balance operational oversight with hands-on support as required
work remotely
Yes
schedule
Hours of Work:16:00 – 00.00 GMT (from March to October 17:00 – 01:00 SAST, from October to March 18:00 – 02:00 SAST)
job type
Full-time, permanent
what's in it for you?
AtSmartPA, we believe in rewarding talent and supporting your growth:
* Competitive salaries
* Full time, remote work
* Flexitime initiative: work when you're most productive (core hours: 10:00-16:30 GMT)
* 33 days holiday: because rest fuels greatness
* Department incentives
* Employee Assistant Programme
Originally posted onHimalayas
Tips for South African Applicants
Timezone Advantage
South Africa (SAST, UTC+2) overlaps well with European business hours and has a few hours of overlap with US East Coast. Mention your timezone flexibility in your application.
Salary in Context
Even without a listed salary, international remote roles typically pay 2-3x more than equivalent local positions in South Africa due to the exchange rate advantage.
Application Tips
Tailor your CV to international standards — use a clean format, highlight remote work experience, and include your English proficiency. Many SA applicants succeed by emphasising their strong work ethic and cultural adaptability.
Load Shedding Preparedness
If you're applying for a remote role, having a backup power solution (UPS, inverter, or generator) and mobile data as a backup internet connection shows employers you're prepared for South Africa's infrastructure challenges.
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About SmartPA
SmartPA is a company in the Document Production Manager industry that hires remote workers from South Africa.