Sara Hawes
President - FamilyPro US at Smokeball - Legal Software- Claim this Profile
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Bio
Alex Borosage
Sara strives to deliver an extraordinary client experience. She is heavily invested in building strong relationships with clients and understanding their business goals. Sara also has tremendous leadership skills, and is very well respected. She can think, and act extremely efficiently always with the client's best interests in mind. I look forward to continuing my professional relationship with Sara, and supporting her the best I can as she is a incredible person to work with, and has real vision.
LinkedIn User
Sara has made a huge impact on my personal and professional growth and development over the past five years. Sara first opened the door for me to transition into the tech space, hiring me to join her team at Smokeball. From the beginning I was confident in Sara's leadership, not only was she a strong leader, but she was also committed to creating a fun safe atmosphere. Sara ensured I had the proper tools and skills to efficiently and independently complete my daily work, which proved to be mutually beneficial as my confidence and skills grew, so did her trust in me to complete more challenging goals. When I faced obstacles, Sara never failed to communicate her valuable knowledge and offer solutions that most leaders could not. Sara's value did not go unnoticed and she was quickly promoted to VP of Services, while I no longer directly reported to Sara, she continued to provide me with mentorship and support for which my gratitude is immeasurable.
Alex Borosage
Sara strives to deliver an extraordinary client experience. She is heavily invested in building strong relationships with clients and understanding their business goals. Sara also has tremendous leadership skills, and is very well respected. She can think, and act extremely efficiently always with the client's best interests in mind. I look forward to continuing my professional relationship with Sara, and supporting her the best I can as she is a incredible person to work with, and has real vision.
LinkedIn User
Sara has made a huge impact on my personal and professional growth and development over the past five years. Sara first opened the door for me to transition into the tech space, hiring me to join her team at Smokeball. From the beginning I was confident in Sara's leadership, not only was she a strong leader, but she was also committed to creating a fun safe atmosphere. Sara ensured I had the proper tools and skills to efficiently and independently complete my daily work, which proved to be mutually beneficial as my confidence and skills grew, so did her trust in me to complete more challenging goals. When I faced obstacles, Sara never failed to communicate her valuable knowledge and offer solutions that most leaders could not. Sara's value did not go unnoticed and she was quickly promoted to VP of Services, while I no longer directly reported to Sara, she continued to provide me with mentorship and support for which my gratitude is immeasurable.
Alex Borosage
Sara strives to deliver an extraordinary client experience. She is heavily invested in building strong relationships with clients and understanding their business goals. Sara also has tremendous leadership skills, and is very well respected. She can think, and act extremely efficiently always with the client's best interests in mind. I look forward to continuing my professional relationship with Sara, and supporting her the best I can as she is a incredible person to work with, and has real vision.
LinkedIn User
Sara has made a huge impact on my personal and professional growth and development over the past five years. Sara first opened the door for me to transition into the tech space, hiring me to join her team at Smokeball. From the beginning I was confident in Sara's leadership, not only was she a strong leader, but she was also committed to creating a fun safe atmosphere. Sara ensured I had the proper tools and skills to efficiently and independently complete my daily work, which proved to be mutually beneficial as my confidence and skills grew, so did her trust in me to complete more challenging goals. When I faced obstacles, Sara never failed to communicate her valuable knowledge and offer solutions that most leaders could not. Sara's value did not go unnoticed and she was quickly promoted to VP of Services, while I no longer directly reported to Sara, she continued to provide me with mentorship and support for which my gratitude is immeasurable.
Alex Borosage
Sara strives to deliver an extraordinary client experience. She is heavily invested in building strong relationships with clients and understanding their business goals. Sara also has tremendous leadership skills, and is very well respected. She can think, and act extremely efficiently always with the client's best interests in mind. I look forward to continuing my professional relationship with Sara, and supporting her the best I can as she is a incredible person to work with, and has real vision.
LinkedIn User
Sara has made a huge impact on my personal and professional growth and development over the past five years. Sara first opened the door for me to transition into the tech space, hiring me to join her team at Smokeball. From the beginning I was confident in Sara's leadership, not only was she a strong leader, but she was also committed to creating a fun safe atmosphere. Sara ensured I had the proper tools and skills to efficiently and independently complete my daily work, which proved to be mutually beneficial as my confidence and skills grew, so did her trust in me to complete more challenging goals. When I faced obstacles, Sara never failed to communicate her valuable knowledge and offer solutions that most leaders could not. Sara's value did not go unnoticed and she was quickly promoted to VP of Services, while I no longer directly reported to Sara, she continued to provide me with mentorship and support for which my gratitude is immeasurable.
Credentials
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Optimal Product Management and Product Marketing
The 280 GroupApr, 2019- Sep, 2024
Experience
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Smokeball - Legal Software
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United States
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Software Development
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100 - 200 Employee
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President - FamilyPro US
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Nov 2022 - Present
I am leading a project to bring FamilyProperty, a web-based software solution designed by experts in family law for family law firms, to firms in the United States.My responsibilities include market research, product strategy, product research and design, implementing user interfaces through JavaScript, designing and implementing launch strategy, developing training materials, and communicating with users.
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VP Client Services
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Nov 2020 - Oct 2022
As VP Client Services, I led a department that consisted of the software support, client training, and legal configuration teams. These teams are instrumental in ensuring Smokeball’s law firm users are able to utilize the software to its fullest extent. Using my experience as a practicing family law attorney and my experience in the legal technology industry, I contributed to business strategy sessions and established roadmaps to meet rapid organizational growth while committing to delivering a legendary customer experience for Smokeball’s law firm users. I am a skilled people leader with experience coaching managers and individual contributors, managing performance, creating individualized career paths, and developing new team structures in response to business needs. In this role, I worked across multiple departments in the business, including Client Success, Product, Marketing, and Sales, to resolve client needs and improve internal processes. I value metrics and data when making decisions. As VP Client Services, I frequently identified new KPIs and metrics to better understand effectiveness and efficiency of services delivered to Smokeball’s users. Show less
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VP Legal Content
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Nov 2016 - Nov 2020
In the VP Legal Content role, I led the team as it continually assumed additional responsibilities related to creating Smokeball’s area of law specific matter types, producing automated court form templates, and automating law firms’ proprietary forms, nearly quadrupled the team’s size to meet evolving business needs. At the same time, I functioned as a product manager for the functionality related to Smokeball’s form library and document automation tools.I engaged in hiring activities for 20+ positions and developed onboarding strategies from scratch. I solved challenging efficiency problems, taking decisive action based on data, intuition, and goals. I traveled extensively to gain on-the-ground feedback about customer experiences and product quality. I also developed KPIs to understand customer behaviors and refine document production strategy.Specific achievements include:►Increased area of law specific matter type offerings by 224% to suit most transactional and litigation law firms►Grew automated court form library from <6,000 forms to 18,000+ forms, driving improved end-user efficiency and attracting new business nationwide►Slashed total cost-per-page-automated by 25%+ by designing, hiring, and implementing outsourcing team to enable business growth. ►Functioned as product manager for project to overhaul advanced Personal Injury matter type, including designing an innovative Settlement Statement calculator feature based on conversations with dozens of law firms.►Functioned as product manager for development of LawToolBox integration, a tool to help law firms calculate deadlines within Smokeball.►Expedited development of user interfaces by learning Visual Basic (VB) and implementing program to teach former attorney and paralegal employees to code. Show less
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Legal Forms and Content Specialist
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Jul 2015 - Nov 2016
Promptly addressed client requests for automated templates and area of law data matter type requests. Skillfully finessed conversations with diverse personalities, transforming delicate situations into opportunities to gain customer loyalty through empathetic, results-focused service. Balanced multiple concurrent priorities with minimal input from supervisors.►Recognized by leadership for commitment to business success, evidenced by multiple improvement propositions and independently developing expertise in MS Word to excel in role.►Enhanced fledgling court form library in cooperation with team to expand public library of automated templates for law firm clients. Show less
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Various Law Firms
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Law Practice
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1 - 100 Employee
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Family Law Attorney
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Aug 2010 - Jul 2015
Rapidly adapted to new cultures, processes, and role requirements while building experience in family law at Rosenfeld Hafron Shapiro & Farmer, The Witt Law Firm, P.C., and George Pecherek & Associates, P.C. Seamlessly managed multiple deadlines with limited resources to provide timely, high-quality legal services to clients in vastly different and complex legal situations. Conducted extensive research, drafted legal pleadings, conducted depositions, and presented compelling arguments in court. Networked with clients and other attorneys to stimulate business growth. Achievements include: ►Skillfully analyzed discovery responses in high net worth divorce case, leveraging findings to save client nearly $1M. Show less
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Education
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2003 - 2007
Northwestern University
BA -
2007 - 2010
Loyola University Chicago School of Law
JD
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