As Jenner & Block’s Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Meredith W. Mendes is responsible for providing strategic direction, analysis and operations management for all offices.  Ms. Mendes advises the Firm’s Policy Committee and is an ex officio member of the Management Committee.  She is a member of the Alternative Fee, Audit, Energy & Resources Conservation, Finance and Paralegal Committees.  She is focused on top-line growth and expanding the bottom line by creating efficiencies and designing and implementing new systems, process improvements and management tools that further the Firm’s commitment to providing excellence in client service and cultivating an environment to foster talent.

Ms. Mendes is a licensed attorney, has a master’s degree in business administration, and is an Illinois Certified Public Accountant.  Prior to joining the Firm, she was Worldwide Chief Financial Officer of Daniel J. Edelman, Inc., a global public relations firm with 46 offices and 2,200 employees, where she managed worldwide financial functions and outside legal counsel relationships.  Prior to her tenure at Edelman, Ms. Mendes was Vice President and CFO of Hartford Computer Group, Inc., a computer reseller; CFO of Medline Industries, Inc., the largest privately owned manufacturer and distributor of health care supplies in the world; and Vice President, Public Banking, at First Chicago Capital Markets, where she improved the bank’s national tax-exempt bond ranking for corporate backed tax-exempt bonds from ninth to first.  Ms. Mendes began her career practicing law in corporate and municipal finance.

Ms. Mendes is a sought-after speaker on topics pertaining to law and professional services firm management such as legal project management, leading change, real estate management and global operations.