February 2019
BriefingSMARTER LEGAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
LEADING AT LARGE INTO TRANSACTION SHARING THE WEALTH Just a minute with Briefing Strategic Leaders New career paths are forged in the How CMS used theory and data to speaker EY’s Dr Cornelius Grossmann Addleshaw Goddard Transaction Services Team drive more collaborative behaviours
Automation Innovation
Elevation Transformation
Deliberation Integration
Iteration Collaboration
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Issue sponsor: Editor’s letter
t the firstBriefing Frontiers event of 2019 in Who we are… January, the big debate was whether law A firms could yet really and truly consider Richard Brent is the editor of themselves to be data-led businesses. If not, Briefing. He likes to get out and meet as many of you as what do they need to change to get there? Is possible, so contact him at [email protected] it technology in place that still can’t quite join the dots? Is it how lawyers are measured – and therefore incentivised – driving the wrong behaviours? Both Kayli Olson is Briefing's assistant editor. She finds challenges were well raised. Neither is exactly news. stories and data and stuff. Care to contribute? Contact: Less debatable, I hope, is that firms are still deep [email protected] knowledge businesses – for all the slick ‘self-service’ out there, clients can’t yet do absolutely all of it for Chris Cardon is themselves. However, the workload of the knowledge Briefing’s client services manager. He manages department could well be one of the fastest changing supplier insight. Contact: among all the functions – as firms try to turn that [email protected] knowledge into ready and reliable The workload of business information that can make Rupert Collins-White is them more profitable. Burlington Media’s creative knowledge could well director. Contact him at: Back in December, Briefingheld its [email protected] be one of the fastest inaugural Knowledge Leaders event, changing among all the and in this issue we follow up by asking functions – as firms try exactly what’s on these leaders’ plates Sarah Cox is Burlington Media’s client services to turn that knowledge today. Tellingly, one firm says just 40% director. Contact her at: of the work is now what one might have [email protected] into ready and reliable business information called ‘classic’ KM a decade ago. Today, the collation, issuing and movement of knowledge around the firm is much more closely tied to the unfolding business of efficient project management Talk to us and strategic pricing, best practice in collaboration for optimising business development, and even the design Briefing on Twitter @Briefinglegal and rollout of new revenue streams. It can hardly be a
Email us your thoughts surprise that some KM leaders feel they really have some [email protected] claim to the keys of everyone’s favourite ‘i word’.
Find all our back issues online The horizons of knowledge teams also surely need to www.briefing.co.uk expand as firms design alternative delivery processes and Write us a letter (remember those?) career paths – such as those pioneered by the Addleshaw Briefing magazine Burlington Media Group Goddard Transaction Services Team (TST). Believe it or not, 20 Mortlake High St this group turns 10 in 2020, so Briefingtook a trip to London SW14 8JN DX 36356 East Sheen Manchester for a thorough catchup with several concerned. However traditional, I hope this first issue of 2019 contains at least one nugget of useful knowledge for every This month’s interviews were all transcribed by: one of you. Just remember to pass it on!
RICHARD BRENT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
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Briefing Strategic Leaders November 2018 BF edited.indd 1 22/01/2019 11:03:15 CONTENTS Inside this month
February 2019
BriefingSMARTER LEGAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
LEADER AT LARGE INTO TRANSACTION SHARING THE WEALTH Just a minute with Briefing Strategic New career paths are forged in the How CMS used theory and data to Leaders keynote Dr Cornelius Grossmann Addleshaw Goddard Transaction Services Team drive more collaborative behaviours
18 Automation Innovation
Elevation Transformation
TST time Deliberation Integration
Iteration Collaboration
“The team Where next for knowledge? The law firm knowledge management function has long left the confines could be of the library. Now it’s looking for several other places to call home involved Briefing is the only legal in almost business management title, and is focused exclusively on anything.” improving the work and worlds of law firm management Maxine Davies, business leaders. Every issue is packed engagement manager, with relevant insight and Transaction Services Team, lessons from peers and pros. Addleshaw Goddard
UPFRONT Opinion INDUSTRY VIEWS Fraser Mayfield James Wilson at at Iridium 10 Ruth Musgrave at 38 Roundup Tyler Wilson on whether a Technology on proactive Freshfields 06 A new year, and firm USP is even an option 28 pricing conversations legal already seems to offer Bruckhaus Deringer on a world of alternatives FEATURES building the business case Clarilis CEO for Contract Express James Quinn on 65 seconds with ... The big idea The 40 Dr Cornelius Why Norton Rose automating with some 07 12 times and tasks are additional intelligence Grossmann, global law changing for law firm 32 Fulbright turned leader, EY knowledge management its attention toward Simon Pecovnik at Reading list Invest Newcastle iManage RAVN Briefing people 42 08 Edward James Gilding at says get your KM on app Whittington, Moore Blatch, 18 The Transaction Services Team at 34 Mitie Document Melanie reads The Churning Inner Management sets out Farquharson at Leadership Workbook Addleshaw Goddard 44 some principles for 3Kites Consulting on OPINION BRAIN TRAINING effective collaboration Knowledge Leaders 2018 Chris Cartrett, Opinion Hands on REAR VIEW 09 Louise Hadland, 24 Lessons from an 36 executive vice HR director at Shoosmiths, investigation of partner president at Aderant, on Out and about A considers the case for collaboration, by Jenni taking firm knowledge to 46 day trip to the employee ownership Emery at Arup the next level Barclays Eagle Lab
Change for the better. We deliver flexible, modern and professional support services to law firms, find out how at intelligentofficeuk.com UPFRONT
ROUNDUP Alternative crowd
ust as the new year prompts dramatic management provider Sumati Group, Yerra resolutions in personal lives, so does the Solutions and UK legal resourcing firmHalebury J legal business world seem to be up for a in just a few months. change or two in early 2019. Meanwhile, a rather well-timed report from the For example, CMS, of tripartite-merger fame, is Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute, the latest to find itself a nice new spot in the north the Center on Ethics and the Legal Profession at of England, opting for Liverpool’s business Georgetown Law School, the University of district. Exchange Flags will be the new home Oxford’s Saïd Business School and research from home of partner Abigail Dry, who will lead company Acritas finds that alternative legal the firm’s real estate group from the city, a service providers (ALSPs) are a $10.7bn market today, up from $8.4bn just two years ago. The report says the most common uses of such companies are e-discovery, litigation and investigation support, and legal research. And even more large law firms (87%) than corporates (74%) surveyed said they were using an ALSP for at least one of these areas. 74% “In a short period of time, ALSPs have evolved from a relatively unknown phenomenon into a Of corporations report using an alternative legal fast-growing segment that is an integral part of service provider for at least one legal service category, the legal services industry,” said Mari Sako, according to the Oxford Saïd Business School co-author and professor of management studies at the Saïd Business School at the University of decision prompted in part by the Northern Oxford. “ALSPs come in many shapes and sizes, Powerhouse Initiative. In late 2018, Taylor from independent LPOs to well-backed parts of Wessing also opened a new office in Liverpool. industry behemoths. They are expanding the In a statement, CMS said its “small presence” in available range of services by combining talent and the city stemmed from “a significant uptake in real technology to deliver legal services in modes that estate projects across the region”, and sought to best suit their clients’ needs.” “provide the firm with access to the local talent Little wonder then that Herbert Smith base” to capitalise on it. Freehills has chosen to start the year by further In more expansion news, the legal business expanding its very own in-house “alternative legal Elevate has just extended its ever-growing reach services” business, first launched in 2015. New to Hong Kong, through the acquisition of flexible e-discovery teams in New York and Hong Kong, lawyering and legal consulting business Cognatio set to be up and running by April 2019, will take Law, which provides services to both in-house the division – dubbed ‘ALT’ – to 11 locations legal and compliance teams and law firms across worldwide. Welcoming 10 new people, it will then the Asia Pacific region. have 50 e-discovery experts around the world, “Cognatio is a key element of our strategic enabling a “follow the sun” approach to such growth plan,” said Elevate CEO Lokendra Tomar work, the firm said. in a statement. “Our customers tell us they want Libby Jackson, HSF’s global head of practice for consulting, technology and tech-enabled services alternative legal services, said: “High-quality from a single provider with a global footprint and e-discovery expertise is always in great demand deep experience in each regional market.” Elevate across our global network, and in New York there has been on a very clear acquisition spree, is an unrivalled depth of technology and data snapping up LexPredict, contract lifecycle analytics talent.”
6 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 2019 UPFRONT
65 SECONDS WITH ... DR CORNELIUS GROSSMANN
Dr Cornelius Grossmann, global law leader at EY, talks leadership, innovation and Big Four bandwidth ahead of his appearance at Briefing Strategic Leaders 2019
What’s the most Where does last year’s be able to provide answers to the Q significant change you’re Q acquisition of Riverview clients’ business problems. We seeing in how clients wish to buy Law fit into your strategy today? therefore promote a better or access legal services? In addition to our legal advisory understanding of the multi- The single biggest change A business, we have developed disciplinary aspects of solutions on A we’re seeing is a rapid shift from technology-enabled ‘legal managed offer across the EY business. Training discussions about the scope of our services’ (LMS) over the last few in technology and soft skills are legal advisory services offering to years, which is driven primarily by further priorities for investment. also engaging EY to help the clients’ client demand. The acquisition of legal function transform their internal Riverview will allow us to meet that Would you say there are service delivery and position market demand and rapidly Qany ways you’ve adapted themselves as strategic business accelerate our growth plans in what is your personal or preferred partners across their organisations. a new market segment. leadership style over the years? Dealing with a fast-growing Having worked in both Does EY have a particular A practice always brings Q environments, do you think Qprocess or model for challenges, and leadership is no large professional services firms stimulating and managing exception. One of the key areas like yours have an advantage business innovation? where I’ve had to adapt my approach over traditional law firms – Innovation at EY is a is when it comes to allowing for specifically when it comes to A continuous challenge for our different cultural approaches within using technology to implement teams, and we’re reluctant to enforce an agreed global law strategy! business change? a single process. We find client- If an organisation has decided it serving teams are best at innovating A requires technology for and partnering with clients to business change, the advantage of a improve process and service delivery. large professional services firm is that Management’s role is to promote it tends to have a longer investment good examples and roll them out horizon. My experience is that globally through our global traditional firms’ finances are focused innovation committee. Strategic Want to hear more? on annual returns and partner decisions about new delivery models Join Cornelius on 5 March 2019 at drawings. Secondly, the larger the and services – which aren’t limited to BriefingStrategic Leaders and firm, the larger the investment technological innovation, by the way learn how to offer clients more holistic, budget. This probably means that – are driven by senior management. consultative solutions. Hear how EY sees the firm can consider larger-scale the future of legal business and where business changes than otherwise, and Where are you investing lawyers will be redundant in the service aim for potentially higher return on Qmost in new practical skills delivery mix. What work will alternative its investment. Finally, a large or training for your lawyers? legal suppliers and big accountancy firms professional services firm can also In addition to constant training take? Book now to find out. utilise its expertise in technology A on technical skills in core www.briefing.co.uk/strategicleaders19 implementation. competencies, our lawyers need to
7 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 2019 UPFRONT
READING LIST Feel the churn
Edward Whittington, managing partner at Moore Blatch, says The Churning Inner Leadership Workbook (second edition) is full of learning to help you change your leadership style
he origin of the self-help Since the first edition was published movement dates back to 1859, in 2016, Jackson himself points out that Publisher: Hertford Street Press T with the publication of a book North Korea has emerged as a long- Publication date: March 2018 by Scottish government range nuclear power, the #MeToo Price: £19.99 (paperback) reformer Samuel Smiles, Self-Help. movement has swept the world, and two Encouraging readers to turn away from of the world’s leading G7 countries have materialism and toward knowledge, the become significantly more unstable. genre is of course still popular today. Change today is so rapid that ability to Traditionally, these books often evolve and adapt is essential – as is polarise opinion. When commenting on inspiring employees to join you on that How to Win Friends and Influence journey. An ability to adapt to change People, Warren Buffet is quoted as saying successfully is a necessary part of any “it changed my life”. Others treat them successful business model. with cynicism, or even derision. Business leaders find themselves in an But from a business perspective, the environment where legislation changes power of self-help is widely recognised fast, and disruptive tech-nologies are across industries. Activities or exercises changing the way we work. We’re seeing that don’t directly relate to the business, a big shift in working practices. And with but which support team bonding and the future ever harder to predict, it may improving an individual’s understanding make more sense to focus on ability to of themselves and others, can not only embrace and manage change, rather than boost performance, but also make for a dealing with each new development as it more attractive place to work. occurs. Keeping up isn’t enough – you Or, look at the most popular TED talks must be one step ahead of the rest. of all time. The first is about the For this, good leaders are required at importance of creativity in education; the every level of an organisation, as are second, how our body language affects ‘leaders in the making’. This book should who we are. The third discusses a model appeal not only to those already in for inspirational leadership, with a leadership roles, but also to anyone staggering 40 million views. interested in building and developing Leadership is the subject of Finn their personal leadership qualities. This book should Jackson’s The Churning. In contrast to However, it requires considerable appeal not only to most self-help books, it is a true input from the reader. Jackson himself is those already in workbook, full of exercises for those also a successful coach. For those unable leadership roles, wanting to “build inspiration in times of to engage him directly, it is probably the but also to anyone change”. And this really is the crux of the next best thing to get the benefit of his book, as Jackson argues that the skills insights, experience and coaching interested in building required in times of change are different abilities to help develop and polish your and developing their from those needed when a business is leadership style. personal leadership stable. qualities
8 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 2019 OPINION
SPEAK UP Owning the situation
t seems there’s a ‘day’ for retaining motivation and engagement in I everything, from Black Friday to tough times. Blue Monday. There was even an ‘But we are a law firm, not a retailer,’ I Employee Ownership Day on 29 June hear you cry. Then forget John Lewis, and 2018, to celebrate what employee consider Arup, an independent firm of ownership (EO) means to employee designers, planners, engineers, owners and their businesses, and the consultants and technical specialists, impact they have on their local working to help their clients solve their economies. Who knew? most complex challenges. Sound more So, why all the fuss? You can be familiar? This huge, highly successful and forgiven if this topic has not hit your profitable business, with an enviable radar in any meaningful way. What with employer reputation, is based on a full Brexit, trying to recruit lawyers and employee ownership model. What’s your Louise Hadland getting our heads around machine excuse now? HR director Shoosmiths learning and AI, employee ownership According to Robert Postlethwaite, hasn’t exactly been a ‘thing’ of late. But there are “probably as many versions of perhaps it should be. employee ownership as there are craft In the understood model of law firm beers in East London”, so it isn’t ownership, partners get a share in profits necessary to dive straight into the ‘pure and a say in how the business is run. A form’ John Lewis/Arup model. Still, only partner buys into these rights and when a few law firms have so far opted for any they leave, they get their money back. of the flavours: Postlethwaite, Stephens With growing recognition that law firms’ Scown and now Hodge Jones & Allen, success depends on a wider pool than the with each expounding the benefits of the traditional partner, and a distinct model reflecting the findings of the reluctance among new entrants into the Employee Ownership Association: that qualified market to participate in the EO businesses outperform the market in perceived freedom-crippling path to terms of profitability, productivity and partnership, we have to ask whether we staff engagement. need another ownership model to hedge Momentum is gathering around this future success. subject, so perhaps take your own ‘day’ to The best-known model is probably that think about it. It’s not a panacea, but it of John Lewis, where every employee is might just give firms the competitive edge an owner in the business and receives a they need. salary and profit-related bonus – or not. Months of heated debate on Brexit have passed most of us by in a synapse-dulling haze of ambiguity, but when John Lewis With growing recognition that law firms’ success announced it would be withholding its depends on a wider pool than the traditional partner, employee bonus in 2019, we really knew and a distinct reluctance among new entrants into things were getting serious. But that is the point of employee ownership schemes. the qualified market to participate in the perceived Employees take the bad with the good, freedom-crippling path to partnership, we have to but at least they have a sense of control ask whether we need another ownership model to and influence, the best antidote for hedge future success
Briefing9 FEBRUARY 2019 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 20199 OPINIONOPINION
SPEAK UP Different strokes t’s weird that law firm challenge. In a crowded market, it’s websites pretty much all say difficult but not impossible to I the same things. Weird, differentiate. I would suggest that the because if a successful potentially unique combination for every ‘strategy’ requires a firm to firm is the one between its clients and differentiate itself from its competitors, people. What is it about the clients, what why do so many firms simply mimic the they do and what they ask the firm to do competition? that might be different? What is it about As Professor Stephen Mayson explains the people in the firm and what they do, in his book Law Firm Strategy, the or how they deliver their service? essence of competitive advantage is that However, if ‘culture eats strategy for the firm offers something to the market breakfast’, there are many firms where that its competitors don’t or cannot. This the culture is such that they shouldn’t James Wilson Tyler Wilson may be a single thing, or a combination of waste time and energy seeking a common (Former managing partner, Ince & Co, things – but the difference usually arises strategy. The successful execution of 2008-2015) from being unique, better, or cheaper. strategy requires partners to be willing to Crucially, the difference must bring be told what they can (and more meaningful value to clients – if they don’t importantly cannot) do with their see it as valuable, it brings no competitive investment time (drop the term ‘non- advantage at all. chargeable’ time). Strategy gets executed Being cheaper than the competition is using that golden pot of time the firm has the least attractive strategy because it to invest in activities such as business tends to result in competitors lowering development, training and knowledge their prices to match yours and an management. ensuing ‘rush to the bottom’ of the market Leadership in law firms is a particular that can simply be self-destructive. challenge, because they are environments Being better than the competition is a in which those being led aren’t required long-haul project – entirely dependent on to follow. If your culture is not one akin to market perception and not simply what a a rowing eight, with team members Leadership in law firms firm says about itself. It requires a pulling in unison allowing someone to is a particular challenge, ruthless pursuit of consistent excellence have a hand on the tiller, strategy will die in everything that the firm does, and by a death in the bottom drawer. If the because they are definition is a position only achieved by a partners prefer to paddle their own environments in which very small number of firms. individual kayaks in any direction they those being led aren’t Being unique (or at least easily choose, embrace that culture and don’t required to follow distinguished from the herd) is the real waste your time strategising.
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1010 Tweet us @Briefinglegal BriefingBriefing FEBRUARY FEBRUARY 2019 2019 FEATURES
Features 12 18 Knowledge expansion Briefing people One firm says ‘classic’ The Transaction Services knowledge management work Team at Addleshaw now accounts for just 40% of Goddard on the special the KM pile. So, what else is it power of their alternative doing with its time? career paths
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THE BIG IDEA Knowledge expansion Analytics, automation, innovation – even revenue generation. Among a select group of enterprising law firms, knowledge management is extending its reach, its skills base – and even contributing to the bottom line. Richard Parnham reports
ver the past few years, there has encompass. For Stanfield, the KM function should been a small – but noticeable – not be “a dumping ground for lawyers who don’t shift among knowledge have the technical expertise, or don’t want to work O management leaders at some of the hours.” Instead, the central goal of the KM the UK’s leading law firms: their function should be to improve business efficiency. job titles have become longer. This trend is not just To achieve that objective, KM professionals should about knowledge management ‘heads’ becoming be involved in “every stage of the flow of business, ‘directors’ – a sign that the role is becoming more from business development pitching to planning.” senior and respected within firms. Rather, it Stanfield points out that a strategy-minded KM reflects the fact that in some legal practices the leader should also expect to sit on a firm’s number of roles that sit within the KM function management committee. has expanded beyond its traditional base of Stanfield then explains how her role at Collas professional support lawyers (PSLs), library/ Crill impacts on pricing and profitability, as well as information services, and education and training. knowledge management. Legal information and According to a KM leader at one top-10 firm, services are increasingly being constructed from their team’s “classic” KM workload now accounts KM collateral, and potentially delivered online. It for just 40% of its activities. This firm took the step makes sense for those responsible for generating of requiring KM team members to record their and curating such valuable content to also be time – a controversial proposition in KM circles. responsible for exploring how the firm benefits However, this data helps the firm establish “who from it. “Clients expect law firms to be more does what, and for how long” – allowing levels of innovative in their charging structure,” she notes. KM investment to be understood and ROI “For example, a client might pay to access a evaluated. knowledge portal and then be charged a Kate Stanfield, from offshore law firm Collas discounted rate when they need to instruct a Crill, is a good example of a KM leader who has an lawyer. Or, they may have access to the portal for expansive view of what her team’s role should free so long as they instruct above a certain level of
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Automation Innovation
Elevation Transformation
Deliberation Integration
Iteration Collaboration
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chargeable work. There are various ways of thinking about the pricing and provision of legal services, beyond paying for lawyers by the hour or even offering a fixed price.”
KM and innovation This type of expansive thinking about the role played by KM is driving another trend among KM “At our firm our innovation initiatives leaders – taking overall responsibility for their are more likely to come from KM, firms’ innovation strategies. This should not be a working in close cooperation with surprising development. With KM playing a IT. It’s not about a turf grab, or longstanding role in capturing, analysing and increasing your empire.” sharing information, often using a variety of software packages, such expansion is arguably a Claire McNamara, director of knowledge natural evolution. management, HFW One firm which has unified the role of KM and innovation leader is Pinsent Masons. David Halliwell, the firm’s knowledge management improving our internal processes,” Halliwell says. leader, took on responsibility for the firm’s The outcome of Pinsents’ unification of KM and innovation delivery in June 2016, after previously innovation was impressive: in addition to having a more traditional KM, learning and continuing to deliver automated documents, the development focus. firm’s combined team built AI-assisted workflow Multiple factors drove the expansion of tools to manage a range of legal processes. Halliwell’s role. Pinsents’ 2012 merger with Although Pinsent Masons is one of several McGrigors in Scotland required the firm to review leading UK firms which have recently combined its working practices and structures as part of the their KM and innovation functions, other firms integration process: the firm was open to doing have moved in the opposite direction. At Taylor things differently. At the same time, facing Wessing, innovation briefly fell under the ambit of pressure from clients to do things “faster, cheaper the UK head of knowledge management, Andrew and better”, Pinsents increased its online delivery Telling, before being reassigned to another of services. “At that point, my role moved away department. “A few years ago, we didn’t have from traditional knowledge management and specialist people to scan the legal tech landscape – towards investigating how we could automate the that function was very much down to me,” Telling knowledge we have, in addition to automating and says. “Since then, we’ve developed a fully fledged innovation team, which has now become a separate function within the IT area.” An operational rejig meant that the KM function “My role moved away from returned to focusing on market scanning and traditional knowledge management content generation; however, KM team members and towards investigating how we continue to work closely with their innovation- focused colleagues, and Telling still sits on the could automate the knowledge we firm’s innovation board. have, in addition to automating and A certain amount of shifting between KM and improving our internal processes.” innovation is understandable, says HFW director of knowledge management, Claire McNamara. David Halliwell, director of knowledge and “Ultimately, in a large organisation, you can have innovation delivery, Pinsent Masons different teams doing different things. But, when
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you’re first starting out you’ve got to identify the increased to 66%. It is possible that the growing best place for a new function to emanate from,” she importance of IT and innovation (historically explains. “At our firm our innovation initiatives are male-dominated) to the KM function will equalise more likely to come from KM, working in close the gender imbalance. cooperation with IT. It’s not about a turf grab, or increasing your empire, but I don’t think you can really continue to deliver KM if you don’t grapple with legal tech and look at new ways of offering services to clients.”
A more diverse function? As the remit of many firms’ KM functions have expanded, one would think that the backgrounds of KM leaders would also become more diverse. But, according to research done by Briefing, this has not been the case. In 2018, 71% of all KM “KM leaders have to be able to cope leaders surveyed had a legal background – up from well with change, be open to working 61% in 2013. In terms of gender diversity among with new systems and tools, and KM leaders, the research suggests that not much be able to understand the bigger has changed in recent years – in fact, diversity has practice and vision of clients.” decreased. In 2013, Briefing’s research indicated that around 60% of KM leaders were female. More recently, this female leadership figure has Sarah Pullin, director of knowledge operations, Baker McKenzie
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KM leaders as multi-specialists for her firm, according to Woods. “But I don’t As the remit of firms’ KM capabilities has think there’s a right answer about where to put increased, so too has the range of roles. Previously, them, because they tend to have pervasive skills,” the majority of KM personnel would be PSLs. she adds, noting that this area of expertise could Now, a KM team might include legal engineers, easily be based in three or four other departments. document automation specialists, business As if to illustrate this point, Fiona Parkinson, head improvement advisers and legal project managers. of KM at BLM, says that her practice’s data These roles are usually undertaken by individuals analytics head sits within the firm’s “go to market” with a narrow area of focus. But KM leaders are team rather than its KM function, because their also hiring individuals with hybrid abilities. For principal role is to help improve client service and example, Slaughter and May, known for preferring client relationships. its lawyers to be multi-specialists rather than niche practitioners, has extended this preference to its From PSL to practice development lawyer KM function: one recent hire is a former Slaughter Although the scope of some KM functions has and May associate turned data scientist. “He’s also expanded to include additional roles and the guy who is automating our documents, specialisms, the KM leaders interviewed engaged in predictive analytics and involved in our emphasised that their PSL’s core expertise would blockchain and smart contracts work streams,” not be diluted: they would remain legal domain says the firm’s head of knowledge management, experts, responsible for maintaining knowhow in Alexandra Woods. relation to discrete areas of law. Slaughter and May’s decision to base this data That said, at some firms – notably Pinsent scientist within the KM function was appropriate Masons and Dentons – the PSL job title has been
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scrapped in favour of a rebranding as ‘practice development lawyers’ (PDLs). At Dentons, PDLs “If you’ve already built up a KM are expected, not only to support the lawyers, but function internally, set up a team, also to take part in internal and external client services delivery. They also have a specific built databases and systems – then innovation remit within their role. “The change in why not offer that expertise as a nomenclature is important,” says Dentons’ director consultancy service to clients?” of practice development and innovation for the UK and Middle East, Stuart Hopper. Indeed, at Claire McNamara, director of knowledge Dentons, the KM function no longer exists as a management, HFW standalone entity, but has been subsumed into a wider practice development function, which also clients?” she says. HFW already has a vehicle for includes innovation. facilitating this experiment – its recently launched Given that restructuring and rebranding the HFW Consulting service, which offers services KM function is a fact of life at several of the UK’s such as talent management, cybersecurity, and leading law firms, it’s not surprising that some KM legal strategy advice. Extending HFW Consulting’s leaders expect personnel to be comfortable service line to include KM would not be a major working in a ‘dynamic’ environment. “They have to change. If successful, this kind of initiative would be able to cope well with change, be open to allow KM to deliver on a long-desired objective – working with new systems and tools, and be able providing a tangible, quantifiable contribution to a to understand the bigger picture and vision of firm’s bottom line. clients,” observes Baker McKenzie’s director of McNamara attributes her firm’s proactive and knowledge operations, Sarah Pullin, who oversees inventive approach to KM to the existence of a the firm’s global KM operations. “That’s quite a multiyear, board-approved, KM-specific strategy different skillset to what would have been aligned with the firm’s wider strategic direction. expected of PSLs and librarians 20 years ago.” This focused approach means that HFW’s KM function “doesn’t just run around looking busy” Closer to clients while not achieving anything. Instead, the strategy Another noticeable way that the KM function has provides a structure supported by a detailed changed in recent years is that in some firms it is implementation plan. no longer a purely internal support role. At these A key driver of the expansion of the KM firms, KM team members meet clients on their function – at a select group of forward-thinking own account, without the client’s relationship firms – has been its expansion into legal practice partners being present. For firms who have gone innovation. This evolution may not always be down this route, there is a clear justification: KM straightforward, or even permanent – as the professionals will have a good ‘helicopter view’ of example of Taylor Wessing shows. Also, KM the firm’s knowledge and innovation initiatives, leaders may find themselves responsible for which clients might find it useful to learn more personnel with skillsets very different from their about. Putting KM personnel in front of clients own. But, after years of KM being seen as a means that “clients actually get what they want necessary overhead rather than income source, the and need from KM,” says HFW’s McNamara. inventive approaches taken by the likes of Collas McNamara reveals that her firm is considering Crill, Pinsent Masons, and HFW show what is transforming its externally facing KM function possible with a well-structured, commercially into a revenue-generating service line. “If you’ve focused, KM team. already built up a KM function internally, set up a Other KM leaders now face a challenge: how to team, built databases and systems – then why not emulate these forward-thinking firms and tap into offer that expertise as a consultancy service to the exciting potential in their own KM teams.
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BRIEFING PEOPLE Transaction adventures The Addleshaw Goddard Transaction Services Team (TST) turns 10 in 2020. On a recent trip up to the firm’s Manchester office, Richard Brent met several of the team to learn more about its growth and development, how it’s harnessing technology, plus embracing new routes into the profession
n September 2018, Addleshaw Davies continues: “The team could be involved in Goddard began onboarding its almost anything, from a full end-to-end client fourth cohort of legal apprentices. project to one discrete aspect of one piece of I Running since 2013, this Level 3 work.” Her role, therefore, is to liaise with fee Paralegal Apprenticeship earners and others across the firm to determine programme is delivered in conjunction with BPP exactly how TST’s talent can be maximised to Law School, and provides an alternative route to deliver tangible results for client work. university. It combines in-house and external Matthew Street, a senior manager in the TST, training, and enables apprentices to ‘earn while says it has developed significantly since he joined they learn’ and quickly apply that learning to the firm six years ago, moving on from being an real-world business situations. employment lawyer to do something quite One progression route then open to the different. For example, it’s now designed to work apprentice paralegals is the firm’s Solicitor alongside the same four core areas as the wider Apprenticeship scheme, leading to becoming fully firm (he heads up litigation, for example – Davies qualified solicitors, while working as part of the does so for corporate and commercial). Indeed, firm’s evolving Transaction Services Team (TST). the increase in headcount over the years (170 and TST head Mike Potter says: “We’re now counting) means the TST is a now a highly flexible welcoming apprentices into our team every year. resource, able to focus on large projects as well as AG is passionate about providing a different providing both clients and these core areas with approach to attraction, retention and people “dedicated embedded support”. development. The quality of apprentice candidates Potter continues: “We’ve never been hugely keeps increasing and they are a real asset to the prescriptive about how this team will develop. team. And as we continue to redesign the way Rather it has been a fascinating journey, and one legal work is delivered, we’re giving people the thing we’ve been doing recently is changing where opportunity to work in a traditional law firm some of the team are located; from the split environment but not in a traditional way. It’s between our cities – where we now have a something that we’ll continue to invest in.” presence in all the UK offices – to floors and areas And what will these newest recruits be doing? within our buildings. We’re doing this to get the
TST business engagement manager Maxine right balance between proximity to lawyers and BERNADETTE DELANEY CREDIT: PHOTO
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FROM LEFT TO Career windows RIGHT: Maxine the wider business, and ensuring a flexible, scalable Then, as well as continuous process improvement Davies, business team that can meet the changing needs of our for clients, the TST has long had a focus on piloting engagement business and clients.” alternative career paths for the firm’s people. In manager; West Middleton, assistant And alongside growth, Street adds, “there’s fact, the two priorities could be two sides of the team leader; Sarah opportunity to take a step back and survey where same coin. At times, a non-traditional – even Morton, senior process change might usefully be introduced. In a surprising – sideways move within an organisation manager; Sue few cases, it’s now some time since we carefully might unlock a new level of client value. Bentham, team process mapped certain things we do, and of Sarah Morton, another TST senior manager, leader; Matthew course the world has moved on again, as have leads on people and personal development – the Street, senior manager, clients’ needs and expectations.” apprenticeship schemes, recruitment and Transaction Services In his own area of litigation, for example, the induction, performance review, promotions and Team, Addleshaw TST is seeing an increasing amount of direct ongoing career development. One recent project Goddard interaction and relationships with those clients. has been a new leadership development “Previously, this would always have been framework for the TST, she says (p21). channelled through a partner, whereas today we The TST has already offered many a chance at have lots of our own connections, including, for role change. Davies, for example, was previously an example, the full outsourcing of client claims AG litigation partner for four years, first in London management work.” then in Manchester. “I was at a point where I wanted a different set of demands, but to remain in
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“The TST is a great enabler for bringing project management principles to bear, as we’re involved in so much of the firm’s work in some capacity. We want to train our team and give them the opportunity to learn new skills that are in demand.”
Mike Potter, head of the Transaction Services Team, Addleshaw Goddard a firm that I had long invested in, and which had Into innovation invested in me. My role was new, but I had the In addition, the TST works closely with AG’s experience of working as a senior fee earner, so innovation and legal technology (ILT) team (in fact knew how I could help to drive engagement levels. this was spun out of TST). Sharing space in Having someone who had been around the block a Manchester, Street says: “We often work together little was probably a good thing!” on projects, attend client pitches and share ideas Sarah Morton has been with the TST from the about how we can both implement change.” outset – a paralegal for several years, including on Bentham gives the example of creating an secondment with clients and in the banking auction site for the sale of garden centres – used practice, she then decided against an initial plan to both to organise bids and to manage a large volume pursue the traditional training contract. “I enjoyed of client documents. “The TST corporate and real helping to supervise and develop others, so estate teams collaborated with the ILT, and it’s successfully applied to be a team leader at the time probably one of the biggest sites we now run.” the TST was first establishing a structure of sub And Davies says another move for her team – teams. Since then the role has evolved – in 2015 I especially since the birth of the firm’s AG had the opportunity to lead recruitment and set up Intelligent Delivery (AG ID) offering in 2017 (with a new centre for the TST in Leeds, and more its focus on legal service delivery and saving clients recently I’ve been doing the same for our new time) – is its closer connection with the firm’s presence in Edinburgh.” project management specialists. The TST is Team leader Sue Bentham had an especially working with the firm’s new head of legal project interesting route in. She’d worked as a lawyer for management, Simon Muller, becoming much more another Manchester firm, before leaving the involved in this area. “There’s a lot of awareness profession to raise her children for 20 years. She and motivation to involve project management in says: “I’d not been practising for such a long time any piece of that work that we do – – a significantly longer career break than is usual communicating well to wrap each individual’s – but I very much wanted to return.” Through the input and experience around the task as efficiently Law Society’s support programme for such as possible,” she explains. “And we at TST are ‘returners’, she came across AG’s own course – involved in cases earlier than we were. It’s more applied, but didn’t get the role. But the firm asked planned and proactive working than reacting to to retain her details, and several months later the the urgent requests. AG ID is about involving all of phone rang with a different opportunity in the the right elements at the right times.” TST. That was then a fee-earning role, which she Potter concludes: “The TST is a great enabler accepted (in spite of some initial reservations for bringing project management principles to about her time out of the market), but today it’s a bear, as we’re involved in so much of the firm’s “purely management” focused role, she says. work in some capacity. We want to train our team “Many of our paralegals were the same age as my and give them the opportunity to learn new skills own three children, and I suppose I started to take that are increasingly in demand. I think the on a supporting role around them without being opportunity to learn legal project management asked.” In summer 2018 she took on the team skills, alongside experience of the latest legal leader role, and today manages 22. technology, is a compelling proposition.”
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FACES OF THE FUTURE
Assistant team leader West Middleton arrived with the TST’s second intake of apprentices, straight from school. He was one of the first to join the Leeds TST and gained experience working for different practice groups before becoming a paralegal in real estate. He’s also on Morton’s leadership development programme, which initially involved line managing a current apprentice and a paralegal. He has now secured the role to lead and develop a new TST hub for Scotland based in the Edinburgh office. He says: “I’m looking forward to putting the skills I learned on the leadership development programme to good use and developing my management skills. Being involved in setting up and running a new team is a fantastic opportunity for me at this stage of my career.” Having started in the central team, CLOCKWISE FROM BACK LEFT: Annie Armstrong, solicitor apprentice; Claire Dyer, senior paralegal; West Middleton, assistant team leader; Olivia Hancock, Claire Dyer is now a senior paralegal innovation and legal technology team trainee, Transaction Services Team, AG embedded in Manchester’s banking team. “I now sit with the banking partners and fee earners and assist on their deals day to day,” Annie Armstrong is now a solicitor She joined the TST as a paralegal, before she says. “I get lots of client contact, work apprentice, having completed her first year focusing more on technology. “I had an on a wide variety of projects and I’m of six of that qualification. She originally opportunity to do some work with them involved in helping with business joined the firm as a paralegal apprentice when it was still very new and enjoyed development. I also work closely with other and currently specialises in real estate work. engaging with the wider business on areas members of the TST to produce training She says: “The academic workload of such as process efficiency,” she says. materials and deliver training sessions – the solicitor apprenticeship is a lot heavier. “Once I’d secured a training contract, I breaking down the tasks integral to a Most is completed online, with a face-to- decided to take advantage of this new banking transaction for others. I’ve also face session covering more practical skills route. Instead of the traditional four been working with lots of different lawyers about once a semester. six-month training seats, I’ll do the vast to identify quite an extensive TST task list, “I’m enjoying real estate, and I’ve just majority in innovation and legal helping ensure the right work is done at the joined a new client team. The learning technology. But that means working with right level for maximum efficiency.” curve to pick that work up has been quite a almost every other part of the firm. I’m At the same time, she’s working toward challenge. There’s a lot involved in keeping also working directly with clients on areas qualification into the banking team through clients well informed, but it’s rewarding to such as document automation, involved in the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives. have greater responsibility and begin to scoping, building, implementing and “I’m looking forward to qualifying into the build more trust.” training – the full project. team and, because I’ll have been working in Olivia Hancock is one of the very first “I like the chance to have input into the department for a full two years prior to to take advantage of the firm’s new projects and ask questions about how legal qualification, I know what to expect and opportunity to be a trainee and qualify into work ought to be done – whether it can be can hit the ground running.” the innovation and legal technology team. done better, faster or more consistently.”
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Brain training 24 Build on the buzz Jenni Emery, global people leader at Arup, sets out the process of taking CMS partners on a path to more proactive collaboration
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HANDS ON t’s curious how even get you shot. pretty much But I’ll try to make the case I every current for collaboration as a guiding buzzword philosophy for law firms, arguing seems to begin they should put it at the very Build on with a C. Courage, culture, heart of a strategy in order to creativity, change, champagne, drive excellent client service, cheese. Oh no, wait … market impact, profitable One top one is collaboration. growth, people engagement and the buzz It’s everywhere: cornerstone of cultural cohesion. culture, key to growth, and topic At CMS, we have had perhaps Jenni Emery, former director of strategy at of choice for keynotes, pitches more reason than most to dig CMS, now global people leader at Arup, and and soundbites. beneath the abstractions and author of Organisational Change: building But collaboration suffers from really grapple with what purpose, motivation and belonging, says a malaise that affects many collaborating well looks like, and buzzwords – it’s overused, bland. how it can drive value. From the the easy buzzword ‘collaboration’ belies the It is an abstract noun, and we use outset, the firm understood massive effort required to make it meaningful it lazily – we all think we know collaboration to be the key to what it means. And, let’s be unlocking the value in the honest, it’s pretty unappealing. three-way merger of CMS, You don’t ‘collaborate’ with Nabarro and Olswang to create a friends, your children, or a lover. new firm that was more than the At times in history, being sum of its parts. And working in identified as a collaborator could collaboration with a number of
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thought leaders in this area, the absolutely in line with both the firm has followed a clear path for team’s expectations and 18 months – increasing Collaboration does not mean Gardner’s theory, but were no understanding, identifying less startling for that. The figures opportunities for doing it, having cosy coffees together, clearly showed an exponential building skills and behaviours turning up mob-handed to correlation between the number that support it, and incentivising meetings, having committees of practice groups working for and rewarding it. It has had a for everything or just being a one client and the average fees number of very positive impacts. generally affable human being generated from that client. This While the precise details of (although that helps) makes sense because the number our journey are specific to CMS of practice groups involved is a and its particular post-merger good proxy for both the context, the key building blocks supported by much of the latest complexity of any given matter, are clear, distinct and capable of thinking in neuroscience around and the intimacy and breadth of application across different how we build connections and a client relationship. The figures contexts. Let’s begin, though, engage at work. It builds bonds also showed plenty of theoretical like any good lawyer, by defining between partners and teams in scope to expand relationships our terms. Collaboration does the firm, and between partners across practices, exactly as we not mean having cosy coffees and clients, and thus increases would have expected within a together, turning up mob- productivity and loyalty. At CMS, year of merger. The lawyers handed to meetings, having we gave all partners a copy of were, of course, quick to point committees for everything or Gardner’s book. A compelling out some real-life circumstances just being a generally affable intellectual case, backed by data, that could give the lie to some of human being (although that presented as a good foundation the theoretical opportunity but, helps). The word is Latin in to build upon. We also invited even if the calculations had been origin: com and laborare – ‘to Gardner to deliver a keynote out by a significant order of work together with.’ In this presentation at our first post- magnitude, the potential upside sense, it is a concept of a merger partner conference, and of even a marginal shift was different order from showcased three examples from material enough to make coordination – ‘to set in order, to across the new firm of how partners pay attention. arrange’, and even from collaboration had already The qualitative analysis cooperation – ‘to work to one yielded good results for clients. generated some great examples common end’. It’s two or more of best practice that we were people actively engaged in Start where you are able to showcase, such as real working with one another in an Having laid the groundwork generosity with time, resources integrated way to solve a with Gardner’s research, our and contacts. And to the extent problem, deliver an outcome or next step at CMS was to get an that it identified some current to create something new. accurate picture of the current obstacles, these were those we approach. We commissioned expected to see so soon after Make the case Gardner and team to conduct merger, such as not always being At CMS we started by really research with quantitative and sure who to reach out to, or not explaining the business case for qualitative elements. They yet knowing one another well. It collaboration to partners. This is crunched through thousands of was helpful to be able to name a case well supported by time-recording entries and and discuss these. research. Dr Heidi Gardner, in conducted in-depth interviews The research also indicated a her book Smart Collaboration, with a representative group of skills gap – our next focus. makes the case specifically in the partners, also supported by an context of law firms. online survey. Build skills and awareness There is also a strong people- The findings of the There’s a tendency in law firms focused case for collaboration, quantitative analysis were to assume that if someone is not
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doing something it’s because partnership full of people with a they don’t want to – that they deep understanding, a clear lack the will. Around the area of sense of where their firm is at, C THE BENEFITS collaboration, however, we and all the skills and behaviours found that the will to collaborate they need to be ‘collaboration Benefits of collaboration, as highlighted by Dr was strong, but many partners ninjas’. Where to start? Heidi Gardner of Harvard Law School: were not as skilled as they could You can – and should – start be at doing it themselves, nor at exactly where you are. As and • Growth in revenue and profits, both for the firm creating a context within which when opportunities arise, you as a whole and in terms of the performance and more collaboration could can bring your shiny new earnings of individual partners who adopt happen. If this sounds collaborative approach to bear. collaborative behaviour. patronising, I don’t mean it to be. But at CMS we also wanted to be • Client loyalty and retention. This is partly because The vast majority of partners are more proactive and point our the more touchpoints a client has within the firm, well aware of what good practice people toward the ‘best’ the harder it is to leave, but mostly because a around collaboration looks like opportunities (reinforcing the collaborative approach makes sense for clients too on the outside (for example, that case for doing it). Forgive the – for example, increasing client access to expertise, they pitch together, share crude maths, but looking at all and improving efficiency/responsiveness. expertise, and make referrals). our clients across all practice • Innovation – the ‘Heffernan argument’, that Partners are generally good groups, potential opportunities greater diversity of views produces better solutions. citizens and will do these things in areas where they weren’t • Transparency and risk management – pooling (at least when they remember, currently served ran well into expertise reduces the risk of potentially and aren’t too busy to organise five figures. In order to sift these, problematic ‘lone wolves’. it). It’s the behaviours under the to distinguish the bogus from the surface – the ‘deeper stuff’ – that real and potentially value- were a mystery to many, until we generative, we needed some began talking about it explicitly. help. That role was for Get aligned At CMS, we engaged two WhiteSpace, the new product Last, but by no means least, is the coaches who knew the firm well being developed by the team old adage that ‘what gets (and had also previously worked behind Objective Manager. We measured gets done’. All the with Dr Gardner’s material) to worked with the team there as education and data in the world design a workshop to help our they developed a tool that counts for nothing if people are leaders develop some deeper identifies and prioritises ultimately measured and collaboration behaviours. We opportunities using an rewarded on the basis of began with our sector group algorithm, and then suggests individualistic and anti- leaders on a programme who in the firm, based on their collaborative metrics. covering areas such as how skills, relationships and prior At CMS, the merger gave us much control they wanted to experience, might be well placed the perfect opportunity to look exert, how they build to pursue that opportunity. afresh at this – for example, to relationships, their appetite for We used this tool in its build collaboration into our risk, and communication style. current state with our leadership people proposition and This received perhaps the team to inform planning and promotion and bonus structure, strongest feedback I’ve ever seen objective-setting discussions. and at partner level to focus for a one-day programme and is The future is to share the most strongly on the metrics that already demonstrably moving finished product more widely so best illustrate collaborative the dial in terms of partner partners can pursue behaviour and team endeavour. behaviour. It’s now being opportunities for themselves. We also consciously choose to cascaded across the business. We saw huge potential for publicly celebrate examples of identifying opportunities, strong collaboration in the Make data-driven decisions developing skills, and building stories that we tell, both Let’s now assume you have a more inclusive teams. internally and externally.
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Industry views Documenting decisions Value of collaboration Issue sponsor: Ruth Musgrave at Fraser Mayfield ta Iridium 28 Freshfields Bruckhaus 38 Technology recommends Deringer on the creativity collaborative pricing to of Contract Express improve client relationships
Power of Newcastle Automate with ideas intelligence 32 Why Newcastle was the 40 James Quinn at Clarilis on city of choice for process the benefit of outsourcing improvement at document automation Norton Rose Fulbright Knowledge on app Trust in collaboration Simon Pecovnik at iManage James Gilding at Mitie 42 RAVN on knowledge 34 provides his personal management fit for the age pointers for promoting of the app collaboration What do you know? Shake up the knowledge Melanie Farquharson at Chris Cartrett at Aderant on 44 3Kites Consulting reviews 36 a new world of knowledge BriefingKnowledge management Leaders 2018
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INDUSTRY CASE STUDY Documenting decisions Ruth Musgrave, global head of knowledge management, global transactions, at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, discusses creating better, faster and more accurate documents with Contract Express
he legal market is certainly very document is completely customisable. competitive – and in recent years the “You can tailor it to the decision-making process T focus has been directed at legal that a lawyer will go through when they’re drafting. services delivery, value-added You can really pinpoint the things that are services and value for money, so anything a law important for that document in that particular type firm can do to improve on that has to be a good of work. The customisation possibilities are thing. After all, the drive comes from the client. extensive.” Innovation has a huge role to play in generating There are also real risk benefits, she says, as you efficiency and, with Contract Express, Freshfields can add guidance notes, flag up particular Bruckhaus Deringer has been able to create better comments and make recommendations throughout efficiencies for its lawyers and, more importantly, the questionnaire. improve client service. For example, Musgrave says, you could point out “By driving users towards our own automated to a user that if they’re saying ‘no’ to a question standard form documentation and templates where the recommended answer is usually ‘yes’, through Contract Express, we’re able to create then they should either think about that more higher quality, more accurate and consistent carefully or perhaps then talk to a partner. documents, much more efficiently,” says Ruth “This type of customisation provides us with a Musgrave, global head of knowledge for the global huge advantage in risk management.” transactions practice at the firm. Innovation pockets Express benefits Innovation is a big part of the firm’s business Before Musgrave worked at Freshfields, she was a strategy – Freshfields’ aim, Musgrave says, is to be senior associate at another firm – a long-time user the global leader in delivering more creative of Contract Express. During her time using solutions to the challenges that its clients face. Contract Express as an associate, she experienced “And there are a number of ways that we’re these efficiencies first-hand. doing this, notably the development of our “I found it extremely useful and could see the innovation strategy and dedicated innovation team. benefits it had for the way I worked and how I “They’re always scanning the horizon to see spent my time. As a result, I was able to provide how legal services are changing and looking for better client service. And that’s what Contract opportunities to bring benefits to our clients.” Express now does for Freshfields.” Contract Express fits very well into our Its flexibility also caught her eye. When you innovation strategy, she says. Freshfields seeks to create the questionnaire, which the Contract combine what’s available through technology with Express platform uses to generate an automated its own lawyers’ skills and knowledge.
draft, she says, the coding for any individual “By pulling these two elements together we can SIMON BRANDON CREDIT: PHOTO
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really provide something for clients that is high “And if you’re not using Contract Express to do quality and adds value. Document automation is a that, then someone has to take some time with the great example of all of that.” document to go through a decision process and She says there are many types of documents make the changes manually.” that can really benefit from being automated. It In the course of the automation process, the might be something used in high volume, like a firm has also paid attention to areas of drafting that non-disclosure agreement, or it could be aren’t particularly taxing on the brain but are still something complex, with many possible time-consuming and absolutely necessary – such permutations, which lends itself really well to as changing singulars to plurals or, using an identifying questions that would trigger a specific example from Musgrave’s own experience in clause to be included or not, Musgrave explains. practice, entering the company name in a loan
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“Generating a document that already has key information incorporated means that our lawyers can spend more time drafting the more bespoke and complex parts of an agreement, and then reviewing the whole thing.”
Ruth Musgrave, global head of knowledge management, global transactions, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
agreement some 25 times. “The user experience is so intuitive, you really She says: “It’s great to have that time used more don’t need to give extensive training – working productively by our lawyers, rather than doing through the questionnaire is very user-friendly.” these relatively menial changes that can easily be Musgrave and her knowledge colleagues held a done better, more quickly and accurately with mini roadshow internally to do demonstrations for automation.” certain teams in London and other offices, including a videoconference with the firm’s Hit the roadmap Middle East offices. “We have English law The firm wanted to be ambitious but also realistic qualified lawyers practising across our global – and after some good advice from Thomson network. For example, our English law non- Reuters early on, it successfully launched in May disclosure agreement, which is our most popular with nearly 60 automated standard forms and Contract Express document to date, is used templates from three global practice groups. This extensively by lawyers all over the firm. included documents not only from Freshfields’ “We have a very collaborative environment and London practices but also from different parts of Contract Express allows us to reach all our regions mainland Europe and Hong Kong. in a similar fashion.” “Thomson Reuters told us not try to make the coding super complex in the beginning as we can Sweet seamlessness always build on it later. This was really helpful It was very important to create a seamless advice for our knowledge team who led the experience and really embed Contract Express project. We were also focused on the user into Freshfields’ working practices, she says. experience – a very long and complicated Lawyers are used to accessing knowledge questionnaire could well be off-putting.” products, standard forms and templates in a In terms of promoting the product internally, certain way through the firm’s intranet or the benefits to the individual were so clear that it knowhow database, Musgrave says. “And we have wasn’t difficult getting people onboard, she says. been able to maintain all of that – only now, when
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For more information, visit: www.contractexpress.com
they identify the document they want, they’re could assist further on client-specific matters. directed to the Contract Express platform to begin Examples are clients with whom the firm works the questionnaire. So the process for access hasn’t regularly that have an internal template they like changed, and this has been great for adoption.” external counsel to use, Musgrave explains. As the integration is so seamless, the only thing “One thing we can do is automate that client lawyers are doing differently is drafting documents template so the next time a Freshfields lawyer more quickly and efficiently. prepares that particular document with that client, “It saves us a lot of time. Generating a document the process to do that will be extremely that already has key information and things like streamlined and efficient. singulars and plurals included, and important “Contract Express, and our ability to tailor it for structural elements incorporated, means that our clients, has become an important part of our lawyers can spend more time drafting the more presentation of our legal tech capabilities to clients bespoke and complex parts of an agreement, and generally.” then reviewing the whole thing,” Musgrave says. And Freshfields continues to expand Contract And, she says, automation through Contract Express to other practice groups and documents Express can be used to do something clever for the – there’s just so much opportunity to be had, client. Musgrave says. “For example, if you know that a particular “There’s been great collaboration between company will need four or five documents, you can knowledge lawyers across our global offices. have a single questionnaire for those documents as Where a document is being automated in one a ‘suite’. The questionnaire will ask questions that location, a knowledge colleague in another populate every document, and then additional jurisdiction can draw from the way that document questions that are specific to one or another as has been automated. It saves people from doing appropriate. In this way you can use one the same work in different areas.” questionnaire to generate a few documents as a package, which is often required in transactional Opportunity abounds work. Musgrave says working with Thomson Reuters “It’s been a very popular feature of Contract really is like a partnership. “Thomson Reuters has Express, all the while making our documents more been extremely helpful in providing us with accurate and consistent – and it reduces costs information, guidance, training, technical support overall.” and so on, right across the team.” Of course, she says, everything is still reviewed And as it has such a broad platform, Freshfields’ and carefully checked before going to the client, lawyers are recipients of the knowledge services but the starting point is more advanced – you’ve a that it supplies through, among others, Practical package of documents for a client and transaction- Law as well. specific details are right across the suite. In addition to the automated standard forms, there’s the suite of automated Practical Law A step further templates available, which is an added bonus, she Freshfields has over 500 Contract Express users says. “Thomson Reuters is an organisation that is and lawyers have created over 1,400 documents, looking to innovate, and that was very important to since it launched in May 2018. us in selecting them as our document automation “We’re absolutely delighted with how well it has partner.” been taken up internally in only eight months. It’s been a big project for Freshfields to “As is often the case with something new, our undertake, and for the knowledge team in people see how it works and are prompted to think particular, she says, but a real achievement – to of other ways they could use it.” have it launched with such quick success and with Freshfields has several associate-led projects a strong pipeline of new documents in where lawyers are working out how automation development.
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INDUSTRY CASE STUDY For more information, visit: www.investnewcastle.com/legal Power of Newcastle ideas
Kiran Radhakrishnan and Dan Newcombe of global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright explain why Newcastle was the city of choice for its process innovation presence en route to 2020
orton Rose Fulbright’s ‘Project 2020’ presence, but not with the same balance of benefits is a far-reaching and ambitious plan that would help us to grow and innovate in line N to modernise this global business, with the firm’s strategy.” creating a more efficient and agile operation for clients and employees alike. Top for talent It is, of course, now under a year until the first Beginning with people, first is the strength of the day of that symbolic new decade dawns. And Kiran local talent market. Starting out as a pilot in 2016 Radhakrishnan, who heads up the firm’s legal with four paralegals, today the hub has around 75 process hub in Newcastle – launched in 2016 – says employees, and the firm expects it to almost double it has been a core piece in the transformation its capacity over the next few years. agenda. The education presence that feeds that market Why the city of Newcastle? In short, he says, it is significant. Radhakrishnan says: “A key factor is had measurable strength in the three pillars the the strength of the region’s universities, with firm has focused on adapting to transform itself excellent courses not only in law, but also aspects – “people, process and technology”. of computing and other areas of business. Plus, “We spent some time considering different Newcastle as a city has an especially good locations, and the biggest single factor was reputation among graduates and those relatively delivering maximum value,” explains early in their careers. London isn’t the centre of the Radhakrishnan. That’s value for clients and the universe for everyone, and the firm has found firm’s own people, not just value for money. “We talented individuals who want to remain in the could have opened in cheaper places to establish a region. The hub allows them to do so, but still enjoy
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the opportunity to take part in delivering some of augmenting or adding efficiency.” the biggest deals in the world,” he explains. Nevertheless, the local tech ecosystem is The region’s talent pool also flows into the certainly a further factor in favour of having ‘process’ element of the transformation. “As a city Newcastle for its hub. “The city has a booming with a history of engineering excellence, there’s a innovation and technology sector, with many certain culture and mindset of problem-solving interesting startups emerging. We’re regularly that pervades,” he says – which all-comers appear approached by local developers,” says senior to embrace. So, if nothing else it’s appropriate that manager Dan Newcombe. “Invest Newcastle has the firm is using its new premises to trial some offered practical help to get to know exactly what’s alternative ways of working for employees, as well out there and help connect us with the as different options for clients – effectively ‘re- opportunities.” For example, there are facilities engineering’ its practices. “There’s always a certain such as the £30m National Innovation Centre for risk of a successful business resting on what are Data (NICD) – at a time when many firms are clearly strong laurels. Fortunately, this firm has investing in data science and forms of predictive always been forward-thinking.” The hub has analytics to drive more consistent, profitable or proved a particularly good base for trialling otherwise high-value outcomes. transformation through technology and “new and While there’s still some distinguishing between innovative” ways of working, he says. “A a certain amount of “smoke and mirrors” and fundamental part of innovation is having space to measurable results to be done in this area, he says get some of the things you try wrong as well as it makes sense to be trialling new technology right, but to do that without excessive risk – to where it’s in abundance. Online collaboration learn, drop it and then to move on quite quickly.” spaces, document and process automation, data With the help of Invest Newcastle, the firm visualisation and artificial intelligence (AI) found such a space in Quayside House – where it solutions are all under investigation. has also successfully introduced open-plan agile Newcombe also provides examples of growing working practices, including a certain amount of areas of tech-supported client work, such as hotdesking. People with different business skillsets moving into higher-volume claims management are better enabled to assemble in project groups for insurers, and portals for clients to offer ‘self- that make most business sense at the time. service’ style document automation to employees. “Invest Newcastle has been a great help in Tech on trial forming close links with the local authorities and Finally, a more flexible approach to work raises the business community, and with finding technology matter of investment in technology – the third as well as legal talent,” he adds. And of course, pillar of project NRF Transform in time for 2020. with locating the legal process hub itself. From But Radhakrishnan says: “We never begin with a serviced office during the pilot phase to one the introduction of technology for its own sake. We fully kitted out for all manner of process start from the perspective of the process, move to improvement, it’s both a “fantastic place for the people who will operate that process, and only business and an environment in which to work then consider the technology options for enabling, and socialise,” he says.
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INDUSTRY ANALYSIS Trust in collaboration
A focused approach to collaboration can not only help you run your business projects more efficiently, but also inspire your teams, says James Gilding at Mitie Document Management
his month, I would like to consider of purpose and belonging. This is especially how collaboration can impact important as collaborative teams are increasingly T organisational working relationships based in different locations, so they will need a and where it could and should lead. common motivational goal. How do leaders of organisations embrace a 2. Impose accountability and responsibility, collaborative working mentality? including deadline management The word collaboration derives from the Latin Each member of the team should be there based com and laborare (to work together). In simple on a specific skillset or benefit that they or their terms, it means working with someone to produce organisation/department can offer, and which is something. It is also defined to as “traitorous relevant to the project. Define clear lines for who is cooperation with an enemy”, but in this article I responsible for which area, and a level of am going to assume we will not need to investigate accountability for each team member. collaborating with our enemies! How the team manages the project’s wider vision can be addressed through a set of team roles. Collaboration: the top four rules Use Belbin’s nine team roles as an aide-memoire to Before starting on any business engagement or make sure you have the right people in the right project, you establish a system of working, and the roles (p35). This might be too structured for reasons for the agreed approach. There are many projects requiring a quick turnaround, so at a great articles and blogs offering sets of rules for minimum I recommend looking at the following: collaboration. Based on my experience in legal and • Project lead/facilitator – to keep drive and professional services, here are my own top four. direction 1. Have clear aims and objectives • Moderator – for time management and A shared vision will provide the team with a sense maintaining efficiency
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Belbin’s team roles Shaper Challenges the team to improve Action-oriented roles Implementer Puts ideas into action Completer finisher Ensures thorough, timely completion Coordinator Acts as a chairperson People-oriented roles Team worker Encourages cooperation Resource investigator Explores outside opportunities For more information, visit: Plant Presents new ideas and approaches www.mitie.com/services/ document-management Thought-oriented roles Monitor evaluator Analyses the options Specialist Provides specialised skills
• Administrator – to record actions and deadlines expectations and deliverables. This is normally • Disruptor – to hold the team accountable to the driven by ROI needs as we are likely to pay for the question. support and services of third-party organisations. 3. Be open and share resources However, I think collaboration and a shared This is at the core of the benefits of collaborating. goal and business opportunity can mean that cost Without an open approach built on trust and issues can be set aside. Benefit to third parties from integrity, we cannot deliver on its potential. collaborating can lie in other outcomes of a 4. Retain flexibility successful collaboration (for example, new Adjusting for learnings and any change in business, additional services, and so on). circumstances is critical. If you are too rigid, We have also on occasion collaborated with key lessons learned from this project or elsewhere competitors (what did I say about collaboration might not be tabled for discussion and application. with the enemy?). However, this worked brilliantly and without commercial risk to supply partners Teams within teams because we followed the rules. Our goal was a Working with team members from other better service model for the customer and their departments to solve simple problems or kick off building users – a model that allowed us to reduce new projects is often just business as usual. cost but enhance outputs through an optimised However, could treating these interactions more solution. We each took responsibility for key parts formally and applying the collaboration rules of the solution development. We left competitor above lead to better outcomes? baggage at the door and focused on delivering at Sometimes, internal projects get bogged down pace and wowing the customer. The outcome was in politics, or people coming in with opposing a win-win for all involved. agendas. As leaders, we can do away with most of these issues by applying simple collaboration Technologies to collaborate principles and forging a team with a shared goal. Will collaborative technology mean that we will For my teams, the principles are: a clear goal work more collaboratively just by installing the and timeline; everybody actively gets involved; all technology in the business? No. views are considered (if relevant to the goal); and, Technology should be applied to enhance and finally, we all respect the process and leave any enable collaboration across departments and third baggage (virtual or real) at the door. In my parties. The ways of working and the cultural business, we talk a lot about pace – the speed of approach to collaboration must be in place and taking action, how quickly we report back to the working before you invest in, or develop, systems. business and what we all do to make sure that we There are numerous technologies you can now deliver on the agreed outcome. use. I’m not going to recommend specific applications because their relevance will depend Working with a third party on your business culture and IT infrastructure. When engaging suppliers or consultants, we set As you would expect, Mitie has established partnerships with a number of global players and we use tried and tested tools. The benefits we’ve A shared vision is especially gained from using technology for collaborative important as collaborative teams projects include being able to update documents in are increasingly based in different real time from multiple locations, a great audit locations, so they will need a trail, instant communication, the ability to easily common motivational goal share multiple types of documents, and a reduction in email traffic.
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INDUSTRY INTERVIEW Shake up the knowledge The automation of knowledge management is emerging as a huge competitive differentiator, says Aderant executive vice president Chris Cartrett
s legal businesses have grown, merged, stayed in people’s heads. All those actions are still dispersed and outsourced, one important – but today KM also needs to inform and A challenge for lawyers remains – prompt the best decisions and predict their finding exactly the information they outcomes.” need in time for it to make the optimum difference. In short, it’s the difference between a “tactical” Whether that’s serving an existing client in a and a “strategic” approach. Software has the new way, or winning a profitable new one, potential to help transform from one to the other. approach to knowledge management (KM) is key. But that’s only if that tech meets certain criteria. However, KM may well need some radical “Firms have excellent content everywhere they transformation all of its own, says Aderant turn today – from multiple suppliers, as well as executive vice president Chris Cartrett. from applications developed in-house for specific “Traditionally, a group of knowledge managers types of work or practice. The big challenge is how would organise their data quite tactically – moving it’s managed, presented and ultimately consumed.” pieces of information into the correct place, Multiple user interfaces, for example, don’t help educating people about it, physically helping them busy lawyers to benefit from this wealth, says
to find it, and tapping into the knowledge that Cartrett. “If you don’t stick to the same system, SIMON BRANDON CREDIT: PHOTO
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For more information, visit: www.aderant.com
“The most impressive law firms ones. “In a growing firm, people need a way to are now bringing their knowledge understand what all sorts of other people, in other places, can bring to the table. An improved together around collective purpose understanding of who has previously drafted rather than collections of links.” which types of business documents – connected to Chris Cartrett, executive vice president, which specific courts, for example – helps lawyers Aderant make better decisions for their clients. “Handshake’s Expertise Locator module allows a lawyer to find the firm’s internal experts. But beyond ‘the who’, it also shows why they are experts, and provides an ability to rank them you’re likely to forget your log-in details, never according to firm preferences.” The system’s mind the best way to mine useful information.” reporting feature, KM Analytics, also takes data KM technology is a necessity, not a luxury, he points such as profitability, realisation, search time continues. “One firm I know realised its true and usage patterns to quantify this return. potential by placing a measurable goal on the table, which would translate into real profit. When The power of purpose pitching her idea to the executive committee, the Cartrett continues: “The most impressive firms are director of KM asked the somewhat rhetorical now bringing their knowledge together around question, ‘What would a 5% increase in lawyer collective purpose rather than collections of links.” efficiency mean to our bottom line?’ At any firm in Handshake’s role is to ensure the data that feeds the world, a 5% increase in billable across the into that is both relevant and manageable. In an board would mean a huge revenue increase. age of smartphones, social media and ‘fake news’, “Given the green light, the firm’s customised we can all appreciate the risk of ‘information solution meant lawyers started and ended each day overload’ hampering best decisions. “But a lot of with a system designed around their specific the time there’s excellent information in systems workflows. The firm created an environment people simply don’t realise is available,” he says. where lawyers could focus on the practice of law. It should fall to automation, therefore, to Sure enough, the firm has realised the 5% increase recommend, discard and prioritise content that’s a in billable hours – in some cases as much as 30%.” match for a practice, client, role, task, or some other variable. “In the past, lawyers would need to Helping hands assemble and browse newsfeeds.” In the future, by In 2017, Aderant acquired Handshake Software to contrast, it will be served in the same way as make a significant difference in this space – not businesses like Amazon or Netflix do for retail and only filtering firm-wide knowledge of work, news entertainment, he says. Inevitably, this raises the and connections into a digestible, actionable question of perhaps harnessing machine learning display, but also integrating that with other to make predictions based on past successes – and Aderant datasets, such as billing and matter indeed, Cartrett says this is one area of firm management. Many more integrations, including strategy where AI can be expected to have an with other providers, are set to follow. “immense impact” in time. Cartrett explains: “Handshake offers a single For now, firms can either build up views in place to collect and view as much relevant Aderant’s Handshake for themselves, based on information as possible: from legal research, their structures and strategies, or opt for document management, diaries, or anywhere else Handshake Connect – an ‘out-of-the-box’ version in the firm’s systems – even clients’ billing activity where key decisions about content views are or guidelines.” Increasing KM efficiency has a already taken. This should be especially attractive direct impact on revenue and profitability, he says. to smaller firms, with fewer resources to throw at It can assist with practice cross-selling, as well as their KM strategy, enabling them to see a faster pitching for new clients and retaining long-valued initial return but still adapt in future.
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INDUSTRY ANALYSIS Value of collaboration
Fraser Mayfield, head of EMEA at Iridium Technology, says learning to price your work more collaboratively can reap some real rewards
hen law firms get collaboration Understand delivery costs between lawyers and their clients Insight and awareness into the cost of delivering W right, using open and clear services, as opposed to top-line revenue, is pivotal communication, the rewards for both to collaborative client relationships, and this starts sides are truly impressive. The firms that recognise with analysing past work performed by the firm. this understand that effective collaboration is vital Firms must be able to evaluate every billable hour right from the very outset of the client relationship, at client, matter or individual lawyer level to and must occur at every stage of it. This is not just understand the effects of utilisation, realisation a nice bonus – it’s becoming a necessity of and leverage, and finally, of course, profit. business. In order to adapt to the formal However, information like that can only be procedures that organisations are increasingly leveraged when it’s available in a timely manner. using when procuring their legal services, firms There’s little point in modelling information if it need to build a clear pricing strategy, and that remains locked away, unavailable at the critical strategy requires access to clear, accurate and point when client demand arises. And relying on real-time information. spreadsheet-based methods to model this
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For more information, visit: www.iridium-technology.com
information is slow, inefficient and siloed, so it’s Many of our clients roll out detailed, critical that firms find ways to make the profit-based dashboards to partners information available in an accessible format for key decision-makers. throughout the firm to help them effectively price and manage their Appreciation of value client engagements Meanwhile, with the ongoing commoditisation of the legal sector and the unbundling of services, law firms need to offer choices to price-savvy clients. information via client-friendly extranets, In order to create collaborative partnerships, firms combined with client expectation management must ask themselves: “What is this legal advice processes. Doing this effectively can even provide a really worth to our clients?” Only after answering financial incentive to collaborate further, as closer this can firms align their pricing strategy to suit. relationships can help to both manage unexpected Traditional, hourly pricing structures don’t lend scope changes and identify further opportunities themselves to this sort of collaboration, although to work together. they do require firms to think about how their services are priced and structured. For example, in Engines of pricing improvement more complex transactions firms may be required We firmly believe that technology offers firms the to break down their matters into key deliverables chance to define their distinct character, while or phases, each of which may include a building strong and sustainable client combination of fixed and discounted fees for the relationships. This starts with the premise that no different service elements. Firms should be able to two firms are identical. When implementing align these deliverables with key stages of value in solutions, such as a profitability engine, it’s vital to the minds of clients and seek to bill accordingly. consider the things that make you what you are as a firm. Our clients understand that an out-of-the- The art of conversation box approach to profitability is unlikely to meet While firms have long argued that the value of their business needs: to reap the full benefits of each hour is the same, clients often see this profitability analysis, they need a tailored solution differently, ascribing a higher value to complex that reflects the various nuances of the firm’s data, legal work than to simple administrative tasks. services and culture. Firms can recognise this by ensuring the For example, we encourage our clients to appropriate resource is assigned to each activity in consider who within the firm will get the most line with client expectations. benefit from the information. Many of our clients Once a firm has agreed on an initial price with a roll out detailed, profit-based dashboards to client, the firm can establish a baseline budget for partners throughout the firm to help them delivery of their services. Progressive firms effectively price and manage their client understand that this baseline supports an ongoing engagements. line of communication, and if managed effectively In order to encourage collaborative pricing can lead to increased billing realisation owing to a discussions, we also help our clients deploy pricing common understanding between firm and client. solutions that leverage their historical information, Additionally, firms that engage in proactive whether on an hourly basis or in alignment with conversations with their clients around budgets, client value expectations. Just as importantly, our alongside an effective client service strategy, can technology supports the ongoing client differentiate themselves from their competitors. relationship by providing internal contacts and There are many ways to achieve this: it often external clients with the information they need – involves a technical solution, such as sharing key and can rely on – to support their decisions.
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INDUSTRY INTERVIEW Automate with intelligence
A legal automation project presents risks as well as opportunities. Firms need an intelligent technology and it may not make sense to take on the entire project in-house, says Clarilis CEO James Quinn.
electing and investing in an of ownership is incredibly poor.” automation technology is only the first Quinn’s initial plan was to license an automation S step on the road to receiving a return technology himself (he was previously managing on your investment. partner of a boutique corporate law firm, after But James Quinn, CEO and co-founder of leaving Slaughter and May). However, he couldn’t automation specialist Clarilis, says that far too find a technology that fitted the brief. Instead, he often firms never see a return. created Clarilis. “Legal automation technology, in one form or another, has been around for more than 20 years. Question of context It seems reasonable therefore to assume that law One difference he set out to make lies with the firms would have automated all relevant content by technology itself – a more holistic approach to the now and would be receiving significant ROI from gathering of relevant data, he explains. an investment proportionate to the benefit derived. “Automation technology tends to be conceived On that basis, there should be successful in terms of simple question-answer pairs. You start implementations everywhere you look, with little with the document. There’s a piece of information, scope for further optimisation.” or section that you want to include or exclude, and But that’s not how it is. “Instead, although all the technology answers a question that’s tied to substantial firms have a licence for at least one that piece of information. automation technology – often more than one – the “However, a system like that has no intelligence.
level of success in terms of return over the period In contrast, we gather as much information as we GOLDBERG JONATHAN CREDIT: PHOTO
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For more information, visit: www.clarilis.info
can about a matter, which can later be used to any adoption. However, unlike a law firm, our team end. The purpose would still typically be to works solely on automation all day, every day. We generate documents, but the structured believe different skillsets sit with different people, information stored covers the entire matter. so have lawyers, PSLs, technologists and document “Traditionally, an automation system isn’t aware analysts at work in our implementation team. One of any wider context at all. The result is that we person doesn’t try to deliver everything – but the can extract significantly more from the automation client communication is always lawyer to lawyer, at the first pass.” so we also sidestep technical translation issues.” Quinn isn’t making a claim that this intelligence All aspects of project management are covered, is of the ‘artificial’ variety – but it does have some and the firm only needs to review and approve the of the same selling points. “By applying a very large end result, he says. number of drafting rules, you save a substantial amount of the overall project time. Our project The right fix timelines tend to be a number of weeks, whereas More than a fifth of the 100 largest UK law firms firms will often spend months,” he says. by revenue use Clarilis as an automation partner. Then, in June 2018 Clarilis secured £3.1m backing Resourcing review from the private equity firm NVM, shifting it to But it’s not just a question of using a smarter piece “scale-up mode” – it’s recruiting more talent and of technology. There’s also the matter of how investing in the automation platform. intelligently document automation projects are “Entering 2019, the team is already 50-strong. managed in their entirety. Legal businesses have Even the very largest firms won’t have anywhere invested substantially in project management close to that number in their automation team, and discipline for many tasks, but of course automation one of the really big management challenges for technology throws up distinct challenges as well as these projects in-house is staff turnover. the general pitfalls, such as scope creep. “When you recruit somebody new into an “If a firm purchases an automation licence, that automation team, they’ll usually try to automate becomes a sunk cost. They can then find they need ‘their way’. It can then be hard for another hire to to ‘create’ or in-source the skills to implement the pick up the same project in a seamless way.” technology,” says Quinn. “That could involve In addition, Quinn is of course focused on external consultancy – usually costly – while the growing the Clarilis client base – including among firm’s professional support lawyers will be very corporate in-house counsel, who are investing smart people, but don’t necessarily have sufficent directly in efficiency savings. automation experience or an inclination to learn And the Clarilis platform itself will also receive the necessary skills.” sustained investment, as firms look to bring Clarilis Of course, he adds, the PSLs also have day jobs, automation to new areas of their practices. so they are likely to be fully utilised already – But, he says, the bottom line for Briefing making it even harder to invest in getting them up readers ought to be a deeper consideration of the to speed on something new. “Alternatively, the firm total cost of technology ownership of automation may decide to build a new team to run the project projects on an ongoing basis – time, resource and – and then costs spiral.” training, as well as upfront licence fees. As an automation partner, he points out, Clarilis Clarity on all of this is the essence of the Clarilis takes on the implementation challenges on behalf proposition. “We will always fix a project timeline of firms. “We always work with the firm’s existing and cost with our clients in advance, so at the most precedents rather than imposing our own. This is basic level they can calculate upfront whether or a requirement of our clients and increases user not the project will provide an ROI for the firm.”
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INDUSTRY ANALYSIS Knowledge on app
Delivering knowledge management productively to fee earners today requires a consumer app- style approach, says Simon Pecovnik, VP of product management, iManage RAVN
he concept of knowledge management disparate locations – from paper files, individuals’ (KM) isn’t new to the legal industry. laptops and internal drives, to SharePoint and T However, in larger law firms it has document management systems. The complexity traditionally been a separate function grows in firms with multiple national and from IT. KM teams have been tasked with international offices. Owing to a lack of collecting and collating information to share with organisation or curation of enterprise data – which the broader organisation. In other firms, KM has is continuously growing at an enormous pace – historically remained an informal activity. searching for and assimilating knowledge assets It’s no surprise analyst firm IDC finds (albeit in for sharing and collaboration becomes well-nigh corporates) that 50% of company data is impossible. The result? A wealth of intelligence, unsearchable, with 30% of employees’ productive insight, experience, expertise and knowledge time wasted recreating existing knowledge assets. exists in the firm – but it can’t be leveraged for The analyst believes that Fortune 500 companies meaningful business advantage and client benefit. lose nearly $2m each month because of ineffective History shows, in spite of best efforts, that firms knowledge management tools. These findings are have been unsuccessful at building custom reflective of the situation in law firms. knowledge management solutions. This is not least because the IT infrastructure is already disparate, Why is KM challenging? and often the knowledge management and IT First and foremost, data is located in numerous departments are at odds with each other.
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For more information, visit: www.imanage.com
Consumer app-style KM One of fee earners’ biggest Law firms need to move from a siloed to a holistic bugbears is that they are constantly mindset for genuine knowledge management. A smart, consumer app-style approach to the reinventing the wheel when it comes function must replace the ‘one-size-fits-all’ view. to content creation This will ensure that the individual needs of different types of users are met, whether fee earners, the C-suite, marketing and business development professionals, or any other group. time, however, and – especially with alternative fee Because of the variety of apps available to them in arrangements – potentially a waste of budget and their personal lives, employees today are resource as well. The capability to identify the best, accustomed to having information at their or most recently used, employment contract fingertips, and they therefore demand a similar quickly is an example of tacit knowledge that can kind of access to enterprise information. be available to lawyers with app-style knowledge This requires bringing together all sources of management. data – internal and external – so it can be Over time, using lawyers’ locations, areas of seamlessly integrated to facilitate smart searching interest and historic searches, these app-style and curation of knowledge assets. Say, for solutions should even be able to automatically example, a partner is embarking on an acquisition push information to fee earners. By way of an project for a global corporation and needs to put example, the solution could deliver the most together an international team of lawyers. With relevant and frequently used clauses straight into an app-style approach to knowledge the draft of an employment contract a lawyer management, underpinned by a single data located in Germany may be developing. Or, when source, the partner should be able to see in one looking for matter information on the corporate view which fee earners are the top billers in this intranet, the knowledge management solution space, which individuals have significant could suggest viewing the most recent documents expertise in M&A, where they are located, which related to the case without the lawyer proactively projects they have worked on, who they have asking for the information. It’s worth pointing out relationships with – at what seniority level – and that providing an environment conducive to so on. This kind of knowledge capture will be efficiency and productivity is also essential for powerful for decision making, as well as retaining talent, especially millennial lawyers. demonstrating to the client that the firm does The business structure and employee makeup indeed have the right expertise and experience of law firms have both significantly transformed in for the project. the last five years – as has the broader business Similarly, KM is valuable when a fee earner is environment. A modern, app-style approach to able to identify a colleague with specific expertise KM encompasses everything from personalisation, at the click of a mouse. For instance, who at the security and digital tools to smarter business firm has the most recent experience in medical practices and processes. Such tools are also negligence in Australia, or who has most recently supported by artificial intelligence and machine worked on a bankruptcy matter in Spain? learning capabilities, and can thereby enable users One of fee earners’ biggest bugbears is that in firms to scour the enterprise data to capture and they are constantly reinventing the wheel when it extract knowledge and intelligence for informed comes to document creation. Unsure of the most decision-making, revenue growth, employee recent document in a relevant category, it is often retention and client satisfaction. Knowledge safer to develop it from scratch to avoid risk of management is intrinsically about deriving value inaccuracy. It is, of course, a complete waste of from business data.
43 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 2019 INDUSTRY VIEWS SPONSORED EDITORIAL
INDUSTRY ANALYSIS What do you know? Melanie Farquharson, consultant at 3Kites Consulting, provides her personal highlights of a day well spent at Briefing Knowledge Leaders 2018
t was good to be able to take part in the of the delegates will have recognised the situation, inaugural Briefing Knowledge where it can be very hard to rationalise resources I Leaders event in November 2018. It when individuals in far-flung parts of the firm have had a relaxed atmosphere, which I been used to having whatever they want. Lynne think encouraged the audience to participate, and showed what can be achieved with dogged indeed some of the conversations were very determination and careful management of funds. animated. One feature was that most, if not all, To me, this was also an illustration of a wider delegates were heads or directors of KM – so had point: that even with the more glamourous aspects much in common – although their organisations of the knowledge management role, real benefits greatly varied in scale and complexity. The day are only achieved with a lot of hard work, had a balance of short TED-style talks, longer organisation and persistence in dealing with presentations, panels and breakout discussions. people and developing relationships. Lynne also My colleague Duncan Ogilvy and I had the advocated transparency, publishing her reports on opportunity to facilitate the hour-long break out information spending on the intranet. discussions, which covered topics selected by the delegates. They chose technology, lawyer The client perspective engagement, innovation and the positioning of KM There was an interesting panel session with in a law firm. It’s always nerve-racking to be representatives of in-house teams from Barclays responsible for a session with a limit to what can and Juul. These are very different organisations, be prepared in advance, but all the topics produced and the views expressed were also different in lively debate. Several participants commented that some areas. In particular, the challenge of finding it was good to have the opportunity for an lawyers with expertise in a new and developing extended discussion among peers. industry with complex regulatory issues made the approach of Juul rather different. However, both Perseverance and persistence organisations had high expectations of what firms One of the standout sessions of the day came from should be able to deliver to them in terms of Lynne Jones, the head of library and information knowledge. It was expressed that firms with services at HFW – entitled ‘More information for international reach were not following through in the money’. She talked about how she had tackled terms of KM and training offerings to their clients managing the information budget of an around the world. This is a challenge for a lot of international firm, starting from a position where firms, where there may be a number of each office had managed its own resources. Many international offices, but where the KM team may
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still be very small and focused in one jurisdiction. Organisation and perseverance are Other offices may lack the professional and so important – almost more so than administrative resources to deliver as much in having good, innovative ideas, which terms of added value or knowledge to clients. The firms that can really crack this will no doubt find can easily fall by the wayside without favour with clients. Offering training on soft skills, these qualities such as coaching, was suggested as one value-add pursue and roll out innovative ideas. Once again, it service that would be appreciated. In our struck me that organisation and perseverance are experience, firms are often disappointed by the so important – almost more than having good response they receive to these kinds of offerings innovative ideas, which can easily fall by the and may be put off developing them – so perhaps wayside without these qualities. these comments indicate that, with the right In the breakout session on innovation, it was market research, there is still benefit (in terms of recognised that the temperament and training of client relationships and appreciation) to be gained. lawyers, coupled with relentless emphasis of And, as we have heard many times before, the management on billable-hour performance lawyer who picks up the phone or sends a personal management, can make it hard for innovation to email saying ‘I thought this particular legal thrive in a law firm. Some firms have dedicated development was of relevance to you, for the hackathon time, while others allow budgeted time following reasons,’ gains far more in terms of for innovation, which may address this challenge. relationship development than the author of a The value of drawing KM professionals into mass mailing. It was striking how personal innovation activity was widely appreciated, but relationships between individual lawyers and their seen to need active management of KM resource. clients remain very important, despite the formal approach to procurement of legal services being A broader perspective adopted by larger organisations. For example, one Finally, it was interesting to hear the perspective person cited a lawyer who was instructed from another industry from Simon Atkinson, chief following a favour for the client (some useful knowledge officer of Ipsos Group. His issues are off-the-cuff information/advice) given in a very similar to those faced by KM teams in law previous role. It never does any harm to help firms. He advised identifying your ‘emblematic people out where you can. products’: that is, the things the KM team has to offer to its internal clients. Time spent articulating Innovation what these are and thinking about how to Unsurprisingly, innovation was a frequently used showcase them will not be wasted. word. Although many firms now have teams Communicating over and over again about these is specifically charged with innovation, delegates felt important, and Simon cited Alastair Campbell as KM had an important role to play, as it has a saying that it’s only when you yourself are heartily greater understanding of the way lawyers work bored of the message that you are making any (and the demands on them) than other progress. Atkinson also stressed how delicate KM support teams. Alex Woods, head of is – everything his team had built up over several knowledge management at Slaughter years could very easily fade away if not continually For more information, visit: www.3kites.com and May, spoke of the formal structure nurtured. In short, the knowledge manager’s work the firm had introduced to encourage, is never done.
45 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 2019 REAR VIEW
OUT AND ABOUT Fresh startups Richard Brent returns to the Barclays Eagle Lab innovation and incubation space for the legal sector to hear from both law firms and startups working on doing things differently
n January, Briefingenjoyed also to continually sift the market, Among Patterson’s lessons was to I its second trip to the separating value potential from “the give your R&D process sufficient time Barclays Eagle Lab in hype” surrounding legal technology. – sometimes the acceleration can Notting Hill, London. Opening in 2018, Offering a handy schematic of happen too early. It’s also a mistake not it is one of a network of such spaces different tiers of tech development to prototype properly, and multi- (they are former bank branches) from “business architecture” to “digital disciplined teams are needed – for around the country designed to processes”, he said he was personally example, process analysts and data support startups in their early growth, most excited about the rise of “digital scientists. but one of very few to focus on a single services” – areas where tools such as We also heard from Jeroen Plink, sector. apps, subscription models and self- recently appointed CEO of Clifford With the support of the Law service could replace aspects of Chance Applied Solutions, one of three Society, 14 law firms, UCL and the in-person interaction. These are units underpinning the firm’s new best University of Liverpool, startups have spaces where clients can “go online delivery and innovation strategy. access to expertise within those and generate what they need”. Again, Applied Solutions is a separate organisations, as well as from both the Connected Services is the result of entity to the law firm – and work corporate and retail divisions of recognition that a business needs “two includes support for compliance with Barclays. engines” for innovation – one to help regulations and increasing efficiency of ‘Tech in Legal: The Future of Law’ make existing processes “better” the document lifecycle, as well as was one of the Eagle Lab’s “business (however defined) and another to pulling together business information model disruption series”, following on work on new and different services. that is more immediately useful to from similar focuses on innovation in “Engine one isn’t rocking the boat, clients, such as through multi- the retail and automotive sectors, said whereas two is harder, especially for a jurisdictional surveys. A huge client Thomas Easterby, head of venture law firm with vested interests. But law challenge for the meeting is that capital coverage at the bank. firms do need to find a way to do both.” policies can’t keep pace with the far The first presentation came from more rapid change in global Jonathan Patterson, managing director regulations, said Plink. and head of development at DWF Finally, presentations from this Ventures, who is himself responsible event’s startup line up were genuinely for managing R&D and supporting insightful, from the challenge of early growth services. DWF Ventures assembling and monitoring signature is a new ideas incubator – one of packs when so much legal signing still several strands of the firm’s standalone Give your R&D process isn’t of the electronic variety, to specialist business division Connected end-to-end document automation that Services, which launched in 2017. sufficient time – sometimes specifically sets out to lower the While accepting the DWF business the acceleration can happen complexity threshold to put that is no longer just a law firm, Patterson too early. It’s also a mistake automation work in the hands of said a significant part of his role was not to prototype properly lawyers themselves.
46 Tweet us @Briefinglegal Briefing FEBRUARY 2019 Tuesday, 5 March 2019 One America Square, London View the full agenda: www.briefing.co.uk/strategicleaders19
08:00 Breakfast and registration 13:50 Stream sessions 08:45 Chair’s opening remarks Fiduciary fun: Technology and change: James Wilson, founder, Tyler Wilson Understanding the key Getting IT to deliver the aspects of core financial last mile 09:00 Meet and greet in preparation of peer-led learning data in law firms David Aird, IT director, DAC Facilitated by James Allen, founder, Creative Huddle Laurence Milsted, CFO Beachcroft EMEA+, Baker McKenzie 09:30 Debating the future: Will all top-tier UK law firms be Steve Rowan, CFO, RPC forced to list to compete financially over the next decade? William Wastie, head of professional practices group, Addleshaw 14:05 Briefing learning: Solution rooms Goddard Closed sessions headed up by industry experts where 10:00 The clients: Do you still know who your client is? Are the delegates can discuss the following issues and challenges key decision makers still in-house legal teams? Room 1 Room 2 Claire Chapman, chief general counsel, Capita How we carried out real How firms are collaborating Chris Grant, director - head of relationship management (legal), change at our firm to enable career-break Barclays Jana Blount, legal innovation lawyers to reignite their careers? Maria Passemard, partner and head of legal operations, John Lewis manager, DLA Piper Nicoline Evers, head of ops Lisa Unwin, co-founder, Partnership Reignite academy, co-author, Russell Smith, global head of HR, legal and compliance IT, – international employment group, DLA Piper She’s Back: Your Guide to AstraZeneca Returning to Work Becca Johansson, head of ops, Liz Walker, general counsel, BT Global Services real estate, DLA Piper 10:40 Networking and refreshments break Room 3 Room 4 11:10 Presenting your new rainmaker: The digital worker Regulations: Can you put Optimising performance Peter Walker, VP EMEA, Blue Prism in a one-size-fits-all set of through technology safeguards? 11:30 Battle briefs: Listen as industry peers share their war stories Speaker TBA, Wilson Legal Iain Miller, partner - regulatory, Solutions Ironing out the kinks: Mergers and the aftermath Kingsley Napley Lessons learned from David Keers, COO, litigation and corporate risk, Bryan Cave outsourcing Room 5 Room 6 Natasha Benbow, head of Leighton Paisner Delivering the change you A facilitated Q&A — how facilities services, Hogan Lovells Pat Fox, national operations promised to ensure that you get the director, Mitie Dougie Main, finance most value from your third- transformation, Freshfields party partner Bruckhaus Deringer 11:50 Strategy: Thinking outside the box: Five-minute talks Andrew Edginton, chief Tony Pullman, team lead operating officer, Gowling WLG Use your in-house procurement as a strategic weapon organisational change and Sam Nicholls, head of business David Ford, head of procurement, Freshfield Bruckhaus Deringer development, Pinnacle development, Intelligent Office Christopher Young, principal How alternative fee arrangements mean a healthier consultant and business happier workforce development director, Pinnacle Justin Ergler, alternative fee intelligence and analytics director, GSK 14:55 Training Legal Become a more effective Institutionalising a Why are we using 3% more paper than three years ago? senior leader culture of better client James Gilding, business services managing director, Mitie Nick Marson, CEO, Parallel management Mind Stuart Lotherington, senior 12:30 Networking lunch partner, SBR Consulting
13:30 Making intelligent investments: Will the UK become the 15:35 The PM Keynote: EY Law - applying automation and global hub for legal innovation, and how can UK-based technology for process-led business firms capitalise on their investments in tech startups? Dr Cornelius Grossmann, global law leader, EY Law Karen Kerrigan, chief operating officer, Seedrs 16:30 Networking drinks
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