best practices in legal knowledge management toc

EditEd by stEphaniE ramasamy

Best Practices in Legal Knowledge Management

in association with publishEd by

Best Practices in Legal Knowledge Managementis published by ark Group

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Editorstephanie ramasamy [email protected]

head of contentanna shaw [email protected]

managing directorJennifer Guy [email protected]

uK/Europe marketing enquiriesrobyn macé[email protected]

us marketing enquiriesdaniel smallwood [email protected]

asia/pacific marketing enquiriessteve oesterreich [email protected]

isbn: 978-1-907787-83-6 (hard copy) 978-1-907787-84-3 (pdF)

copyrightthe copyright of all material appearing within this publication is reserved by the authors and ark conferences 2011. it may not be reproduced, duplicated or copied by any means without the prior written consent of the publisher.

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EditEd by stEphaniE ramasamy


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Contents

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Contents

Executive summary ............................................................................................................VII

Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................IX

Part One: Knowledge Management in the Legal Profession – Expert Analyses

Expert analysis 1: KM – A valuable contribution to law firm success .................................... 3Putting knowledge to work ..................................................................................................... 3Long live the extranet ............................................................................................................ 4Client relationships – Partnership and purpose ........................................................................ 5The end of PSLs? .................................................................................................................. 5Making innovation stick ......................................................................................................... 5

Expert analysis 2: Framing the KM journey ......................................................................... 7A seven-dimensional framework ............................................................................................. 7Articulating strategy and developing implementation plans ....................................................... 9Why policy? ......................................................................................................................... 9Towards the successful implementation of a KM strategy ........................................................ 11

Expert analysis 3: Forming a KM strategy for your firm ..................................................... 13The strategic challenges ...................................................................................................... 13The essential components of a KM strategy ........................................................................... 14Practical tips for creating an effective KM strategy .................................................................. 15Keep your KM strategy current ............................................................................................. 16

Expert analysis 4: What makes a law firm outstanding – The client perspective ................. 19Contract databases and KM systems .................................................................................... 19Cost-free, tailored seminars on key legislative developments .................................................. 19Access to knowledge databases and client extranets .............................................................. 19Secondment of trainees and associates at preferential rates ................................................... 19 Set up surgery visits during office hours ................................................................................ 20 What role do knowledge managers play in helping the firm differentiate itself? ........................ 20Conveying legal know how to meet your client’s information needs ........................................ 20

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Expert analysis 5: How we choose and purchase legal services – The client perspective ....... 23Opportunities for partnership ............................................................................................... 24A two-way relationship ........................................................................................................ 24

Expert analysis 6: Directing knowledge activities ............................................................... 25The changing role of the PSL ............................................................................................... 25Towards centralisation ......................................................................................................... 26

Expert analysis 7: Creating valuable knowledge in the firm through legal project management ........................................................................................................ 27

Launching the legal project management programme ........................................................... 28Creating knowledge that has competitive value ..................................................................... 29

Expert analysis 8: Maintaining innovation within a robust risk management framework .... 33The drivers behind law firm risk management ........................................................................ 33The risk assessment process ................................................................................................. 34The close tie – and tension – between risk management and knowledge management ............. 34

Expert analysis 9: Behind the times .................................................................................. 37A day in the life… .............................................................................................................. 37Push over ........................................................................................................................... 38

Expert analysis 10: How to engage the 21st century associate in the firm’s technology? .... 41Too slow in bringing solutions to the table? ........................................................................... 41Do we really listen to the business? ...................................................................................... 42Do our younger lawyers really want to use technology in the workplace? ................................ 42Are we ready for the ‘digital natives’? ................................................................................... 42

Expert analysis 11: Exploiting the full benefits of collaboration technology ........................ 45Back to basics – What is social software? ............................................................................. 45How can social software be used in the legal profession? ...................................................... 45The benefits of social software ............................................................................................. 47Uses in practice .................................................................................................................. 48

Expert analysis 12: Attracting and retaining generation Y law librarians ........................... 49What makes a generation? .................................................................................................. 49Attracting and retaining generation Y ................................................................................... 50The changing face of library services .................................................................................... 52What does the future hold for library and information services? .............................................. 53

Expert analysis 13: Building an integrated social knowledge platform ............................... 55Choosing the right platform ................................................................................................. 55Case study: Reynolds Porter Chamberlain – A social integration framework ............................. 56


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The platform with an ‘Edge’ ................................................................................................. 58The result ........................................................................................................................... 60

Expert analysis 14: Best practice in information management ........................................... 61The issue ............................................................................................................................ 61The solution ....................................................................................................................... 61Best-practice examples ........................................................................................................ 62SharePoint as an enterprise social media tool ....................................................................... 63

Part Two: Case Studies

Case study 1: Mills & Reeve – Re-engineering KM processes and services ......................... 71Increased flexibility .............................................................................................................. 71

Case study 2: Reynolds Porter Chamberlain – Our people first .......................................... 73State of play ....................................................................................................................... 73Outside help ...................................................................................................................... 74On the edge ...................................................................................................................... 74Knowledge applications ....................................................................................................... 75New ways of working .......................................................................................................... 75Standing out from the crowd ................................................................................................ 76

Case study 3: Shepherd and Wedderburn – Intuitive search .............................................. 77Client and matter centric presentation .................................................................................. 77The push ............................................................................................................................ 78Engagement and collaboration ............................................................................................ 79Consistency versus flexibility ................................................................................................. 80Will it solve everything? ....................................................................................................... 80

Case study 4: Pinsent Masons – Implementing a document assembly solution .................. 81The first steps...................................................................................................................... 81The pilot ............................................................................................................................ 82The business case ............................................................................................................... 82Implementation ................................................................................................................... 82The next steps ..................................................................................................................... 83Is document assembly right for you? ..................................................................................... 83

Case study 5: Squire, Sanders & Dempsey – Legal project management in practice .......... 85Overcoming obstacles to KM and LPM ................................................................................ 85The LPM process ................................................................................................................. 87Communication – The client extranet .................................................................................... 88

Index ............................................................................................................................... 91

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THE KNOWLEDgE management (KM) profession is facing significant challenges as a result of the changes in the legal market. Deregulation and heightened competition, the rise of demanding and sophisticated clients, the efficiency drive in legal process and meeting technology expectations of the generation Y lawyer, all mean that the KM function will have to prove more than ever that it can play a key role in adding successfully to the firm’s overall strategy.

This report aims to help you tackle some of the following key questions:

How do you differentiate your firm in an �increasingly competitive market?How do you meet clients’ demands for �value-added services and innovation in service delivery?How do you align the KM function with �other functions in the firm to meet the firm’s core strategy?How do you create valuable knowledge �to the firm’s competitive advantage?How do you deliver information to your �fee earners on a timely basis (before they realise they need it)?How do you add real value with �technology? andWhat does the future hold for law �firm librarians?

This report will help you to understand:

What your clients really want and how to �innovate to deliver added-value services;

How to adapt to changes in legal �service delivery with new participants and investors in the market;How the KM function and model �is changing;The key considerations before �embarking on a KM strategy; andThe new KM trends and systems �firms are adopting such as legal project management.

In addition, readers can learn from the perspectives of law firm IT experts on new technology such as SharePoint and implementing successful document assembly projects.

This report is a compilation of written contributions from thought leaders and experts in the KM space and aims to help you tackle the challenges at a fundamental and strategic level. The report also includes case studies from Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, Reynolds Porter Chamberlain, Shepherd and Wedderburn, Mills & Reeve, Pinsent Masons and Husch Blackwell LLP.

The first expert analysis provides a summary of the highlights of the KMUK 2011 Conference and draws on the essential themes which emerged from this event such as efficiency projects and technology development and the market demands and challenges law firms are facing.

Expert analysis 2 focuses on successful KM strategy implementation and provides detailed guidance on creating an adequate framework for a KM strategy development.

Executive summary

Executive summary

Viii

A key challenge in implementing a KM strategy is choosing amongst the many potential projects that will have the most impact on the organisation. Expert analysis 3 looks at formulating a KM strategy that can be successfully realised with practical tactics.

Expert analyses 4 and 5 provide law firm clients’ perspective on what makes a law firm outstanding. Expert analysis 4 offers guidance on how firms can achieve quick wins and how legal know how can effectively meet clients’ information needs while Expert analysis 5 provides an insight into how law firm clients are choosing and purchasing legal suppliers and what they seek from their lawyers after the work engagement.

Expert analysis 6 looks at the changing role of the PSL and whether the PSL function should become more centralised.

Expert analysis 7 explores how a law firm is effectively using legal project management (LPM) to create knowledge which has competitive value for the firm and its clients.

Expert analysis 8 discusses how the two functions of risk and knowledge can work effectively together to identify, quantify and manage risk associated with the delivery of legal services.

Expert analyses 9, 10 and 11 turn to the theme of technology and Expert analysis 9 takes a look at whether current law firm technology is meeting the needs of the generation Y lawyer while Expert analysis 10 explains how you can change lawyers’ perception of technology to get them more engaged in the technology offered by the firm. Expert analysis 11 discusses how law firms can exploit the full benefits of social software.

As generation Y takes up the reins in law firm libraries, how should law firms successfully plan this succession and attract the new wave of generation Y librarians? A librarian provides her thoughts on the

future of law firm librarianship in Expert analysis 12.

As more and more firms are looking to try new platforms and tools to support knowledge sharing and choose amongst the numerous options available, Expert analysis 13 advises on how to choose the right social business platform for your firm and ensure a successful implementation.

Expert analysis 14 concludes with a discussion on enhancing client service delivery through implementing best practices in information management, drawing on examples from both the legal and finance industry.

This report is produced with the KM practitioner in mind as well as managing and senior partners, IT directors, marketing and business development directors, and the external law firm management consultant.

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Acknowledgements

The editor would like to thank all the contributors who have shared their thoughts and insights in this report.

best practices in legal knowledge management toc

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