By Evan Shenkman, Sara Miro, and Alex Chiang
A law firm is arguably the most difficult place to implement new tools and technologies. Attorneys can be at best apathetic, and at worst actively resistant to changes in their workflows — and understandably so. Attorneys are under immense pressure to make every minute of their workday count (literally). Adopting a new tool, learning how to use it, and pushing through the initial growing pains long enough to see a payoff can seem insurmountable in the face of a large workload and ever increasing client demands.
Still, we are seeing firms adopt new technologies every year. With the right strategies, it is possible to overcome this resistance and successfully roll out and adopt new tools. Evan Shenkman, Chief Knowledge and Innovation Officer at Fisher Phillips, along with Sara Miro, Director of Knowledge at Sullivan & Cromwell, and Alex Chiang, VP of Customer Success at SimplyAgree, have have identified four key approaches that successful firms use to earn attorney buy-in: (1) fostering a culture of innovation, (2) choosing the right tools and products, (3) earning attorney attention, and (4) assembling your evangelist council.
“Culture of Innovation” has become a bit of a buzz word, but the core sentiment still matters. At firms with a culture of innovation, everyone is bought in to the notion of being a modern firm. More importantly, everyone is committed to the work that’s required to wisely source, evaluate and use technology to better serve their clients.
A healthy culture of innovation starts at the top — with firm leadership and practice group chairs acting as champions of the work done by the Knowledge Management (KM) and Innovation team. As a KM/I professional, here are some steps to foster a culture of innovation:
Once firm leadership provides support, it is essential to advertise this support. Attorneys and legal professionals need to know that firm leadership is committed to bringing in technology to enhance the legal services the firm provides to its clients. Then, get attorneys involved in the process. Include them in the evaluation process and pilots. Invite them to participate in an R&D or Tech council, and create an internal feedback loop between the innovation team and the attorneys that’s focused on improving the firm’s output to their clients.
Nothing chips away at trust more than introducing a tool that becomes shelf-ware. Often, resistance to adopting a new tool is directly correlated with the complexity of the tool and how many workflows an attorney must replace in order to get value from it — none of which speak to the largest pain point(s) felt by the attorney right now.
Instead of overwhelming attorneys with a multitude of features, it is recommended to start small with one specific use case or workflow. This approach reduces the learning curve and initial resistance to change. To choose the right tools and products:
You’ve chosen a tool based on attorney insight and feedback, and you’re ready to roll it out. To get ROI, you need to earn attorney attention quickly — but you’re competing with trials, closings, urgent client communications, and full inboxes. How can you cut through the noise? Some ways to earn attorney attention include:
The successful roll out of any new tool is dependent on the vocal support of several personas: leaders, users, and folks in between. In sales, earning support with diverse personas is called multi-threading, and the concept carries through to law firms.
Each of these personas have different levels of interest in new technology projects and influence over their success, and together, they create something we call an evangelist council. Note that a full council is comprised of at least one of each persona; a council made up of entirely partners or entirely paralegals is ineffective. Without a complete evangelist council, it’s tough to get a new project off the ground or to maintain velocity.
Evangelist councils will typically look something like this:
Practice Group Chair (Low Interest/High Influence) - Responsible for both managing (and developing) their own book of business, and managing the dollars of the practice group.
Tech-forward Influential Partner (High Interest/High Influence) - This is a partner who cares about the overall performance of the practice group. They also have a sufficiently large enough book of business to exert influence within the practice group/firm.
Senior Associates (Low - Mid Interest/Mid - High influence) - Wants to be involved in firm strategic initiatives. Seeking to develop relationships and set themselves apart to make partner.
Junior Associates (High Interest/Low Influence) - Lawyers who are typically 1-3 years out of law school. At large law firms, they’re typically working on Partners’ matters while trying to carve out a role for themselves at a firm. They take on a lot of the work that falls to the bottom of the totem pole.
Paralegal (High Interest/Low Influence) - They ensure that all of the truly administrative aspects of closing happen, like filings, signature pages, closing binders, and general document management. Because their work remains largely the same (i.e., they are not like associates where administrative tasks will eventually disappear from their workflow), paralegals are sometimes the best champions for product adoption. If they can learn a new way to do something, they will stick with that new way for a long time.
Overcoming resistance to change during new tool rollouts requires a strategic approach. By fostering a culture of innovation, choosing the right tools, earning attorney attention, and compiling a complete evangelist council, law firms can increase attorney buy-in and successfully implement new technologies. Remember, it is crucial to involve attorneys at every stage of the process, listen to their feedback, and address their motivations and concerns. With a collaborative and thoughtful approach, law firms can embrace innovation and drive positive change in their practices.