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It is an increasingly competitive market for law firms. Law departments are bringing more work in house, continuing to consolidate the number of outside firms they use, and sending more work to alternative legal service providers. To differentiate themselves, law firms of all sizes are seeking strategies to provide increased value to their clients, while simultaneously increasing profitability.

Law firm spending on technology continues to grow faster than other categories of firm operations and is now the third-largest area of overhead spending, behind only salaries and occupancy expenses, according to the 2019 Report on the State of the Legal Market by Managing Partner Forum.

Nothing ever stays the same, which means organizations that do not actively and correctly manage change may find themselves creeping downhill, gradually accelerating as the pace of transformation around them picks up. Fortunately, law departments have recognized that change management is a critical success factor in the face of increasing cost pressures. They are hard at work on change — but are they focused on the right areas to reap the greatest rewards from that change?

Managing a records retention and disposition program is one of the chronic challenges for any organization in the information age. Businesses and government agencies of all sizes are seeking to implement or improve these programs due to increased risk of cybercrime and data breaches, the complexities of complying with a variety of data privacy laws and regulations worldwide that dictate how long personally identifiable data can be retained, and the desire to reduce their data footprint in order to cut back on their storage expenses however possible.

It was great to see so many friends at ILTACON in Orlando last week – it was an excellent opportunity to network, learn and have fun.

Benchmarking is an effective way to help organizations identify best practices, compare themselves to their peers and reveal areas where there may be opportunities for improvement. Benchmarking in the legal business is no exception. Law firms recognize the value of benchmarking themselves against industry standards in areas including fees, financial performance and staffing ratios.

The legal industry is in the midst of a major transformation, and HBR Consulting is fortunate to be at the forefront of that change. As trusted advisors and providers to both law departments and law firms, we understand how the unique strategies and needs of each intersect. By bringing their voices and perspectives together, we are able to use our collective insights to foster greater alignment as they transform the delivery of legal services.

The number-one law firm IT challenge heading into 2019 had nothing to do with acquiring bigger servers or faster networks. The top law firm IT issue for this year was the strategic challenge of change management, according to the International Legal Technology’s Association 2018 Legal Technology Survey.

It was wonderful to see old friends and meet new ones at the recent Corporate Legal Operations (CLOC) Institute in Las Vegas, and to participate in the knowledge-sharing that is the event’s hallmark.

HBR and GLG Law (Gerson Lehrman Group, Inc.) recently co-hosted their first education session on Vendor Risk Management in New York City. This session was part of a quarterly series to provide expert insights into topics that are front-of-mind among legal procurement leaders. HBR’s partnership with GLG, a platform connecting professionals to expert insights, ensures the sessions deliver information from industry-leading sources.