Article
Understanding how you get the most out of your legal spend
Or is the complexity of your spend data combined with a lack of time and resources making it harder than ever to keep track of everything?
We all know that the complexity of an ever-changing corporate landscape puts an immense amount of pressure on legal teams. Economic fluctuations and budget constraints means legal departments must do more with less. Smaller and smaller teams are often forced to optimize legal spend and demonstrate the value of the legal department.
On top of that, new laws and trends crop up so often that they can feel impossible to keep pace with. Legal teams across the world are facing:
Changing regulations
Data-privacy regulations, like GDPR and CCPA, can be difficult to parse and give legal teams no wriggle room. Missing just one detail could lead to hefty fines or significant reputational damage.
Evolving security threats
Stringent and complex regulations around security often mean legal teams must support their organization’s IT function. Security threats evolve constantly, which forces regulators to respond with new requirements – creating a never-ending to-do list.
Technological disruption
The legal industry isn’t immune to rapid technological change. Legal teams that struggle to embrace new solutions fall behind competitors that know how to make the most of emerging technology.
Against this challenging backdrop, you need to do everything you can to stay ahead. But it isn't easy. Especially when your organization is also dealing with hidden costs and a lack of transparency within its own data.
When you’re having difficulty controlling budgetary demands and struggling with reactive decision-making, it’s worth looking at what the root cause might be.
The problem |
The root cause |
| Working with outside counsel wrecks your budget You find it challenging to negotiate better rates with outside counsel, and often find yourself going over budget when using external resources. |
You can’t anticipate future legal costs You need to be able to analyze current spending patterns to predict future costs. Using technology that can benchmark your spending against industry averages can help, |
| You always seem to be putting out fires Challenges seem to turn into problems in the blink of an eye. You consistently seem to spend your budget on the wrong things, leaving you scrambling for resources when the pressure is already on. |
Your teams are siloed When you and your colleagues can’t see the same information at the same time every time, you cannot work together to get ahead of challenges, avoid problems and stay within budget. You need a fit-for-purpose platform that can keep everyone on the same page. |
| You always have an avalanche of emails When you use several different tools to facilitate communication between internal teams, outside counsel, and other stakeholders, it can feel impossible to work fast enough to stay ahead. |
Your technology suite isn’t fit-for-purpose Using disparate or outdated tools will only cause headaches. Take advantage of unified tools that streamline communication to reduce your admin burden and improve your working relationships too. |
| You’re always second-guessing your decisions There aren’t enough hours in the day to research as much as you’d like. When you must trust your gut to make key budgetary decisions, you’re bound to get it wrong every so often, which damages your confidence and your relationships. |
You’re not making full use of your data Only when your organization collects and analyzes all data effectively will you be able to make the right decision at the right time, every time. Using AI can help you identify trends and predict future costs to make the best strategic decision possible. |
Tackling the root cause of the challenges you face with customized tools can make an enormous difference. With the latest legal technology, you can achieve the transparency you need to drive better business outcomes. When you have all the right data at your fingertips, you’ll make better decisions, faster and manage your budget with ease.
Legal Tracker Advanced enhances the benchmarking and metrics abilities of Legal Tracker by using AI to give legal teams the boost they need to reduce costs, track matter information, and optimize spending for better outcomes