Technology has been reshaping industries worldwide, and the legal field is no exception. Once considered to be an industry resistant to change, the legal profession has been rapidly evolving to meet growing demands in recent years. This includes adopting software tools like legal matter management systems to be more efficient and better meet client needs.
But change can be hard when breaking away from years of traditional methods, and routines don’t just happen overnight. While adopting new legal technology is one piece of the puzzle, you also must ensure that your team members are eager to adopt it and utilize it in their daily lives. This is where legal technology change management comes in to help.
The Importance of Change Management in Adopting Legal Software
According to Forbes, 70% of digital transformation projects fail. This statistic is staggering and prompts the need to understand why this happens and how to prevent it.
Legal technology change management is the process of implementing new legal technology in a legal organization. This involves planning, execution and oversight to processes, policies and existing technologies in order to make the organization more efficient and productive.
When it comes to the legal field, many traditionalists believe that new technology may be a disruption rather than an improvement to their antiquated work processes. They also aren’t sure how they will be able to squeeze in time for the adoption of something new. By understanding these normal concerns and possible challenges, your legal organization can then develop a coordinated approach to change management.
Three Proven Ways to Manage Change While Adopting Legal Software
Here’s a look at how you can approach the process of adopting a legal case management system with as little disruption as possible.
- Develop a clear vision.
If you want to succeed with implementing legal matter management software, you need to ensure all your staff members support the new system. One way to do this is by establishing a list of requirements for the system and what you want to accomplish with it. For example:
- Understand the Goal: Why are you introducing new technology? Do you want to automate your contract process to alleviate the amount of time employees spend creating them? Is risk management your ultimate goal? Take the time to really understand what you aim to achieve with the software.
- Envision What Success Looks Like: How does this technology change your team members’ daily lives? Do you want to develop custom reports so you can easily communicate to upper management how your organization stacks up on key initiatives?
Whatever your goals may be, establishing them from the beginning will serve as a great reference point for staying on track as you configure the technology to meet your organization’s specific needs. Later, it will help you determine if you were actually successful in accomplishing everything you set out to do.
- Get key stakeholders involved early.
A successful change management strategy relies on involving the people affected by the change and getting their buy-in. This is made possible in the following ways:
- Secure executive management support: An executive sponsor can help you garner the support you need for the technology adoption to be successful. This person is also responsible for the project’s success and can help you navigate any challenges that may arise.
- Seek change champions. These individuals are influential and can help motivate peers to better receive and utilize the new technology. By getting them involved early, these individuals can help advocate the need for new technology and help address the concerns of other team members.
- Garner feedback from team members. It’s important to gather input from potential end-users. They might have recurring issues that a legal matter management system can resolve, and you’ll want to be able to configure the system to meet their needs. By giving your team members a voice, they will be more likely to adopt the new system.
It is crucial to involve key leaders from every department or function from the start, as they will provide valuable insight and ensure the technology meets needs across the organization — not just one area.
- Deliver comprehensive training tools and resources.
The best legal technology solution will fail if no one knows how to use it. That’s why training is essential in your software adoption process. Here are a few tips to ensure training is successfully delivered to your team:
- Adopt user-friendly technology. Don’t settle for less than the best when it comes to your legal software. Look for a solution that is easy to use, offers vast customization options and online training support long after you sign the contract. With legal professionals often working remotely, you also want the training to be accessible to all your team members regardless of their location.
- Seek customizable training offerings. Since you have a variety of roles within your organization, training needs will also vary. Since what will suit your general counsel may differ from your in-house legal team, look for a provider who offers one-on-one training as well as customizable online training options.
- Adapt training offerings to different learning styles. It’s important to choose a provider who offers a variety of training options and styles to suit the varied needs within your organization. On-demand training videos and comprehensive “help” resources will ensure that your users can access the type of training information they need at any time.
- Look for ongoing training opportunities. As users proceed through the software adoption process, new questions will undoubtedly arise and additional training will be needed. Ensure that your provider offers ongoing support personnel to be there when you need them. Look for opportunities to gain feedback from your team on what’s working and what isn’t and continually train your team so that they can grow with the software and maximize the software’s utility.
Adopt Legal Software Seamlessly With The Right Provider and Tools
With the right support and change management processes from Legal Files, the process of adopting a new legal technology system no longer has to be daunting. As the legal industry continues to evolve, using Legal Files will help keep your organization updated on the latest technology changes, enhancing efficiency and effectiveness. By effectively managing change, you can reap all the benefits that come from driving technology adoption and gaining trust from your team by involving them from the start and giving them the tools they need to be successful.
Legal Files’ training and implementation specialists are experts at setting your team up for success. Their purpose is to give you the resources you need—whether remotely or onsite. Legal Files Software offers customized configuration and implementation assistance, technical training courses provided by full-time, in-house professionals and annual maintenance and support. Knowing you’ll receive regular software upgrades and unlimited support from Legal Files employees will provide peace of mind.
Legal Files Software Inc. offers 30+ years of experience supporting organizations across all types of industries. Based on our years of experience helping other organizations improve and thrive through legal software, we can help you manage change and configure a system that is uniquely designed for your organization.
“Legal Files provides a very robust and customizable matter, contract and document management system. It has more functionality than our previous system and interfaces nicely with Microsoft Office applications. Legal Files customer support made the conversion painless, and has been there for us throughout the implementation.”
Alan Greenspan, Executive Vice President and General Counsel
Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits LLC, a Legal Files Client
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