Change Management for Legal Departments | Legal Change Management | Argopoint
Our experience suggests that more than two thirds of major change management efforts within legal departments typically fail. We recognize that traditional change management techniques do not always work in the legal environment.
Change Management Issues for Corporate Legal Departments
Corporate Legal Change Management: Objectives
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Change management is a concentrated approach to shifting individuals and organizations from their current state to a new one. This process is aimed at helping legal professionals embrace changes to their current environment. Change management processes enable impactful communication between legal department audiences and are informed by a deep understanding of management styles and group dynamics.
Managers and leaders often recognize the need for change and the desired “end-state”, but transitioning a company’s people, systems and methodologies can often prove difficult. The capacity for a legal department to execute ambitious and sustainable change is a key element to long term success, but this also represents a great challenge.
“If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old.”
Conventional change management techniques have been employed in Fortune 500 companies for decades, but with mixed results. In fact, our experience suggests that more than two thirds of major change efforts within legal departments typically fail. We recognize that traditional change management techniques do not always work in the legal environment where employees are highly trained and highly skilled senior professionals. Argopoint works with its clients to create an approach that ensures tangible, sustained results and true behavioral transformation.
Corporate Legal Change Management: Overview
Within the corporate legal environment, every change, whether a simple protocol adjustment or a major organizational overhaul, must be managed effectively to ensure that the desired goals are reached. Our experience suggests that any real change must be attorney-driven. Argopoint can assist corporate legal departments with the development, execution and transition of routine corporate adjustments as well as large-scale, transformational changes. This process begins with a comprehensive assessment of risks and developing a coherent plan of action. Realizing results in the Change Management sector is not easy; it requires determination, focus and planning. Argopoint has the experience to help legal leaders navigate these deceptive currents.
Corporate Legal Change Management: Solutions and Savings
At Argopoint, we bring a proven, sophisticated change management approach to the corporate legal space. Leading experts, including senior members of Harvard Business School faculty, inspire our methods. We are cognizant of company dynamics and ongoing business, striving to achieve minimal operational disruptions in our strategies. Legal divisions should be positioned to handle changes both now and in the future, so our approach integrates a reliable change management strategy into the legal department’s management infrastructure.
We approach this challenge by:
- Forming a clear and concise plan for the future while remaining realistic
- Mobilizing the organization and its resources in a structured way, as well as preparing attorneys to handle change in the long run
- Sustaining change by creating ongoing personal learning
- Maintaining open and effective channels of communication throughout the change efforts
Argopoint has experience and an ability set that is capable of covering both people-oriented and operational elements of change.
Key Questions for Corporate Legal Departments Undergoing or Considering Change Management
1. Has your legal department faced changes in structure recently, such as division mergers?
2. Has your legal department faced changes in strategy recently, such as changes in the allocation of work between in-house and outside counsel? Are you anticipating further changes in the future?
3. Has your legal department faced changes in technology recently, such as transitioning to new hosting or document review platforms? Are you anticipating additional changes in the future?
4. Has your legal department ever had difficulties communicating change to its professionals?
5. Are you anticipating more changes in the future?
6. How do you approach the leadership challenges and maintain the motivation of professionals in the law department?
7. How can you be sure that the results achieved truly affect the bottom line?
8. What is the best way to ensure the staying power of change?