The legal sector is often a conservative one from an IT standpoint. Tried and true legal practices tend to hold the dominant place in the industry, and it is common for new technologies to be met with skepticism. However, a panel of experts recently gathered at an event hosted by The Lawyer and Thomson Reuters explained that some advanced technological ideas and solutions can help organizations in the legal sector. Business process management is one such system.
Understanding the role of technology in law
Law firms may be conservative about technology, but there are some instances in which organizations should look past these attitudes and consider the role IT solutions can play in their operations. William Robins, a corporate partner and chief operating officer at Keystone Law, told the news source that BPM software and similar solutions can play a prominent role in improving operations, and are not just top-down systems that offer minimal gains.
"To some, this is just management speak and a foreign language which has no place among the art of law," Robins said to introduce the discussion, according to the report. "At the heart of our discussion is the role of technology and strategic thinking in law firms to re-engineer how things are done and, in particular, how we can make operations quick and trackable, predictable and efficient."
Implementing BPM in law firms
Gary Jackson, operations director at Irwin Mitchell, told audiences at the discussion that the beginning of BPM goes back, in some ways, to the mid 1980s. While BPM was not a solution at the time, it was a point when more organizations began using analytics and other data to better understand their functions and improve operations. This escalated into lean and agile processes, which accelerated the move toward implementing BPM solutions. Significant progress has been in the BPM sector during recent years, with many sectors embracing the technology and a foundation being set to use solutions in a diverse range of sectors.
Benefits of BPM in legal sector
Law firms face a sometimes overwhelming set of operations that have to be completed to handle cases and general operations effectively. As cloud and mobile technologies become more prominent, there is a growing need for integration in the underlying IT infrastructure that supports operations. This is particularly important for law firms, as efficient operations are essential to supporting cases and maintaining revenues.
Ben Farrell
Director of Corporate Communications
