Without a legal roadmap, your in-house legal team is trapped in “busy work” and unable to make significant or meaningful improvements. Talk to the boss. Miller writes: “As general counsel, I had to make sure that the department`s goals aligned with those of my boss, the CEO. In addition, and with the permission of the CEO, you will speak to the members of the Board of Directors, in particular the chairs of the committees (e.g. audit, governance, compensation, etc.). It is important to understand what the board is concerned about at the beginning of the year. » What are you working towards and what is the ideal outcome for each of your strategic objectives? Shutterstock ImageLegal departments are so often buried in work in progress that it`s difficult, if not impossible, to stop and think about strategic projects. (In a survey conducted by the FindLaw Corporate Counsel Center, more than 40 percent said they were too busy “fighting fires” to achieve long-term goals.) However, without a strategic plan, your legal department is unlikely to step out of Sisyphus` task to make significant improvements or demonstrate their value – or find operational adjustments that will improve not only your service delivery, but also your quality of life. You don`t need a one-week retreat or a three-inch file to create a strategic plan for the legal department. Here are nine steps to creating a simple yet focused plan that fits on a single page so you can easily reference and execute it over the coming year, and then measure and report on your success. Step One: Do your research. Your plan should be forward-looking, but consider the past and present. Because your legal department doesn`t operate in a vacuum, your plan must consider the wants and needs of your organization, executives, and business clients.
Start by gathering information and feedback. In his article, “Ten Things: Setting Goals for the Legal Department,” Sterling Miller, General Counsel of Marketo, Inc., advises legal departments: Finally, make sure you have an agreed action plan for specific steps or decisions to increase the chances of success if monitoring triggers an alarm. First, choose the three goals you consider most important for your legal department. Step Six: Define Success. What is the ideal outcome for each of your strategic objectives? If your goal is to further develop the company`s strategy, you may want to ensure the timely completion of a major project. Optimization of a key business process; and reduce or automate issues of low strategic value within the legal department. If your goal is tied to your budget, consider working to reduce legal fees or better negotiate prices with major law firms. At this point, you don`t need any fixed measurements – more on that later.
In this step, think carefully about what you are working towards. Step Seven: Engage in tactics. As Thomas Edison once said, vision without execution is a hallucination. You have the vision and know what success looks like – how do you get there? What does it take to achieve the success you just imagined? For each of your strategic objectives, write down the tactics you will complete. These should be accessible, action-oriented and responsible – knowing who does what and when. Going back to the hypothetical goal of “improving departmental financial operations,” your tactics could include activities such as: Review legal information to find simple tasks of low strategic value that could be automated or eliminated. (Q2) Step Two: Assess the bigger picture. What are the company`s main objectives for the coming year? They should be at the center of your strategic plan for the legal department. This allows your team to stay aligned with the overall goals of the organization and place your work in a broader context. Don`t skip this step.
According to Boardview, 95% of employees don`t understand their company`s strategy. Perhaps this is why only 2% of executives are convinced that they will achieve at least 80% of their strategy goals. Step Three: Consider your vision. We know lawyers are cynical creatures, but a vision is the part of your strategic plan where you can dream a little. Here you will articulate your aspirations and core values. Think, for example, of IKEA`s vision: “Create a better everyday life for as many people as possible.” It`s not about furniture, retail or affordability; It`s more universal. Starting with a guiding vision, the company can then develop strategies and tactics to achieve it. Given IKEA`s vision to create a better everyday life for many, the company is unlikely to pursue niche products or develop expensive sub-brands.
What constitutes a compelling vision for the legal department? A starting point could be the primary roles of in-house counsel, as noted in the Altman Weil Chief Legal Officer Survey: Seventy-six percent of corporate strategists say important pivots to strategic plans are becoming increasingly common. While functional leaders should never develop strategic plans in isolation, today`s disruptions – from price and wage inflation to the risks associated with Russia`s invasion of Ukraine – make it especially important that functional strategic plans can envision a variety of scenarios and changes with pivots in corporate strategy. Stop exploring and learn how to create and execute a nine-step plan with our white paper and template. Download the white paper 9 steps to a strategic plan for legal now. Create a strategic plan for your legal department in 9 steps This is the phase where you make your overall assessment of the objectives and translate it into detailed action steps with assigned responsibilities. This functional action plan should be a formal document summarizing the sequence of steps or initiatives required to achieve an objective. It is the main source of information on how to execute, monitor, control and achieve objectives. Action plans can change when unexpected events occur, so be prepared to respond with an adaptive strategy. Simply and clearly state the key elements of your strategic plan: where the functional organization is, where it is going, and how it will be in the future state. Identify the key functional characteristics required to execute your action plan. Ask business partners to assess how they perceive the strengths and weaknesses of your role.
Your assessment and that of your trading partners should be broadly aligned. Either way, generate a prioritized list of functional skills that you need to fill based on your results or gaps that you need to fill. Of course, every legal department is different and your goals will be tailored to your specific situation.

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