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Legal tech provides myriad benefits to law firms. It improves efficiency by streamlining operations, boosts client and employee satisfaction, frees up time for lawyers to spend on high value work due to automation, and so much more. But such benefits are often hinged not just on finding the right legal tech, but employing the right legal tech in the right way.

As argued in a recent ½Û×ÓÊÓƵ report, law firms should not conform to the cult of tech adoption, not adopt tech for the sake of tech, not imagine tech as a ‘silver bullet’ or a quick solution to your problems. The effective of legal tech depends on tracking resources, strategising, noticing problems, finding opportunities, developing objectives, picking the right tech to suit your needs, and consistently optimising that tech.

In short, law firms need to take a measured and considered approach to . In this article, we provide a step-by-step guide to help you make informed decisions and invest in the right legal tech. So, without further ado, let’s start with an audit.

Perform a tech audit

A tech audit is an inspection of your organisation’s current tech position. Taking stock of your resources, expenditure, and capacity is essential, as that information will inform your later decisions. An should, at a minimum, include the following tasks:

• Calculating all fixed costs and variable costs relating to tech
• Estimating the number of hours spent on particular tasks
• Considering weaknesses in your technical capacities
• Exploring areas of strength to find opportunities
• Examining your position compared to competition

Tech audits necessarily take a wide view of your organisation. An effective audit will invite contributions from people across the law firms, as different roles and different perspectives will inevitably create a more complete understanding of your position. You can use the information provided by the audit to move forward with your tech strategy.

Develop a strategy

The information from the audit should inform your strategy. It’s worth mentioning that a strategy does not require a booklet, or a fifty-page document, or even five pages. The size and shape of the strategy depends on the size of the organisation, the dependence on tech, and future ambitions. But remember that can be enough for small firms.

The strategy outlines your current position (A) and states future goals (B). The purpose of the strategy is to provide detail on how you can move from A to achieve B, providing detail about the tech you need, the people responsible, the projected budget, and timeline.

Start with broad goals, likely based on brainstorming and ideation sessions, and work collaboratively to narrow them down. It’s beneficial to ensure that all of your , ensuring they each remain Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timed.

Once you’ve performed your audit, understood your current position, established a number of agreed-upon SMART goals, assigned responsibilities, and proposed a realistic budget and timeline, you can start to explore legal tech to help you meet your strategic aspirations.

Choose the right tech

Use the above information to make informed decisions. Start by , scoping out legal tech that suits the size of your company, your projected budget, and your stated goals. You may want to scope out tech used by others in the sector, especially firms of a similar size and competitors, as the functionality may provide similar benefits to your firm.

But do not simply follow tech fashions: the latest highly praised tech, or the latest must-have legal tech fad, may work wonders for other organisations, but that does not necessarily mean it suits your needs. Practice caution with any decisions. Indeed, you should always limit bias in decision-making by sharing responsibility. To practice extra care, you can of the tech prior to investment, highlighting the monetary costs of each option, potential pitfalls and problems, any risks involved, and any other applicable criteria.

And, finally, consider integration. There is no point investing in the latest tech advancements, the most up-to-date innovations, if you have no way of integrating or operating the tech at your firm. The tech should always suit your capabilities and expertise, otherwise it is wasted.

Start employing the tech

Choosing the right legal tech is the simple part. Using the right tech in the right way is the real challenge. The first step is to ensure in the integration, giving them information from the beginning, explaining how the tech addresses problems or takes advantage of opportunities. Reassure all staff that they will receive sufficient training.

Training and knowledge-sharing can , so pick the most appropriate, but make sure you assign responsibility to people in order to maximise accountability. Remember to create processes and share across the organisation, keeping everyone up-to-date, continuing accountability and transparency, and elevating any issues at the earliest possible moment.

Review and revise

A tech strategy is a constantly moving target, ever-evolving, changing depending on new information. The final steps are simple: review your new position, revise your strategy, and repeat any necessary steps. Optimising legal tech is an ongoing process, one that requires constant attention. So ensure you continue that process and continue to improve.