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Exposing Legal Project Management Myths

Join us for a session that breaks down common myths surrounding legal project management and reveals the truth behind what works and what doesn't. Learn how to effectively and efficiently manage legal cases or matters using project management concepts.

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Exposing Legal Project Management Myths

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  1. Exposing Legal Project Management Myths: The Truth Behind What Works and What Doesn’t Law Department Management Track Wednesday, 9:00–10:30am Hosted by

  2. Introductions Rick Kathuria Pratik Patel Doug Luftman Chris Fowler

  3. Getting To Know You ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

  4. Ever Seen This? What the client explained What the project leader understood What the analyst designed What the programmer coded What the beta testers received What the consultant defined How the project was documented What actually was installed What was billed How it was maintained What marketing advertised What the client actually needed Creative Commons License by www.projectcartoon.com

  5. Breaking Down Project Management What is a Project? It’s a temporary group activity designed to produce a unique product, service or result. Projects are: Temporary – has a defined beginning and end in time, and therefore defined scope and resources. Unique – not a routine operation, but a specific set of operations designed to accomplish a singular goal. So a project team often includes different people from different areas and across multiple geographies.

  6. So Then… What is Project Management? It is the application of knowledge, skills and techniques to execute projects effectively and efficiently.

  7. So THEN… What is Legal Project Management? The application of the concepts of project management to the control and management of legal cases or matters. —Steven Levy, Author Legal Project Management: Control Costs, Meet Schedules, Manage Risks, and Maintain Sanity

  8. Goals for the Session By the numbers – the impact of PM on your business Discuss/debate common myths around PM for Legal Share anecdotes of what worked and what hasn’t Participate, have fun and win prizes!

  9. Did You Know That….? • The average cost overrun of all projects is 27% • Harvard Business Review • One in six projects have a cost overrun of at least 200% • Harvard Business Review • Fewer than 1/3 of all projects finish on time and on budget • Standish Group How do your legal projects fare against these figures?

  10. Now Entering the Mythbusting Zone…

  11. Fact or Myth? A PM spends most of his/her time documenting and updating project plans

  12. Reality: Myth… In fact, the PM role is • Gathering status updates from project stakeholders • Facilitating project meetings and discussions • Communicating meeting minutes and action items 90% communication Statistic from Wrike.com

  13. Fact or Myth? Non-lawyers make for better legal project managers

  14. Reality: It Depends… • NetApp uses • Lawyers for patent litigation matters/projects • Non-lawyers for PM of internal projects and externally with Joint Defense Group Matters • Gowlings uses • Associate lawyers for PM of Litigation and Transactional matters • BT uses • Non lawyers for law department operational tasks and KM

  15. Fact or Myth? LPM only works when everyone on the team is trained on project management

  16. Gowlings’ Simple LPM Framework

  17. Reality: Familiarity is good, but formal training not required. Even at corporate giants like IBM, only Among CIOs Of de facto project managers, 56% 67% 70% of PM specialists hold a certificate see PMI certification as valuable but not a necessity have no special training or certificate

  18. Fact or Myth? Lawyers will not adopt LPM because it’s too complex and time consuming

  19. Short meeting minutes go a long way NetApp leverages Level2 to project manage JDG sessions with upwards of 20 participants Pre-meeting agendas Attendance trackers Key milestones Key upcoming activities Key decision items Key challenges

  20. Gowlings’ Use of Easy Traffic Lights Monitor: Use Traffic Lights Plan: Use Simple Matter Plans

  21. Right Mix of Change Management

  22. Reality: If too complex, lawyers will not use it. Also, if not backed by formal change measures, lawyers will not use it.

  23. Fact or Myth? Most law departments have sophisticated ways to review and measure project performance.

  24. What British Telecom Measures…

  25. What NetApp Measures…

  26. Reality: Sophistication is not important. Setting a series of simple baselines and measuring against those is the key. Where We Started Where We Are Now

  27. Audience Mythbusting

  28. Key Takeaways Project Management is a part of everything we do. PM for legal goes beyond just matter management. Both lawyers and non-lawyers make good PMs. Don’t wait for certifications – just start. You will need the right mix of change techniques to make PM a success. Data matters; Set a baseline and then measure to achieve better results.

  29. Feel Free to Contact Us Rick Kathuria Pratik Patel Doug Luftman Chris Fowler

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