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Who is the primary driver of change in legal departments?
New research shows that a vast majority of law department operations professionals see themselves as the primary driver of change in the legal sector.
Jerome Doraisamy
According to the 10th Anniversary Law Department Operations Survey results, most LDO professionals see their jobs as synonymous with being an “influencer and change agent”.
Further, the number of LDO professionals who say that their job is “primarily change management” has increased from 47 per cent in 2014 to 62 per cent last year.
“The LDO road is paved and out in front of us, but there are other ‘roads less travelled’ that still need exploring, including true technology innovation, getting law firms to deliver client value and collaborative data gathering and mining,” the research said.
“The big question – maybe the biggest in the entire legal industry – is whether we can keep enough momentum to stay on it.”
Looking forward, the survey noted that in light of changing expectations around LDO professional roles, and with change happening in legal departments at a faster pace, general counsel need to be able to agree on the need for LDO professionals and the skills they embody.
“They are also actively pushing their lawyers – both inside and outside – to conduct business with the level of ‘operational awareness’ required to succeed in today’s legal market,” the survey outlined.
“The respect is there, although in varying degrees, and so too will be the maturity and influence of the role.”
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. A former lawyer, he has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. He is also the host of all five shows under The Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network, and has overseen the brand's audio medium growth from 4,000 downloads per month to over 60,000 downloads per month, making The Lawyers Weekly Show the most popular industry-specific podcast in Australia. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of Minds Count.
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