Law departments are under increasing pressure to bring commercial acumen to running their affairs, to dealing with the business and looking beyond purely legal solutions to problems.
Every month in Practical Law Global we will provide fascinating perspectives on how legal departments can meet these requirements from some of the foremost experts in the field.
This month, Lisa Hart Shepherd from Acritas discusses law firm panel management, and looks at the case study of Pfizer and its panel of advisers.
Donald Hamilton, Chuck Barker and Simon Maple from CMI Concord consider how to build good working relationships through respect, trust and openness.
Finally, Tim Cummins from IACCM discusses the possible future of auditing contracts and contract management.
Written for Practical Law Global by Lisa Hart Shepherd, CEO of Acritas
"A long-term relationship based on trust that is both time and cost efficient". If this is the way you would describe the foundation of your panel firm management programme, that's great news.
If instead you are a member of the majority for whom panel management is more discord than harmony, you may find inspiration in an innovative approach adopted by Pfizer and their law firm advisers.The Pfizer Legal Alliance was born of necessity. Prior to its inception, 80 law firms managed 75% of Pfizer's legal work overall and a few hundred covered the other 25% of legal work globally. The relationships were largely based on the billable hour model which Pfizer found to promote inefficiency, breed mistrust and foster service that was too focused on achieving short-term objectives. Read more.
Acritas is the world's leading provider of legal market research. We work closely with the leaders of Global 100 law firms and in-house legal departments to deliver the market intelligence they need on a global level.
Acritas insight provides firms with an unrivalled depth of knowledge about the markets they operate in giving them the edge to develop strategies and make decisions of the highest quality.
Every month, in our blog we will share our insight into dealing with the challenges the international legal market presents.
Written for Practical Law Global by Donald Hamilton, Chuck Barker and Simon Maple, CMI Concord Group
In the last blog, we defined the "working relationship" as the ability of parties to deal well with each other, as distinct from the substantive issues identified that the measure of overall success was that the parties dealt with each other with mutual:
In that blog we looked at authenticity and emotional balance. This month, we will look at the other three: respect, trust and openness.
Respect means treating the other party and their ideas with respect. If someone's view does not correspond to your own, it is easy to regard them as troublesome, unreasonable, or even stupid... Read more.
CMI Concord Group grew out of the Harvard Negotiation Project, which produced such books as Getting to Yes, Getting Past No, Difficult Conversations and Beyond Reason. Our work originates from and develops the concept of collaborative, or "interests-based", negotiation developed by the Harvard project.
Successful collaborative negotiators have mastered Seven Elements: Interests, Options, Legitimacy, Alternatives, Commitment, Communication and Relationship. Our blog will examine each of these as well as other topics of interest to those involved in negotiations and in dispute and conflict resolution.
Written for Practical Law Global by Tim Cummins, CEO of IACCM
Government procurement policies have often influenced private sector trends and practices. Last week, I encountered another innovation which, if it spreads, would have significant impact on those responsible for contracting.
I attended a conference where a senior Government auditor presented on emerging plans for future audits of contracts and contract management. He emphasised the growing focus in this area (something evident in a range of countries) as public sector agencies become more vigilant in their elimination of waste and in their efforts to improve the success of their projects and expenditure.
The auditor explained that there will be four areas on which future checks will concentrate... Read more.
With members from 138 countries and 9616 corporations, IACCM is leading the way in responding to the demands of global networked markets.
Our membership is drawn from many industries and is made up of contract and commercial managers, negotiators, attorneys and supply chain professionals. Hundreds of organisations have also established Corporate Memberships, gaining enhanced services that support their performance and understanding of market trends.
Through our worldwide presence and networked technology, IACCM members gain access to the thought leadership and practical tools that are essential for competitiveness in today's fiercely contested global markets. We provide insight to the leading-edge contracting and commercial skills, policies, procedures and methods that are fundamental to managing enterprise and individual risks. This insight equips professionals and their leaders to implement best practice governance of contractual commitments and trading relationships.
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