Legal departments are under constant pressure, with organizations looking to navigate increasing uncertainty and challenges. But, with challenges come opportunities, and it’s time for organizations to reimagine the outlook for legal and unleash the true power of their legal department.
As we know, there’s been more change over the past five years than in the previous 40, with the perfect storm of global geopolitical complexity, economic instability, business change and the increasing impact of technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives. This unrelenting state of flux is also the moment when real, lasting transformation can occur.
For the legal department of today, transformation is inevitable, and the time to act is now.
To unleash the potential of the legal department, organizations should start with a fundamental reset. Does your organization have the right people and support in place that will allow for the right collaboration? The answer to this question is key to a successful start to your legal department transformation journey.
Once you have the right people in place, there is the perfect opportunity for the legal department to reposition its role within the organization. In our view, the future depends on having connected lawyers who have a tech-enabled mindset and are able to leverage global platforms for the benefit of teams and clients.
The legal department should emerge from outdated, restricting silos and expand — not just across practice areas but also across disciplines and industries — to better serve clients. This approach can be expansive and daring, incubating new client-centric ecosystems as new partnerships are formed and new ways are found to support business challenges.
That’s where KPMG Law can help. KPMG Law professionals have been at the forefront of legal transformation for global companies in the energy, financial and automotive spaces, providing support across sectors and borders as clients face the challenge of transformation and change. Through our portfolio of tools, KPMG Law professionals can help you become a more powerful, future-forward legal department. Our aim is simple — to put legal at the center of your organization to unleash the value of your team and power market-leading enterprise technologies.
One key part of this is data. Data is KPMG Law’s cornerstone for enabling successful change. We use structured data to proactively target areas for change and help unlock business value. For us, data is both a sword and a shield. As a sword, it helps drive diversity, enables compliance, and offers proof points for reporting. As a shield, it helps organizations capture information, creating the metrics, knowledge, and accountability necessary to meet the business needs of today.
The future is here now. It’s time for change. While there is much speculation about the impact of technology and AI, we expect that lawyers will be augmented and not replaced by technology. However, we also expect that lawyers who harness the power of technology and AI — and use it — will replace those who do not. KPMG Law can support you in setting the business on course for success and unleashing the true potential of your legal department.
Throughout this blog, “we”, “KPMG”, “us” and “our” refers to the global organization or to one or more of the member firms of KPMG International Limited (“KPMG International”), each of which is a separate legal entity.
