Global Law Firms Find Collaboration Difficult

Large firms with far-flung offices have a hard time facilitating collaboration among their members. Referring work and mentoring are two things that suffer. An internal “knowledge sharing” function is one way big firms are combating this trend. A 2014 survey of nearly 150 law firms found 42 percent had a dedicated staff member with the title of chief knowledge officer or director of knowledge management, but whether KM will be fully adopted as a mainstream law firm function remains to be seen. Recent figures show fewer resources being devoted to KM in 2015 than in 2012.