How Legal Operations Roles Ensure Behind-the-Scenes Success

In the legal operations profession, we work like the technical crew behind a Broadway show. Our tasks often go unnoticed when everything runs smoothly. But our purpose becomes glaringly obvious when something goes wrong. Let’s explore how the various legal operations roles, working together like a skilled backstage crew, keep the department running smoothly. We’ll also look at how we can gain recognition for our indispensable work.

The Workflow Stage Manager

Think of the workflow stage manager as the one who meticulously plans every scene change and prop placement. We craft workflow automations that ensure a steady, uninterrupted flow of work. We identify inefficiencies and design solutions to prevent bottlenecks, ensuring every legal request is handled with precision and speed. This proactive approach keeps the department humming, much like a stage manager who prevents any disruption during a performance.

The API Technician

APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) are the hidden wires connecting various software systems within and into a legal department. Often time, the API technician in legal ops is the point person for these connections, ensuring data flows seamlessly between platforms like intake, contract management, e-signature, e-billing, and business intelligence. By anticipating potential issues and performing regular maintenance, we prevent disruptions, much like an electrician who ensures all the wiring behind the scenes is secure and functional.

The Knowledge Manager

In a vast archive, the document archivist knows the precise location of every critical piece of information. Legal operations professionals organize and maintain the document repository, ensuring documents are easily retrievable and securely stored. By using metadata and keyword tags, we create an efficient system that allows for quick and accurate document retrieval. This organization is crucial for compliance, audit readiness, and operational efficiency, much like a Broadway prop master who preserves, tags, and stores the artifacts of a priceless collection.

The Tech Specialist

The tech specialist in legal operations is like the crew that maintains the lighting and sound systems. We carefully select, implement, and maintain legal tech solutions, ensuring these tools enhance productivity and fit seamlessly into the department’s roadmap. Our expertise in both legal requirements and technological capabilities ensures the legal department is always powered up and running efficiently.

The Data Analyst

The data analyst in legal operations is like the person who monitors the performance metrics of the show. By tracking metrics such as contract turnaround time, legal spend, and workload distribution, we provide valuable insights for strategic decision-making. Our work ensures that the legal department operates efficiently and can quickly adapt to changes, much like a technician who optimizes the lighting and sound based on audience feedback.

The Chief of Staff

If not already given the title, the head of a legal operations function also acts as a chief of staff, corralling objectives and using business intelligence to drive strategy. They align departmental goals with broader business objectives, ensuring that the legal team’s efforts are focused and effective. By leveraging data analytics, they provide insights that guide decision-making and improve operations. This is crucial to ensuring that the legal department contributes effectively to the organization’s success, much like a chief of staff who ensures that every part of a production works in harmony to achieve the director’s vision.

Gaining Recognition 

To gain more recognition for our indispensable work as a backstage crew, we can adopt several strategies:

• Highlighting the Impact: Regularly highlight the impact of your work to stakeholders. Show how workflow automations and seamless integrations have reduced work that was less strategic in nature. Highlight instances where you have reduced risk, saved costs, or improved efficiency, akin to a prop master ensuring every piece is in place to avoid costly mistakes.
• Educating the Team: Educate the broader legal team about the importance of your work. Create opportunities to highlight your role and how it supports the department’s success. Think of it as giving the audience a behind-the-scenes tour to understand the complexities of the production.
• Celebrating Successes: Celebrate milestones and achievements within the legal operations and to the broader legal team. Recognizing these accomplishments can boost morale and visibility, much like celebrating the successful opening night of a show.
• Building Cross-Departmental Relationships: Collaborate closely with other departments, such as information technology (IT), procurement, sales, and finance, to showcase the interdisciplinary nature of your work. Building these relationships can lead to greater appreciation and understanding of legal operations’ role, akin to a theater company working with city planners to ensure seamless integration of services.
• Advocating for Resources: Advocate for the resources needed to excel in your role. This could include additional technology, continuing education, increased staffing, or memberships to trade groups. Making a compelling case for these resources demonstrates your value to the organization, much like a theater company justifying the need for upgrades and maintenance to ensure a successful performance.
• Use Real-Life Examples: Share concrete examples of how your accomplishments have positively impacted the department and beyond. 
• Create a Recognition System: Implement a system for recognizing and celebrating achievements within the team. Publicly acknowledging contributions, even for small improvements, can create a culture of appreciation.
• Network and Build Relationships: Network within your organization and industry. Building relationships and sharing your expertise across departments and at industry events like conferences can enhance your influence. Join groups like CLOC (Corporate Legal Operations Consortium) or communities like Link, the Legal Innovators Network. Participate in podcasts and webinars.

The tasks carried out by the legal ops team are essential to the success of any legal department, yet we are sometimes behind the scenes. By highlighting the steady flow of our work, educating our teams, celebrating successes, building cross-departmental relationships, and advocating for resources, the various legal operations roles can gain the recognition they deserve. After all, it’s the backstage crew that ensures the show goes off without a hitch, making every performance a success.