Key Strategies for Adopting AI Successfully

This article discusses key strategies for adopting AI successfully, based on insights from a LawVu webinar featuring Noah Waisberg, CEO of Zuva; Scott Millea, Associate Counsel at Northern Tool; and Christina Wojcik, Managing Director at LexFusion. 

These experts highlighted three essential strategies to maximize AI’s potential: building knowledge, conducting due diligence, and prioritizing security.

Building knowledge about AI technology is crucial. Millea emphasized the importance of understanding AI’s role in automating tasks like contract negotiation. Wojcik, who implemented AI at Citibank, offered, “Because we developed a strong baseline understanding of AI’s capabilities — and limitations — we were able to implement them with the right risk and control frameworks in place.” With support from leadership, she successfully trained over 300 legal team members, reducing fears about AI replacing jobs by presenting it as an augmentation tool.

Conducting due diligence in vendor selection ensures that AI aligns with specific legal needs. Wojcik recommended assessing vendors’ proven capabilities rather than future promises, encouraging a “bake-off” approach to compare AI outputs with traditional methods. This approach demonstrates AI’s advantage in efficiently handling complex, lengthy documents, especially compared to a manually populated Excel spreadsheet. Wojcik noted that evaluating the level of human oversight required to validate AI’s outputs is important.  

Prioritizing security is essential to AI integration. Millea and Wojcik stressed choosing vendors with robust data security frameworks and conducting regular audits. While Waisberg advised scrutinizing vendors’ data management policies to guarantee user data safety, Millea noted, “We need to remain vigilant and proactive in protecting sensitive information throughout the AI lifecycle.” 

Collectively, these strategies for adopting AI help embed AI into legal practices, improving efficiency, accuracy, and strategic decision-making. With a structured approach, AI becomes an invaluable tool for legal departments, enhancing productivity while complementing human expertise.