Strategic Visioning Session for Law Department Transformation

Vision Facilitation Template Strategic Planning Preparation 1

Table of Contents Objectives for Today Why a vision statement Vision Statement - Draft Vision Statement Components Department Attributes Team Member Behaviors Leadership Role Implementation Approach 2

Objectives for Today Brainstorm attributes that describe inputs into the vision statement Vision Inputs Business Needs & Direction Legal Value Contribution Client Experience Department Behaviors Leadership Role . Prioritize key themes Consider degree of gap and implementation approach Not: Draft and hone an actual vision statement 3

Why a Vision Statement Aspirational perspective to: Define the value contribution of the Law Department Establish expectations for how the Department will interact with business leadership and other corporate functions Establish expectations for how the Department will interact amongst team members Prioritize legal services with the greatest business impact Define the role and type of legal resources needed (internal and external) Serve as a guidepost for assessing current state gaps and outlining necessary changes to the structure and operations of the Law Department Coalesce the leadership team around a common set of priorities 4

Law Department Visioning Session To ensure the Law Department s Value Contribution, the Law Department s Vision should be grounded in supporting the organization s strategic goals. To what degree does the Department s current Vision reflect the organization s strategic goals for the next 3 5 years? To what degree does the Department s current state reflect the Department s Vision? Organization s Strategic Goals Department s enabling action Department s enabling action Department s enabling action Department s enabling action 5

Workshop Steps 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Unpack Law Department s vision statement Understand supporting behaviors of each component Define behaviors required to support the vision statement Assess the gap between current state and aspirational vision Develop implementation approach 6

1. Vision Statement Unpacking Exercise - Example Drive accomplishment of Company s strategy through solutions-oriented services and a business mindset. Key Components: Exercise: Understand the key components that will drive your service delivery drive accomplishment Company s strategy Replace the vision statement with your Department s statement. Break your statement into key components. solutions-oriented services business mindset 7

2. Vision Statement Components Exercise - Example A Drive accomplishment of Company s strategy through solutions-oriented services and a business mindset. Company s strategy Exercise: Understand the underlying meaning of each component Progress Company s growth and expansion Augment revenue generation and cost reduction through asset optimization Increase business agility through improved technology enablement Focus on long-term success and reputation goals Create legal approaches that further the Company s strategy for growth and value creation Draft supporting statements for key component that explain the component. These statements should reflect your company s unique strategy and operations. (Examples are in italicized text) Repeat exercise for each component (Additional examples on following slides) 8

2. Vision Statement Components Exercise - Example B Drive accomplishment of Company s strategy through solutions-oriented services and a business mindset. solutions-oriented services Deep understanding of the industry and Company s business, current and past Connect disparate groups in the business to stimulate interaction and comprehensive results Promote avoidance of financial or reputation harm through thoughtful preventative measures Create solutions to manage risk and protect the company s ability to operate Translate current and emerging risks into recommendations and solutions that help to manage and grow the business Act as a early warning system to detect and address potential risks Encourage client self-sufficiency through simplified legal processes, forms and training 9

2. Vision Statement Components Exercise - Example C Drive accomplishment of Company s strategy through solutions-oriented services and a business mindset. business mindset Engage with the client to identify legal needs and proactively direct the type and degree of interaction Maintain focus on practical issues that have a meaningful business impact Develop actionable recommendations that address client challenges and expand perspectives Define team composition of internal and external resources to drive effective and efficient service delivery Maintain strategic role with the business when engaging and directing outside counsel Be accessible and provide timely response that encourages trust and sense of reliability 10

3. Department Attributes Exercise Example A Team Member Behaviors Exercise: Define the behaviors that are needed to support the vision statement, Embrace role as problem solvers Be a learning organization that requires team members to expand their knowledge sets and embraces continual improvement by supporting process initiatives and rejecting opt out culture Certain behaviors will be essential to successful implementation of your vision. Draft key behavior statements for team members and leadership. (Examples are in italicized text) Repeat exercise for leadership behaviors (See following slide) Utilize and rely upon Corporate and Law Department systems/processes as a recognized obligation Ensure the right resource is doing the right work Maintain accountability when engaging outside counsel 11

3. Department Attributes Exercise Example B Leadership Role Model behavior, integrity and ethics for the Law Department and Company Balance priorities of service delivery, proactive business engagement and people management Champion change and inspire others to adopt new ways of thinking while preserving and enhancing current successful strategies and practices Maintain awareness of company direction to translate how corporate goals shape the legal department s priorities Discuss risk tolerance and encourage appropriate risk taking in solutions Emphasize a department-wide view towards personnel development and succession planning Convey goals and expectations for the individual team members based upon Company needs and provide team members with opportunities to demonstrate their skills and knowledge of the business Be accessible to team members for structured and ad hoc guidance Embrace and promote effective technology use, process improvement and cost management 12

4. Current State to Aspirational Vision Gap Successful implementation of the vision should be judged based upon how the current and future gap has been addressed. Vision Input Current State Future State Exercise: Assess the gap between the current state and the aspirational vision. Business Needs & Direction Leadership: x Department: x x x Use a numerical score, e.g., 1 10 Assess both Leadership and Department gaps Legal Value Contribution x x Leadership: x Department: x x x Client Experience Department Behaviors x x Leadership Role x x x x 13

5. Implementation Approach Communication and implementation of the vision should drive incorporation of behaviors into the fabric and day-to-day workings of the Department. Leadership s Next Steps Exercise: Define the actions needed for implementation of the Law Department vision Refine vision, as needed, to reflect the vision for the Law Department Communicate refined vision to the Department Dialog with teams in group and individual settings to obtain feedback on vision and actions needed Incorporate feedback into a implementation plan Develop change management plan based upon feedback Communicate expected behaviors Measure business and department perspectives on current state through a voice of the client (VOC) survey and repeat on an annual/bi-annual basis Incorporate expected behaviors into performance expectations Use during annual evaluations, compensation and promotion decisions Year 1: set expectations Year 2: measure against defined requirements Steps should included both actions and communications Draft key steps for leadership. (Examples are in italicized text) 14

6. Translating Vision to Strategy A Strategy Roadmap should be developed to translate the Law Department s vision to a strategic plan. Department Leadership is responsible for clearly articulating its prioritized Strategic Objectives (the key enablers which propel the Department toward its Vision) and defining what success looks likes and Legal Operations is responsible for translating those Strategic Objectives into Work Streams (discrete tasks that further the Strategic Objectives and drive towards the Success measures). Department Vision Strategic Objective #2 Strategic Objective #3 Strategic Objective #1 Definition of Success #2 Definition of Success #3 Definition of Success #1 Work Stream #4 Work Stream #5 Work Stream #6 Work Stream #2 Work Stream #1 Work Stream #3 15