External resource management

The challenge for in-house teams

Managing external resources is a hot topic for the vast majority of GCs and in-house legal teams. Considering that a significant portion of a GC department’s budget (on average 58% according to The GC350: Benchmarking Study for the In-House Community) is spent on external legal resources, it’s important for GCs to know that they’re getting a return on their investment.

However, industry data shows that in-house legal teams tend to favour familiarity over change, opting to deepen existing relationships with law firms and legal service providers rather than regularly refreshing their panels.

The result?

Many in-house teams are unable to clearly articulate to the wider business how well their panel firms are performing against business objectives. They may not have visibility over which firms are doing what work or for how much, and as a result, they cannot be sure that they are getting value for money.

The RFP process and review cycle can be time consuming and resource intensive. Failure to measure and analyse performance after the initial implementation phase, and to hold external legal service providers accountable, can lead to complacency or missed opportunities. Taking back control by having more visibility over the panel landscape and the performance of firms enables GCs to identify quick wins and embed a culture of continuous improvement.