What does the future hold for matter management, and where are legal sector organisations heading in the coming years and decades? These two questions have been at the forefront of discussions both here at Rising Tide, and with our partners at Expedite Law.
When working in such a dynamic field as technology and artificial intelligence, changes come quick. Innovation unfolds within days, sometimes even minutes. A couple weeks go by, and suddenly, there’s a new piece of tech on the market, there’s new software everyone is raving about, there’s an exciting new trend to explore. In this fact-paced digital world, we understand the importance of staying ahead of the curve and keeping up with the speed of technology.
We teamed up with Expedite to host an Innovation Design Sprint, inspired by Jake Knapp’s methodology developed at Google Ventures. Our goal was to explore the future of matter management and determine how we can equip our customers with the best possible technology for their needs.
The Design Sprint process has been utilised by tech giants such as Slack and Airbnb, so we thought – if it’s good enough for them, it’s definitely good enough for us. We assembled a strong team from Rising Tide and Expedite, put on our innovative thinking hats, and embarked on a week-long journey to figure out how we can enhance the existing matter management landscape.
Transforming the legal sector
The legal sector is undergoing a major transformation, and the future is more uncertain than ever. Clients are continuously pushing for more transparency, faster turnaround times, and cost-effective legal services. In response, law firms are turning to technology, particularly for automation and workflow optimisation.
Tools for matter management, like 3E Mattersphere, have become an absolute necessity when dealing with the massive amounts of sensitive information that are handled by law firms. Next-gen legaltech solutions are supporting legal businesses by automating workflows, reducing time spent on routine tasks, improving collaboration, and enabling remote work. With sensitive data at stake, secure document management and communication are crucial, which requires that organisations prioritise cybersecurity and compliance.
With these evolving demands, we sought to challenge the status quo and design an innovative solution that not only combines all necessary tools into a one-stop-shop solution, but also enables legal professionals to do their jobs better, faster and with way less hassle.
The Sprint Process
Kicking off our Sprint last Monday, we started by mapping out our goal and any obstacles that might prevent us from achieving that goal. We conducted interviews with several matter management experts, which left us with about a thousand post-it notes’ worth of key insights. We filled up a few whiteboards with questions, suggestions and ideas. By the end of Monday, we had our work cut out for us, and we were ready to delve deeper.
On Tuesday morning, we looked at inspiring solutions from other sectors and examined what tools we can implement into our own solution. We talked about everything – from project management software and existing case management solutions, all the way through to online chess games (we promise it made sense at the time!). By mid-day, we were all filled with inspiration and ready to tackle the afternoon, when we had to each write down our own matter management solution ideas. After much scribbling and doodling (and borderline actual artistry), we each mapped out our ideas and went home for the day.
When Wednesday came around, it was decision time – we had to take an exceptionally good look at all our solution ideas and decide which one to work into an actual prototype. At this point, it’s good to mention that we were going to be presenting this prototype to several of our existing clients in just two days’ time. So, it’s safe to say, the pressure was ON. By the end of the day, we had chosen our best ideas, created a storyboard and were ready to build the prototype.
From ideas to a prototype
Bright and early on Thursday morning, we gathered at our Sprint headquarters, and started working on turning our ideas into an actual solution. It was a busy day and we were certainly feeling the pressure at that point, but we kept on going until our prototype was complete and ready to be presented the following day.
After much build up and a lot of hard work, Friday rolled around, and it was time to show our clients what we’d created throughout the week. We’re exceptionally grateful to those who joined the discussions, shared their valuable feedback and gave us not only lots to think about, but also a lot to look forward to.
So, what happened when we presented the prototype? What were the key positives and negatives? Did we manage to figure out the future of matter management? Unfortunately, we’re not able to share more on this just yet – but we promise, the future looks exciting and full of opportunity. Keep an eye on our legal sector solutions, as we’re getting busy building something you wouldn’t want to miss.
