With a strong footprint in legal operations and compliance transformation, smartvokat brings specialised skills in end-to-end advisory and implementation services ranging from service portfolio optimization to digital process implementation. The team supports global enterprises in navigating increasingly complex regulatory landscapes by modernising business-critical legal, risk and compliance service delivery processes.

By joining Advania, smartvokat’s offering is integrated into an ecosystem of managed services and transformation expertise. Together, the teams create even stronger synergies for delivering high-value solutions, particularly for clients in the legal community.

“We are very happy to welcome the talented team at smartvokat to the Advania Group. This acquisition is a great cultural match and a strategic step forward in strengthening our position within legal and compliance transformation. It allows us to support even more customers in preparing for the future with intelligent, AI-empowered end-to-end solutions that make a real difference.” says Tomas Wanselius, CEO of Advania Sweden.

Strategic reinforcement of Advania’s growth areas

The acquisition is part of Advania’s long-term strategy to deepen expertise in selected growth areas. It complements Advania’s existing capabilities in enterprise platforms and applications such as ServiceNow, iManage and Tanium, creating a broader and more scalable service portfolio. smartvokat will collaborate closely with local teams in Sweden, Finland and Serbia (all part of the Transformation & Automation business unit) to ensure a seamless client experience and a unified approach to delivery. Customers can expect a continued focus on innovation, service quality, and business value. Ignaz Füsgen, co-managing director at smartvokat says: “The dynamic legal and compliance tech market is in need of service providers who offer truly scalable, end-to-end solution capabilities. Our clients will quickly benefit from this newly formed offering”. Julien Weiler, co-managing director at smartvokat seconds: “Our clients seek comprehensive advice in Agentic AI from AI-governance to AI-driven workflows and High Performance Computing, a service portfolio the newly formed team can deliver.”

For more information, please contact:

Eva-Lotta Jonsvik, Marketing Director, Advania Sweden
Tel: +46 761 40 01 37
E-post: evalotta.jonsvik@advania.com

Tomas Wanselius, CEO, Advania Sweden
Tel: +46 704 54 35 24
E-post: tomas.wanselius@advania.com

About smartvokat

smartvokat is a German-based consultancy founded in 2016, specializing in digital transformation within the legal, risk, and compliance domains. With a team based in Germany, South Africa, and Slovenia, the company serves global enterprises across healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, and services sectors.

About Advania Sweden

Advania Sweden, “The tech company with people at heart”, has offices across the country – from Luleå in the north to Malmö in the south. Every day, our 1,700 specialists support customers in both the private and public sectors in reaching their digitalisation goals. Through long-term relationships, leading technologies, modern platform solutions, and strategic partnerships, we help shape the IT landscape of the future. Our purpose goes beyond technology: to empower people to create sustainable value.

The Advania Group delivers services for sustainable and secure digitalisation to customers in Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland, Finland, and Denmark. Learn more at advania.se

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We are excited to share that we’ll be attending the CLOC EMEA Summit this September. It’s the ultimate gathering for the legal operations community and ecosystem in the region and an incredible opportunity to connect with industry peers, learn from thought-provoking sessions, and explore the latest trends shaping our ecosystem.

The Summit’s focus on future-proofing legal operations and embracing AI and agility couldn’t be more timely. As legal operations advisors, we understand the need to adapt and innovate. The sessions and discussions at the event will delve deep into these topics, providing valuable strategies to navigate the ever-changing legal industry.

For further information, please go to CLOC’s event page.

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Change management (or the lack thereof) could be the missing piece. In short, change management involves guiding and supporting individuals, teams, and organizations through the process of adopting and adapting to new digital technologies, processes, and systems. It is about the “why” and “what’s in it for me”. If carried out professionally and consistently, it focuses on ensuring a smooth transition and maximizing the benefits of the digital transformation while minimizing resistance and disruption amongst all stakeholders.

In transformation projects, change management has its own role and should be regarded as a separate and equally important workstream beside process design, configuration, and development.

Key elements and considerations

Here are some key elements and considerations involved in change management for legal digital transformation projects including a list of exemplary means:

• Establishing a clear vision: Define a compelling vision for the digital transformation project, explaining why it’s necessary and how it aligns with the organization’s overall goals. Clearly communicate this vision to all stakeholders, including lawyers, support staff, and management.
  Exemplary activities: project scoping, project charter, kick-off meeting
  
  
• Stakeholder engagement: Engage key stakeholders early on and involve them throughout the process. This includes all legal professionals, IT staff, management, and other relevant parties. Seek their input, address their concerns, explain the benefits to them (“what’s in it for me?”) and involve them in decision-making to gain their buy-in and support.
  Exemplary activities: stakeholder maps, stakeholder communication plan, different meeting formats, project landing page
  
  
• Change impact assessment: Prior to the project start, assess the potential impact of the digital transformation on different aspects of the organization, such as workflows, roles and responsibilities, job requirements, and stakeholder interactions. Identify potential areas of resistance or challenges that may arise during the implementation and, more importantly, monitor any trends throughout the project and post-go live.
  Exemplary activities: target operating model, legal services portfolio map, user journey maps  
  

• Change champions: Identify change champions (or better “ambassadors”) within the organization who can act as promotors for the digital transformation. These individuals should have influence, credibility, and expertise in both legal and technology domains. They can help drive adoption, address concerns, and provide training and support to their colleagues.
  Exemplary activities: stakeholder mobilising strategy, starter kit, engagement plan
  
  
• Communication and training: Develop a comprehensive communication plan to keep stakeholders informed about the digital transformation project’s progress, benefits, and timeline. Provide regular updates, address concerns, and highlight success stories, like go-lives of specific processes or use cases. Offer training programs and resources to ensure individuals have the necessary skills and knowledge to leverage the new technologies effectively.
  Exemplary activities: stakeholder communication plan, publication schedule, train-the-trainer and end-user -training
  
  
• Piloting and phased implementation: Consider piloting the digital transformation project in a specific practice area or department before scaling it across the entire organization. This approach allows for testing, refinement, and gathering feedback before broader implementation. Phased implementation can also help manage risks and mitigate (perceived) disruption.
  Exemplary activities: Legal Design sessions, User Acceptance Testing planning and procedures, rollout schedule
  
  
• Change resistance management: Anticipate and address resistance to change. Some individuals in the Legal and Compliance team may be hesitant or resistant due to concerns about job security, lack of familiarity with technology, or fear of increased workload. Implement strategies to address these concerns, such as providing training, offering support, and showcasing the benefits and positive outcomes resulting from the transformation. Leverage your change ambassadors for communication activities! A school of thought even suggests addressing specifically the fiercest critics, assuming their change of mind may have a more impactful implication on the reluctant but potentially silent majority. 
  Exemplary activities: key stakeholder engagement plan, retrospectives
  
  
• Continuous evaluation and improvement: Regularly evaluate the impact of the digital transformation project and identify areas for improvement. It is a journey, not a once-off initiative! Solicit feedback from business users, legal and compliance professionals, executive management and other stakeholders, measure key performance indicators (select a few meaningful ones for the start) and make necessary adjustments to ensure the project’s success and maximize the actual and perceived return on investment.
  Exemplary activities: feedback / “client listening” sessions, governance by change boards
  
  

A final word

Remember, change management is an ongoing process, and it requires a combination of effective leadership, communication, training, and support to facilitate a successful legal digital transformation. Furthermore, it requires sufficient time, expertise, and funding. Instead of considering external advice and support, the internal communication team may be a good partner to be engaged!

The post What’s in it for me – successful change management in legal transformation projects appeared first on smartvokat.

The PrivacyHub – comprehensive, ServiceNow-certified privacy platform

The partnership enables smartvokat to resell and implement Wrangu’s flagship product, PrivacyHub, a comprehensive platform that helps organizations manage their privacy programs and comply with various regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, LGPD and more. PrivacyHub automates privacy tasks like data mapping, data subject requests, consent management, risk assessment and reporting, saving time and resources for privacy teams. PrivacyHub is built on and certified by ServiceNow® and available through ServiceNow®’s App Store. It offers seamless integration with ServiceNow® ‘s Integrated Risk Management solution.

smartvokat will leverage its expertise in data protection processes and best practices to provide consulting and implementation services to PrivacyHub customers, helping them design and execute their privacy strategies and optimize their use of the platform.

“We are excited to partner with smartvokat, a company that shares our passion for delivering world-class compliance solutions on ServiceNow®. Together, we can offer our clients a comprehensive and holistic approach to their legal and compliance transformation journey,” said Victor Lemmens, CEO of Wrangu.

“Wrangu is a perfect partner for us, as they have a proven track record with PrivacyHub, delivering a high-quality data privacy solution on ServiceNow®. By combining our strengths and capabilities, we can create even more value for our clients and help them achieve their legal and compliance goals,” said Ignaz Fuesgen, Co-Managing Director of smartvokat.

About Wrangu (www.wrangu.com)

Wrangu is a leading provider of data protection, security, governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions, designed to help businesses improve their security posture, reduce risk, and comply with regulations. The first ServiceNow© partner to specialise in integrated risk, security and privacy solutions.

Wrangu is an Elite ServiceNow partner and offers a variety of solutions that are designed to work with the ServiceNow platform. Privacy Hub s a platform that helps organisations manage their compliance.with legislation and regulations around personal privacy. The platform provides a comprehensive set of features that help organizations control their privacy risks, develop remediation plans, and track their progress towards compliance.

About smartvokat (www.smartvokat.com)

smartvokat is an independent advisory and product company assisting in-house legal, risk and compliance departments on their digital transformation journey.  The company uncompromisingly leverages opportunities emerging from digital transformation for the benefit of a meaningful, human-need centred service delivery experience related to Legal, Compliance, Data Privacy and Risk.  

The team comprises legal professionals, process and technology experts who comprehensively and inter-disciplinarily advise corporate departments, and Alternative Legal Service Providers.

Its end-to-end offering includes the portfolio and process consulting services as well as implementation services for ServiceNow© and its own product “smartvokat Workflows” (for small and medium enterprises).

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“Legal Intake” or “Legal Front Door” – words which may prompt nightmares for many in- house counsel. Will present personal face-to- face, phone or email interactions be replaced by anonymous, semi-, or fully automated portal inquiries and a ticket system? How will business colleagues respond if they are asked to communicate in a rigorously structured way, potentially via a portal?

The article by our team member Ignaz Fuesgen, published in The Legal Business World, May 2023, explores the “Legal Front Door” (or “Legal Intake”), a key element of contemporary Legal Business Partnering which in its entirety should “make it easy [author: for the business user] to collaborate wherever and whenever the need occurs”. 

The article can be downloaded here: 20230224_LBW_May_2023_Fuesgen_article_extract.

The full edition is available here: https://lbw2023us3.legalbusinesslibrary.com/

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What’s next in terms of “work-life balance”?

Recharging batteries and spending time with family and friends matters to you and us. This is what we understand as “work-life balance”. As a company we already offer more annual leave days than what is prescribed by German law. But could we do even better than this? The idea for our “9 for 10 program” was born. And it perfectly fits our values.

The concept of “9 for 10”

What is putting most pressure on oneself? Squeezing in a doctor’s appointment, feeling guilty (again) about not making it to the gym? Not spending quality time with kids or your hobby close to your heart? “9 for 10” (abbreviated as “9/10”) is addressing most, if not all of it.

Every two weeks, our team members are now getting a day off. This day can be chosen arbitrarily, as long as a colleague can back one up during the day of your absence. Vacation days are not affected and can be taken as usual.

Passing the reality test in a working environment

In the course of a three-month experiment, we analysed its effects on the team’s work-life balance, i.e., its well-being, and productivity by individual and collective observations as well as 1:1s between project managers and project team members. In essence, the feedback was overwhelmingly positive, handovers worked well and we even saw more team coheasion happening. Productivity was as good as before and in some case even higher.

The team’s feedback

Here are some voices from the team:

More voices will follow over time. If you have made your own experiences with such programs, please get in touch and, for instance, leave a message on our LinkedIn pages.

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Since their arrival at smartvokat from day one, Susanne and Maria have delivered excellent professional work. It includes advising legal and compliance departments on the digital transformation of service portfolios and processes. To the same extent, they have independently driven the consulting and implementation offering at smartvokat and taken on general management tasks.

With this step, smartvokat is further sharpening its organisational effectiveness. Legal Transformation Advisory enables smartvokat to provide high-quality advice to legal and compliance departments. Services are rendered in both, a technology-oriented manner in connection with our ServiceNow and smartvokat workflows implementation offerings, and a technology-neutral or even technology-independent approach.

Legal Transformation Advisory has recently grown further with the start of Ines Polak as Legal Transformation Specialist.

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The induction ceremony took place on 7 Oct, 2022, at COLPM’s 2022 Futures Conference in Boston.

On the College of Law Practice Management

“The purpose of the College shall be to recognize, inspire, and promote excellence in law practice management by identifying and honoring extraordinary achievement, supporting activities that enhance the development of knowledge, facilitating information exchange among the Fellows, and acting as a catalyst for positive change within the legal profession including the encouragement of diversity and inclusion throughout the profession.”

Fellows are:

• Lawyers
• Judges
• Law Professors
• Law Firm Executives
• Consultants
• Government Officers
• Corporate Legal Executives
• In-house Counsel

What is the College of Law Practice Management? (source: COLPM)

• The College is a professional, educational and honorary association dedicated to the improvement of the law practice management and to the enhancement of the professional quality of and public respect for the law.
• Membership in the College is by invitation to honor those individuals who have proven to their peers, their employers, the bar, the bench and the public through performance related to law practice management that the they:
• Have the highest professional qualifications and ethical standards;
• Provide exceptionally high quality professional services to clients, their employer, the bar, the bench or the public;
• Have significantly contributed to and enhanced law practice management, its literature, its procedures, and its philosophy through dedicated service, or through published writings, or through teaching and lecturing, or through demonstrated excellence in law practice management;
• Have that high level of character, integrity, professional expertise and leadership which demonstrates the likelihood that they will continue to contribute to the enhancement of law practice management scholarship, continuing education and the law practice management process; and
• Are committed to fostering and furthering the objectives of the College.

To date, nearly 300 practitioners from 5 different countries are Fellows of the College.

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To record and process these complaints, TIGGES DCO relies on smartvokat Workflows, a platform for flexible legal case management and processing (“matter management”) as well as document management.   

Julien Weiler, Managing Director of smartvokat GmbH, explains: “As a young company, we are very pleased about the trust placed in us for supporting TIGGES DCO in this lighthouse project with our smartvokat Workflows platform and our implementation expertise.

Yvonne Quad, Managing Director of TIGGES DCO GmbH, adds: “smartvokat convinced us as a team with its experience, flexibility and focus on user experience. Especially in the case of complaint management, it is important to make the submission as simple and intuitive as possible for the complainant, i.e. to create a high level of acceptance as a contact point for complaints through user-friendliness.. The “user experience” from the point of view of the TIGGES DCO case handlers was also very important to us.”

TIGGES DCO uses the following function bundles of smartvokat Workflows in particular for recording and processing complaints:

• Intake of complaints through a web portal;
• Complaint management, including deadlines, correspondence, etc.; and
• Task management and tracking.

Background to the Monitoring Body
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) enables professional and interest groups, associations, etc. to adopt rules of conduct (also called “Code of Conduct” (CoC)) – this is still a not yet widely used instrument of self-regulation. Rules of conduct are primarily intended to facilitate the handling of individual data processing areas. The associations/institutions have the option to monitor themselves or to hand over this monitoring activity to an external company. 

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What is legal design?

To put it in a nutshell, legal design is the application of human design thinking principles to the legal industry.

It is a set of methods and principles aimed at creating better legal services and products, as well as at better communicating legal information. Legal design is about making legal systems more understandable and “user friendly”, for all of us.

What are design thinking principles?

Applying design thinking principles means adopting design mindset, which differs drastically from lawyers’ mindset.

Legal professionals are taught to operate in a “perfectionist” way by delivering precise and legally correct results at all times. This is due to the high standards and ethical codes that the legal profession is bound by.

Design mindset, in turn, tells you the following:

• Be more experimental. Iterative design process (define, ideate, prototype, test) forces you not to stick to one solution only and drive it perfection, but instead discover and test out different solutions – freely, without constraints and without being afraid of making mistakes. This is crucial for designing a good solution, but something that lawyers are not quite used to.
• Adopt a beginner mindset. When creating a product or service, designers focus on how the future users of this solution (and all the stakeholders involved) will perceive it and interact with it. The goal is to create a seamless, delightful experience that will make you want to use this solution again. This means looking at the solution not just through professional lenses, but also through beginner lenses (or in the legal context, lay person lenses), and looking for ways that will make the end user life easier.
• Embrace criticism. It is only possible to create a good solution after openly admitting the flaws of the previous one. Being open to admitting mistakes and starting again by developing a new prototype is a crucial element of the design mindset.

How exactly are design thinking principles applied to law?

Probably the most known area of legal design is info design or visual design. We all know how a typical contract looks like: pages and pages of complex legal terms in small print, difficult to read and understand. The goal of info design as applied to law is to create more understandable and visually appealing legal contracts and documents. The intention behind it is that those without legal background can better understand their rights and obligations. As a result, those readers have a better feeling and control over signing legal documents.

However, legal design goes far beyond just creating visually appealing legal documents. As follows from the infographic below, apart from info design this discipline encompasses product design (creation of legal tools and offerings), service design (structuring legal processes in a more user friendly way), organization design (creation of better legal practices in law firms and legal departments in order to make work of legal professionals easier) as well as overarching system design (rethinking how our legal systems’ structure as a whole: this also encompasses design on a legislative level).

How can I learn more about legal design?

If this article sparked your interest in learning more about legal design, here are some further book and source recommendations:

• Law By Design is the already referenced open source book by Margaret Hagan (The Legal Design Lab). It outlines the basic principles and ideas behind legal design as a discipline
• “Legal Design: Integrating Business, Design and Legal Thinking with Technology” by Marcelo Corrales Compagnucci, Helena Haapio, Margaret Hagan, Michael Doherty is another book of reference from the leading professionals in legal design field
• Legal Design Pattern Libraries is a great open source database of visual design materials by Helena Haapio, mostly focusing on contract design

Book a legal design workshop with us

You would like to see how you can apply legal design principles in your law firm or legal department? Then make sure to book a legal design workshop with us here. The interactive legal design workshop helps analyze and improve day-to-day processes in legal practices. It will make life of legal professionals and their clients easier.

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