After 18 interesting, challenging and enjoyable years I am retiring from my in-house role at the end of March and will focus on developing my consultancy business. I plan to continue these blogs in that context and as always welcome comments and feedback. As I look back on my time as an IT lawyer in-house and before that in private practice, one thing strikes me above all others. Yes, I recall the negotiations and the contracts and other matters I advised on, wrestling with the challenges of capturing the supply of outsourced technology services in a written agreement that fairly reflects the expectations of both purchaser and supplier. However, what I appreciated by far the most, and learned more from that I ever expected, is the contact and interaction with other people; colleagues in my organisation as well as the professionals on the other side of the table. And this is very much not to limited to members of my own legal profession. I worked closely with and learnt so much from commercial directors, technical architects, project managers, accountants, tax advisers and yes even from the potential bane of some commercial advisers and lawyers – sales directors! I remember being struck when I joined one large London law firms by the rows of lawyers in their (then) offices – now it would be open plan spaces. It is very easy in that sort of “closeted environment” to become an introverted professional only interacting with and learning from your immediate peers.
So, my one enduring message to lawyers (and indeed any professional person) whether in-house or in private practice is therefore to take every opportunity to interact with and learn from other colleagues in diverse disciplines with different skill sets and abilities. Just as top-level sports people benefit from cross training with other sports, the same is true in our professional working world. As AI suggests “Interacting with other professionals offers numerous benefits, including knowledge sharing, enhanced problem-solving, career growth, and improved communication skills, ultimately leading to a more fulfilling and productive work environment.”
Harvard Business School run excellent sessions such as one I attended many years ago on Managing Professional Firms which provide awe inspiring teaching. Yet this Harvard Business Review article also proposes that we should Learn from People, not Classes. “To keep pace with change and avoid disruption, a business leader must constantly acquire new skills. But …. little of this learning takes place in formal classes or programs, …. Instead, successful learners tap into network intelligence, seeking out one-on-one conversations with those who have faced similar challenges and can share valuable expertise.” The core concept, which very much reflects my personal experience, is “network intelligence”. It cites the benefits of consulting others to help resolve business problems concluding “Our formal education system treats knowledge as a fixed asset acquired during a certain phase of life. In reality, knowledge is constantly changing, and good leaders never stop acquiring and assimilating it. In the Networked Age, every day is exam day—full of new, unpredictable challenges. Often the best way to learn how to meet them is to talk to people who have faced similar situations.”
And whilst personal face to face meetings can be invaluable, there is no reason why we cannot use the same approach and benefit from our interconnected world using IM’s, email and Teams calls to connect with and learns from others especially in different disciplines. See for example this Forbes article 12 Virtual Networking Techniques For Making Successful Connections whose recommendations include establishing a niche topic you really focus on, starting with small steps and posting effective and thought provoking online content.
What for me matters though is not so much the method or process, but the willingness to engage. To be open minded and recognise and appreciate we can learn from others, even if, and perhaps in particular because, their skill set and training is different than ours. I have seen this described succinctly as “interdisciplinary learning”. This starts in education – see this Open University article What are the benefits of interdisciplinary study? Which observes that “many academic disciplines are ‘constructions’ themselves,” and that interdisciplinary learning means “working across boundaries of knowledge and creating new knowledge from various sources”.
This for me is equally applicable in our professional working lives. After all in say the drafting and negotiation of a complex IT outsourcing agreement many different disciplines come together from wordsmithing and risk managing lawyers and commercial advisers through financial modellers to technical architects all of whom make vital contributions to the final finished product. This is especially true for lawyers I suggest as perhaps if we are honest, we sometimes put ourselves on a professional pedestal. See this article The Importance of Collaboration for Lawyers which is particularly aimed at self-employed remote consultant lawyers and observes “Lawyers are no stranger to the concept of collaboration. Indeed, it’s one of the cornerstones of the legal industry. From complex litigation teams to in-house counsel working across an entire business, success as a lawyer often hinges on being able to work effectively with others.” And “modern legal professionals thrive in environments that encourage teamwork and sharing expertise.”
But it is as we look to a future where (at least in theory) generative artificial intelligence makes us all experts in every discipline that this interaction really comes into focus. I have no doubt that professional practice will change. As Richard and Daniel Susskind explain in their book The Future of the Professions: How Technology Will Transform the Work of Human Experts “Technology will be the main driver of this change. And, in the long run, we will neither need nor want professionals to work in the way that they did in the twentieth century and before.” I agree with this but as I look back as well as forward, I am struck by how adaptable we are as professionals. I have over my career seen the advent of web sites, email, social media, instant messaging, Teams and AI all of which have changed how we operate. Yet somehow, we have adapted to and indeed adopted all of these and also used them to enhance the personal interaction and collaboration I am advocating.
As Charles Dickens said in words from a bygone age that still ring strangely true “Electric communication will never be a substitute for the face of someone who with their soul encourages another person to be brave and true.”
So, my one enduring message to lawyers (and indeed any professional person) whether in-house or in private practice is therefore to take every opportunity to interact with and learn from other colleagues in diverse disciplines with different skill sets and abilities. Just as top-level sports people benefit from cross training with other sports, the same is true in our professional working world. As AI suggests “Interacting with other professionals offers numerous benefits, including knowledge sharing, enhanced problem-solving, career growth, and improved communication skills, ultimately leading to a more fulfilling and productive work environment.”
Harvard Business School run excellent sessions such as one I attended many years ago on Managing Professional Firms which provide awe inspiring teaching. Yet this Harvard Business Review article also proposes that we should Learn from People, not Classes. “To keep pace with change and avoid disruption, a business leader must constantly acquire new skills. But …. little of this learning takes place in formal classes or programs, …. Instead, successful learners tap into network intelligence, seeking out one-on-one conversations with those who have faced similar challenges and can share valuable expertise.” The core concept, which very much reflects my personal experience, is “network intelligence”. It cites the benefits of consulting others to help resolve business problems concluding “Our formal education system treats knowledge as a fixed asset acquired during a certain phase of life. In reality, knowledge is constantly changing, and good leaders never stop acquiring and assimilating it. In the Networked Age, every day is exam day—full of new, unpredictable challenges. Often the best way to learn how to meet them is to talk to people who have faced similar situations.”
And whilst personal face to face meetings can be invaluable, there is no reason why we cannot use the same approach and benefit from our interconnected world using IM’s, email and Teams calls to connect with and learns from others especially in different disciplines. See for example this Forbes article 12 Virtual Networking Techniques For Making Successful Connections whose recommendations include establishing a niche topic you really focus on, starting with small steps and posting effective and thought provoking online content.
What for me matters though is not so much the method or process, but the willingness to engage. To be open minded and recognise and appreciate we can learn from others, even if, and perhaps in particular because, their skill set and training is different than ours. I have seen this described succinctly as “interdisciplinary learning”. This starts in education – see this Open University article What are the benefits of interdisciplinary study? Which observes that “many academic disciplines are ‘constructions’ themselves,” and that interdisciplinary learning means “working across boundaries of knowledge and creating new knowledge from various sources”.
This for me is equally applicable in our professional working lives. After all in say the drafting and negotiation of a complex IT outsourcing agreement many different disciplines come together from wordsmithing and risk managing lawyers and commercial advisers through financial modellers to technical architects all of whom make vital contributions to the final finished product. This is especially true for lawyers I suggest as perhaps if we are honest, we sometimes put ourselves on a professional pedestal. See this article The Importance of Collaboration for Lawyers which is particularly aimed at self-employed remote consultant lawyers and observes “Lawyers are no stranger to the concept of collaboration. Indeed, it’s one of the cornerstones of the legal industry. From complex litigation teams to in-house counsel working across an entire business, success as a lawyer often hinges on being able to work effectively with others.” And “modern legal professionals thrive in environments that encourage teamwork and sharing expertise.”
But it is as we look to a future where (at least in theory) generative artificial intelligence makes us all experts in every discipline that this interaction really comes into focus. I have no doubt that professional practice will change. As Richard and Daniel Susskind explain in their book The Future of the Professions: How Technology Will Transform the Work of Human Experts “Technology will be the main driver of this change. And, in the long run, we will neither need nor want professionals to work in the way that they did in the twentieth century and before.” I agree with this but as I look back as well as forward, I am struck by how adaptable we are as professionals. I have over my career seen the advent of web sites, email, social media, instant messaging, Teams and AI all of which have changed how we operate. Yet somehow, we have adapted to and indeed adopted all of these and also used them to enhance the personal interaction and collaboration I am advocating.
As Charles Dickens said in words from a bygone age that still ring strangely true “Electric communication will never be a substitute for the face of someone who with their soul encourages another person to be brave and true.”
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