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CCCA_V4No1_Dept-Performance-FIN.qxd:CCCA_V1No2_Dept-MgLaw-V1.qxd 2/3/10 11:32 AM Page 10 Performance In The Law Department Shaping strategy and metrics for the legal department By Richard G. Stock J ohn Frank, vice-president, deputy gen- People and Culture eral counsel and chief of staff for the (five indicators). legal and corporate affairs department Frank explained that at Microsoft, presented the Strategic legal strategy must be inte- Framework and Foundational Metrics of his grated with Microsoft’s enterprise legal and corporate administrative law strategy, because “effectiveness is doing the Frank added that communicating the department at a small meeting of gener- right things.”Strategy development requires game plan across the department, and al counsel and associate general counsel considerable work if it is to be relevant to selectively within the company, are essen- in early December, 2009. No company the business units and contribute to the tial to do “with a predictable rhythm.” in the audience had the scale and company’s success. While there are many resources to compare: more than 400 systems of strategy development, the key is Foundational metrics lawyers and hundreds of other profes- to pick one, make it manageable and to use The “foundational” metrics for the sionals and staff for a total in excess of it across the department.There are at least department are not strategy-related per se. 900.The departmental budget, including three essential features to look for in a strate- Instead, they consist of familiar compo- external counsel, approaches $1-billion. gic framework: it must shape priorities, nents in support of balanced management Everyone readily understood the strate- influence the deployment of legal and other of the law department: gic significance of the legal / IP portfo- professional corporate resources, and sup- • Client satisfaction, with its primary drivers lio to Microsoft’s business success. More port reporting of the department’s contri- of responsiveness and timeliness, in this importantly, Frank offered practical bution outside of the department. case using web-based Sharepoint and the advice about strategy and metrics appli- The framework must be aligned and participation of 90,000 employees; cable to law departments of all sizes. robust. Microsoft’s scorecard is aligned • Budget performance, with a “finance dash- with business group and corporate strate- board” using summaries and detail at Strategic framework gies, it is compiled quarterly and senior the matter level and at the firm level; The legal and corporate affairs department leader performance evaluations are direct- • Employee satisfaction and organizational is large enough to have dedicated resources ly tied to achievement of the scorecard. health, using a host of metrics used else- looking at the company’s strategy, and then There are strategy development systems of where in the company, including work- to define goals and develop scenarios over a all shapes and styles,and most can be made group effectiveness,job satisfaction,flex- period of months every year. The depart- to work well in law departments of differ- ibility, teamwork and collaboration,per- ment’s strategic framework consists of a ent sizes and types. Frank emphasized the formance management. three-year strategy with defined outcomes importance of properly resourcing “your Many companies will combine the result that summarize a course of action assem- strategic bets” with the right talent and of the eight indicators for employee satisfac- bled on a scorecard with 30 indicators with the money to do the job. By “strate- tion to create an engagement index.Micro- spread across seven headings that are direct- gic bets,” he means those select goals and soft calls its compilation the Workplace ly tied to goals and outcomes of the busi- targeted outcomes taken from the three- Health Index (WHI). Pressed for more ness. Thus, Economic (four indicators), IQ year strategy in which the board and exec- detail, Frank explained that the initiatives and IP (nine indicators), Software and utive management anchored the next level for workgroup effectiveness are currently Additional Services (four), Citizenship of growth and success for the company. In focused on improving team and project (one), Inter-Operability and Anti-Trust this case, the right talent is a combination results. In part of the business, this means ISTOCKPHOTO (four), Operational Excellence (three), and of internal and external counsel. Finally, counting median business days for cases 10 CCCA Canadian Corporate Counsel Association SPRING 2010