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Is value one of the most over-used words in business? Mark Smith, Director of Strategic Markets at UUÂãÁÄÖ±²¥, dissects what value actually means and how in-house counsel can use the research from UUÂãÁÄÖ±²¥â€™ latest Value Report to improve themselves and their teams.

Watch this short three-minute video as Mark Smith explores the topic of value creation.

What are the five activities successful in-house lawyers do to create value?

1. They are skilled lawyers. They combine technical excellence and business understanding to ensure legal teams are aligned with the organisational strategy, and use a range of skills to maximise their productivity.
2. They cut costs. Easier said than done, but skilled lawyers are able to reduce the cost of service delivery, both internal and external, through working with law firms and alternative legal services providers.
3. In-house lawyers reduce organisational margin loss and risk. Reducing organisational margin loss means reducing overall risk for the business, which was supported by the 91% of in-house counsel from the UUÂãÁÄÖ±²¥ Value Report.
4. In-house teams drive new revenues. Extremely skilled lawyers contribute to overall organisational value creation, in turn driving new revenues.
5. All of these activities are balanced against the role of Ethical Champion. This activity less clearly defines cause and effect in creating value, but is seen as a quality that helps to promote longer-term thinking in organisations, as well as greater objectivity and maturity in decision making.

Where are today’s in-house legal teams putting their focus when it comes to value creation?

UUÂãÁÄÖ±²¥â€™ latest Value Report, ‘Making the intangible, tangible – How legal team are approaching value creation’ found that 95% of in-house teams are looking for soft skills when it comes to hiring. Given the importance of stakeholder management and cross-team collaboration, this should come as no surprise.

However, perhaps more surprisingly, over 20% of in-house teams are also hiring for data & analytics capability. Coupled with the rise of the legal operations function and increased focus on productivity, this suggests a very different type of lawyer is beginning to emerge who will have a new way of approaching value creation.

To find out more about how your legal team can create value for your organisation, download the latest report here.