Contracting according to Basketball (celebrating the Warriors)

Contracting according to Basketball

(Dedicated to the CLM Warriors among us)

I’ve been rooting for the Golden State Warriors and will not refrain from a celebratory post.

Speaking of refrains you might notice I keep saying “Contracting is a team sport”. By which I mean:

A)     Getting any individual contract (of any complexity) executed, BUT also

B)     the art, science and joy of improving contracting, sometimes known as CLM.

Not all contracting, perhaps, but certainly where volumes (many contracts/much work to be done), complexity (not easy to do), and risk (enough is at stake to really care) overlap.

Who is this article for?

NOT the solo artiste. Why? No Volumes X.

If there’s only enough work to keep one person busy, move along please, nothing to see here.

NOT the tight/minimal variance team. Why? No Complexity X.

If what everyone in the team does is near identical, that’s hard but not the sort of hard we mean.

Not a lark in the park. Why? No Risk X.

If there isn’t enough at stake overall to give it all you’ve got, well that’s another ball game.

These guys. Collaboration exemplar.  What CLM needs.

Volumes check, Complexity check, Risk check.

Unsolved contracting problems here we come.

Firstly, some translations from Basketball to Contracting

Offense = achieving business objectives/ commercial outcomes. Some are exceptional at it like Mr. Curry / Steph and Sales or Procurement in an inhouse contracting team. But whose job is that? - EVERYBODY’S.

Defense = stopping bad things from happening/ managing risk. Again, some people specialize and excel like Mr. Green/“Dray” and Inhouse Legal. But whose job is it? (Say it with me one more time) EVERYBODY’S.

The Ball = Key Information (as in “hiding the ball”, which you may have heard tell is what attorneys often do, OR “dropping the ball” by not moving key information along as we should have).

Basket = Scoring by channelling the right information in the right form to the right destination e.g., a key value proposition to a target for a sale, OR driving internal consensus for a worthwhile buy, OR getting stakeholder buy-in for the right process, template, playbook, report or tech implementation.

Turnover = Losing visibility or control over critical information before it hits home.

Shot Clock violation = Missing a window of business opportunity by dragging a deal OR losing momentum on CLM progress.

Block/Steal = Ways to ensure the wrong information or in the wrong form does not go where it should not e.g., Confidential Information, Personal Data, IP, Competitive Intelligence, OR untested technology to the easily swayed OR risks exaggerated to a risk averse gatekeeper.

3 pointers = Innovation (the long shot - with lower probability, but higher pay-off).

Poster/Dunk = wins whose psychological/market impact exceed immediate commercial benefits.

Clutch shots = wins that swing/tip a particular game/space/market/initiative in favour of your team.

Dynasty = Teams and CLM that by the above means go from “Good to Great” and are “Built to Last” as Jim Collins tells it.

Not everything in the analogy needs to have significance but I trust you get the broad idea.

Strategic takeaways – what I hope we can learn about CLM from the Warriors

Starting with the foundational insight at 0.

0)     People are NOT the enemy. The Celtics are not the enemy. Even Boston fans are not the enemy. Bad Basketball is the enemy. Good Ball must triumph over Bad Ball.

Your competitor is not the enemy. The alternative legal service provider is certainly not the enemy. You need great and new players to have great games. Good contracting must triumph. Good information must hit home. The game must change for the better.

 1)     Move the ball/ Flow your information: A way of working where everyone needed is valued and kept in the loop recognizing they may have a unique potential contribution at the right time. E.g., X might catch and shoot, Y might cut to the rim, Z is the best way to get to A for a corner 3. BUT each one is empowered to play to their strengths and take their shots at any time. You do not scatter the ball. It flows.

I worked for a team that made "Flow Your Information" the central note of our culture with implications for Context gathering, Training, Playbook building and Reporting among others. I can testify that its powerful and it works.

 2)     Make innovation a way of life/ generate gravity: “A long shot” in general parlance has a negative connotation. But you can become good enough at it for it to become a way of life. That is what Toyota and “Lean Thinking” did on the shop floor and across their supply chain in manufacturing. There is no “silver bullet” in CLM, no once size fits all magic tech. A culture of innovation energizes, gets rid of the clutter, and gives everyone the space to do what they do best. It is possible to set standards, change the game. That has not yet happened in CLM, and it is ripe. Marc Cohen called it exactly right when he said “You ain’t seen nothing yet”.

3)     Selflessness / Off ball movement: Collaboration across silos is the only way CLM can happen right. Who plays when and how much and how it gets done depends entirely on context. Who drives, assists and finishes is a function of what it takes. Who gets to carry whom, when and how long is beside the point. The stats are not the point. Winning is the point.

Thinking this way is rare and it’s hard. It’s hard enough to do within your own organization. But truly great CLM solutions will need consultants, operations, technology, training, and staffing all coming together with legal expertise, arranging themselves in order, waiting their turn, and sticking to their role. I long to see the day.

Based on the pace or stage of the game you may not have the ball/be the star/know or understand everything. If you know what the goals are, there are useful things you can do. Get in position, block off threats, create space, stay ready.

4)     Small Ball / that can go big if needed: Big Law is predicated on Big Men. Legal giants with the deep expertise and pedigrees who makes it rain. These big folks have been and remain our principal heroes.

What the Warriors showed us though (and not everybody likes it) is that that is not the only way the game can be played. Small ball can beat big ball. Small(er) men like Steph can take long shots (innovation remember) and pass like crazy (collaboration) and change the game. The game as it has evolved certainly doesn’t exclude “bigs”. As things evolved the Warriors could and needed to go big/involve bigger men as needed. That collaboration is the exciting shape of the future of CLM too. But there are indications that big egos will not last within the system.

5)     Embrace/ manage/celebrate/personality + role differences/ strong enabling culture: Which feeds into our next point. The Warriors embrace their differences and back each other up to perform over long periods of time. They know they need what each person brings. They have invested in a culture that encourages each person to find their place and do their thing, and are not afraid to hold each other accountable. They are confident they can make people better and have a proven track record in doing that.

I underscore the importance of sustaining motivation and joy in the game. It’s easy to see that each of the Warriors bring their joy from eclectic sources (podcasts, investing, water, family, faith) to the game which in turn helps them sustain it.

Churning out quality contracts @ volumes is hard. There’s a ton of work and a ton of talent but much more needs to be done to get that talent to where it can perform at an elite level and support them while they do it.

Fixing CLM is even harder. There’s a lot of figuring out to be done. But unless we invest early in capability development and embrace that as the central hope as against just finding the right or next “big man” great things will not happen.

 6)     Widen your circles of collaboration: The Warriors concept of teaming extends far beyond the starting five and investing in and cultivating their bench. They invested early and long term on multiple fronts to get to where they are today. I was particularly fascinated by this write-up on how early investments in 2017 in technology and data are paying off (with stereotypically perhaps, an Indian origin hire as the central figure). From all the evidence their coaching staff, front office, ownership, media management, fan-base are all working together to make the right things happen for the team and for the game.

Innovation and Collaboration make a great game. CLM Warriors, here’s inspiration for you!