Chapter 42
Knowledge Management Strategy Using
Activity Theory for a Law Firm
Sanath Sukumaran, Kanchana Chandran and Kalpana Chandran
Abstract The practice of law is one that has been associated with the practice of
knowledge and skills which invariably requires objective use of information. Law
firms are now being challenged by the need to better manage their collective
knowledge as an asset to their business. Traditional methods of managing human
capital, innovation, and learning within law firms, have proven ineffective as they
more often than not fail to contribute to a firm’s success. In an ideal setting, having
a good knowledge management initiative in place may offer the opportunity for a
practising lawyer to experience a better work or life balance. Some legal firms are
on the threshold of embarking on comprehensive knowledge management strategies aiming to improve the way they manage their knowledge. However, such
strategies are far more complex as one would imagine. Knowledge Management
(KM) initiatives should not merely be seen as an attempt to alleviate some of the
problems of poor control and poor use of knowledge and information resources in
the face of increasing complexity but also as a means for organisations to have
better leverage on what it does best. A holistic implementation of a KM initiative is
deemed necessary so that such an initiative does not disrupt existing work processes, but adds value to a legal setup leading to improved productivity and better
clientele services. Such an initiative should not only make a lawyer’s job easier but
perhaps also result in greater work satisfaction for a lawyer over time. This case
study based research dwells into embedding law firms with a holistic
S. Sukumaran (&)
School of Computing and IT, Taylor’s University, 1, Jalan Taylor’s,
Taylor’s University, 47500 Subang Jaya, Malaysia
e-mail: [email protected]
K. Chandran
Sunway University, No. 5, JalanUniversiti, Bandar Sunway, 46150 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia
e-mail: [email protected]
K. Chandran
Hogan Lovells International LLP, Atlantic House, Holborn Viaduct, London
e-mail: [email protected]
L. Uden et al. (eds.), The 8th International Conference on Knowledge
Management in Organizations, Springer Proceedings in Complexity,
DOI: 10.1007/978-94-007-7287-8_42,
Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014
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implementation of KM. It proposes a KM initiative for legal establishments albeit
to one firm. The aforementioned legal establishment would need to remain anonymous due to the nature of the research and will hereafter be referred to as AP.
Keywords Knowledge management (KM)
Knowledge transfer
Tacit knowledge KM initiatives 42.1 Background and Literature Review
Although one could argue that KM has been practised in one form or another for
a long time, it made its appearance in western legal literature only less than two
decades ago [1]. As such, within the legal community at least, KM is still a
relatively young industry with many firms trying different approaches, resulting in
KM meaning different things to different firms [1].
Having said that, it is not primarily an organisation’s stock of knowledge that
creates value, but how an organisation can transform that knowledge into a
product, a conversation, a process, an advice, a good reputation—anything that
contributes to the financial and competitive success of the firm. To improve KM in
a law firm or any other organization, someone within that organization needs to
identify specifically what obstacles are impeding the gathering and sharing of
knowledge and develop specific methods for removing those obstacles [2].
The benefits delivered through the implementation of KM are knowledge,
awareness, efficiency/effectiveness, risk management and enabling work that
would not otherwise have been possible to be undertaken. The aforementioned
5 measures are described below by Whalley [3];
Knowledge refers to increasing one’s knowledge and understanding of the legal and
regulatory issues related to the specific line of work. Awareness denotes increasing one’s
awareness of the relevant legal and regulatory developments. Efficiency relates to reducing
the time taken to do one’s job or enabling one to do the job better. Enabling means
undertaking work or task that would not have been possible if the service was not
provided. Risk management helps one to identify and manage legal risks on behalf of
one’s clients.
At the core of KM, lies the concept of tacit and explicit knowledge which is
best described below by Mitra [4];
Dissemination of knowledge takes place in explicit and tacit forms. While it is easier to
disseminate explicit knowledge, the same cannot be said of tacit knowledge. Explicit
knowledge usually exists in some visible form making it relatively easy to replicate and
convey to the masses. However, explicating tacit knowledge is a difficult exercise in itself
since such knowledge is highly contextual and hard to divulge. Such knowledge is usually
born out of conscious experience and behaviour rooted in the processes of knowing and
action. Amazingly, a substantial part of an individual’s knowledge will [almost] always
remain tacit.
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In a legal setting, explicit knowledge tends to be precedent agreements,
checklists, research memos, opinion letters, and ‘‘know-how’’ guides [5]. Equally,
if not more important, is tacit knowledge, which entails what lawyers know, their
experience, expertise and professional judgment. Capturing and organizing
explicit legal knowledge can be relatively straightforward and involves a combination of technologies (internal document management systems, searching and
tagging technology and intranets). Capturing and organizing tacit legal knowledge
can be more challenging. In most firms, tacit knowledge is transferred through
mentoring, training and allowing a knowledge-sharing culture to flourish as
espoused by Tjaden [5].
The demand for KM in law firms is derived from four inter-related areas
namely, efficiency, new competition, poor communication and retirement [6]. It is
important that law firms address these issues in order to ensure the growth and
sustainability of their practices.
In short, KM is comprised of a set of tools, techniques, tactics, strategies and
technologies aimed at maximizing an organisation’s intangible assets through the
extraction of relevant data, pertinent information and germane knowledge in order
to facilitate appropriate decision making so that the organisation attains and
maintains a sustainable competitive advantage over its competitors [7].
42.2 Objective of the Research
This case study was done on a top ranked firm in The Legal 500, hereafter referred
to as AP, located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This case study had the following
objectives:—to identify key knowledge management practices already embedded
within AP.
• to identify gaps and highlight opportunities in relation to knowledge sharing
practices in AP in order to make the work of lawyers and other members of the
firm more effective and efficient.
• to propose a KM strategy for AP.
42.3 Case Study
AP is a mid-sized commercial law firm in Kuala Lumpur consisting of more than
11 partners and 22 associates. The firm offers a full range of legal services in the
banking and finance, corporate, commercial and banking litigation, arbitration and
dispute resolution, corporate and retail real estate sectors. AP’s clientele includes
several state owned entities and numerous local and foreign companies, multinationals and government-linked corporations (GLCs), financial institutions,
private equity investors, and other professional firms. The criterion for selecting
AP in this research was due to the importance that AP placed on its KM initiatives
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(being a mid- sized legal establishment) and its keen interest in wanting to relook
at its KM initiatives.
A structured interview was conducted using standardised interview questions.
The questionnaire was adopted from an online knowledge assessment tool which
serves as a baseline assessment of AP’s existing KM initiatives. Specific questions
were asked in a set order and in a set manner to ensure there were no variations in the
structured interviews. The answers were recorded on the questionnaire form during
the interview process, and the completed questionnaires were analysed quantitatively. Although the structured interview denied the interviewer the opportunity to
either add or remove questions, it allowed for probing questions and intermittent
clarifications and discussions as and when required. The structured standardized
interviews enabled the interview process to be systematically directed with each
interview taking approximately 90 min. The interviewees were partners of AP.
42.4 Main Findings
The interviews revealed that AP recognised the importance of KM initiatives and
measures to ensure its sustainable growth by leveraging its intellectual assets from
the onset. This is evident first from its mission statement. To focus in its direction
towards KM, AP has assigned a senior partner to oversee and implement
KM-related initiatives for the firm.
The interviewer was made to understand that AP already has a document
management system called iManage. The iManage system is integrated with the
outlook email system thus automatically archiving documents when emails are
sent out as attachments [8]. Invariably this brings up the challenge of effective
email management. The majority of the documents in the document management
system are emails according to Tjaden [1]. Although not all emails are important,
some are important. Having said that, most emails form an integral part of proper
client/matter management (in order to ensure that all the correspondences on a
particular matter are properly stored), stressed Tjaden [1].
The implementation of KM in AP is very much dependent on lawyers ‘‘making
time’’ for KM practices. Some lawyers and senior partners do it on their own
accord. For others, given the legal practice culture of billable hours, focus is on
billable hours rather than on non-billable hours. Lawyers do not get excited about
KM as it is not tied to their billable hours. KM practices cannot be billed according
to Martin [9]. Successful lawyers are also rightly reluctant to abandon their personal working habits and tools that contribute to their success, according to Ronald
[10]. AP should be commended for investing in the highly recommended iManage
Document Management System. However, it remains to be seen if all the features
of iManage have been fully exploited and that it becomes a ‘‘living repository’’
just as ‘‘law is a living concept’’.
The knowledge transfer within AP takes place by means of lecture series, litigation diary meetings, informal meetings and interactions. While these are rich and
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very often effective forms of knowledge-based exchanges, the challenge would be
to ensure that such tacit exchanges are made explicit. Informal communities of
practice groups (people who share a common concern or passion for something they
do and learn) are somewhat present in AP although this is yet to be formalised
across the organisation. Email correspondence is the predominant communication
channel in AP. Continuing professional development is encouraged in AP and
lawyers are often sent for trainings, seminars and conferences, and this in turn
reflects AP’s on-going commitment towards nurturing and empowering its staff.
The concerted effort by AP to implement KM is truly commendable. There is a
great range of opportunities available for KM initiatives to be further infused into
AP. A successful KM initiative includes creating intellectual connections, networking groups, a supportive and sharing culture and incentives for promoting
sharing—without these, a company will not be able to make full use of its potential
and existing knowledge resources [11].
42.5 Analysis of Findings Using Activity Theory
Analysing the findings of AP’s case study research can be effectively done using
Activity Theory. Activity Theory, best described below by Sukumaran [12]
focuses on the interaction between human activity and its environment;
An activity is the transformation process driven by people’s needs. This process transforms
objects into the outcome that satisfies those needs. The active component that carries out
the activity is the subject. Tools are elements used in transformation. Communities on
the other hand are the set of subjects related directly or indirectly to the same objects. The
relationships between subjects and communities are determined by rules, for instance laws
or social conventions whereas the relationship between communities and objects are
determined by the division of labour.
The tenets of Activity Theory (AT) is best infused using a 10 step approach, as
espoused by Uden [13].
Step 1 is the most important because the main motives and expectations about the
outcome from stakeholders are mapped. Key activities mapped better understanding
of ‘motives and influences from stakeholders’ was first espoused by Engeström [14].
Step 2 involves defining the mechanism of an activity system in detail. Based
on this case study, the researchers analysed the activity based on specified subjects,
objects, communities, rules, division of labour and tools [14]. These terms are
described as follows:
Activity
The activity of interest in the current case study research is the
knowledge sharing practice in AP
Object
The purpose of this activity is to uncover knowledge management
processes involved in dissemination of legal advice
Subjects
Client advice by which instructions and legal advice are prepared
Tools
Knowledge of the legal domain, example, litigation, conveyancing,
etc.
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Fig. 42.1 Activity system derived from the case study and analysis of AP
Community
Rules
Partners, legal assistants, secretaries, accounts clerks, court clerks,
Information Communications Technology (ICT) staff
Experience, client instructions, code of practice
Division of labour: Job scope
Step 3 involves analyzing the information generated from of the activity that was
collected in the preceding stage in order to produce the activity as shown in Fig. 42.1.
Step 4 involves analysing the activity system. Activities (i.e. knowledge management process) within the activity system can be broken down into various
operations that analyse the context within which it was set up for. Consequently, the
interaction process between, communities, subjects and objects can be understood
more clearly. The researchers were able to draw greater insights from the activities
carried out as part of the legal advice process based on the activity system mentioned above. For instance, from the analysis of the activity, validated through
interview questionnaire, it was observed that successful lawyers are reluctant to
abandon their personal working habits and tools that produce their success.
Step 5 entails analyzing the activity structure to obtain information regarding
tools and mediators. One such structure is the activity system for toolssubject-community as shown in Fig. 42.2 below. Similarly, various other activity
structures can be devised through the activity system for tools-rules-object in order
to obtain important insights and unearth latent and implicit knowledge.
Step 6 involves decomposition of the activity systems in Step 5 into smaller
manageable units. This exercise enabled the researchers to examine areas that were
not considered during the interview questionnaire process. For instance, a separate
activity system could be devised for each legal knowledge domain—litigation,
conveyancing, corporate and those involving criminal and civil cases to discover
additional insights.
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Fig. 42.2 Activity system
for tool-subject-community
Step 7 involves generating specific questions as a result of the mediation activity
carried out in Step 5 and the decomposition of the same in Step 6. These questions
form a rich input on tacit knowledge. They are validated by a senior partner (during
the second round of interview) before making its way into the knowledge repository, i.e. tacit knowledge domain.
Step 8 involves detail investigation of the questions generated in Step 7. The
main goal here is to discuss and bring to light conflicting issues within the activity
system. Upon examining various combinations of the activity system (similar to
Fig. 42.2), the researchers were able to derive conflicting but unique practices that
have been carried out by lawyers across AP. Such observations and findings are
validated by a senior partner.
Step 9 involves soliciting various context based on the outcome of the exercise
carried out in Step 8.This step infuses context-based knowledge which is a crucial
step to ensure that deposited knowledge can be reused in a similar context.
Step 10 involves all the data that has been gathered, analysed and interpreted
with regards to AT.
42.6 Recommendations of KM Initiatives for AP
Based on the investigations and findings, the researchers were able to bring to light
opportunities that existed within AP in relation to the implementation of KM
initiatives. KM initiatives with AP’s operational imperatives (KM objectives being
closely tied to AP’s business objectives) as spelt out below;
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• To keep the contents limited and contextualized for effective search. Hence,
expanding the scope of the research team or librarian’s role. While much of the
storage and management of records and documents are currently in the hands of
the ICT staff (and the automated features of the iManage), the reins of such a
role should indeed be in the hands of the librarian who is the ultimate knowledge
manager. The librarian will be in a far better position to understand the taxonomies of knowledge than the ICT staff. For instance, the librarian can make
better use of internally developed knowledge assets such as precedents, letters,
research memos, pitch documents, newsflash and internal articles.
• To design and execute an internal and coordinated communication plan
developed by the senior lawyers and staff that compliments with the KM
initiatives. For instance, decisions and measures taken should be saved electronically and made available for future reference with the appropriate access
rights, hyperlinks and filters. Mistakes, warnings, cautions and issues (including
experience and lessons learnt should be made available in separate repositories
so that it is possible to access it at a later date.
• To include one KM-specific objective in the annual, formal KPI (Key Performance Index) for each person.
• To incorporate KM into the annual performance appraisal review when setting
performance targets/goals.
• To tie KM with/into the training and development function. iManage should be
used as a means for Training & Development. The training and development
syllabus should emphasize the importance and use of iManage. Junior lawyers
must be made aware that iManage. It is more than a just repository but a
platform for them to minimize the learning curve and gain quick know-how
which would otherwise take them a long and arduous journey to master.
• To conduct trainings on iManage periodically. Employees must be encouraged
to make full use of the information contained in iManage in their day-to-day
work. Employee contributions must be tracked by the iManage and individuals
who contribute towards effective sharing of tacit knowledge within the organisation should be acknowledged and rewarded.
• To include meta-data in the iManage Document Management System. The document tagging feature currently present in the iManage should be leveraged to the
fullest, consistent with what was espoused by Martin [15]. Remote and mobile
access with ‘access rights’ to the iManage ought to be made available so that
the staff can access and contribute content (tacit and explicit) anytime anywhere.
• To maintain control over technology, and ‘‘Keep It Simple’’. A task force should
be formed to examine the ease of use and seamless operation of iManage.
Although further investments may not be deemed necessary at this stage, it is
imperative that the system currently being used does more than just store and
manage records and documents. The task force may want to examine smarter
products like ‘Recommind’, ‘ContactNetworks’, ‘BranchIT’, and ‘SharePoint
Knowledge Network’, among others, in support of AP’s KM initiatives.
• To develop Communities of Practice (CoP) within each department. For
instance, the litigation department should have a KM professional support
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lawyer to play an important role in cascading such roles to include sub-domain
KM specialists for areas within the litigation department like banking litigation,
commercial, arbitration and dispute resolution.
The KM strategy proposed in this paper for AP when implemented would result
in increased awareness, accessibility, availability and timeliness amongst members
and staff. However, the researchers reckon that in the final analysis, passionate
support and active involvement by senior lawyers and partners are essential to
ensure success of the KM initiatives in AP.
42.7 Conclusions
KM’s greatest value for money is when the intellectual capabilities of an organisation are used more effectively to deliver a product or service. Nowhere is this
more critical than when providing advice or making key decisions.
The KM initiatives proposed in this research for AP in particular and law firms
in general are aimed at creating an environment that fosters information-sharing
and that values lifelong education. The KM proposed initiatives enable the capturing, organizing, updating and making available of the explicit legal knowledge
content. Finally, our findings show that the KM initiatives when implemented in
AP will facilitate the training and mentoring of lawyers and staff and hence promote the transfer of tacit legal knowledge using both, human-training and technology medium (iManage).
The researchers are aware that for the proposed KM strategy to gain fruition
and eventually benefit the organisation, large amounts of data at the right time and
place and in the correct context must be availed of. This can easily be made
possible at AP with the advent of electronic records, and a little tweaking of AP’s
ICT infrastructure (iManage and possibly other recommended ICT tools) to foster
a continuous learning environment. Such a learning environment will eventually
form a learning culture that will enable lessons learned to be conscientiously
updated to create what can be termed as organisational memory. Maintaining an
effective learning culture is arguably the most significant determining factor in the
success of a KM initiative. This is coherent to the views espoused by Kabene [6].
The limitation of the research lies in the fact that the case study was based on one
legal firm; in this case, AP. Consequently, generalisation of the findings cannot be
made. Having said this, an observant reader will immediately notice that the case
study presented tenets of a typical medium scale legal set-up and therefore renders
much of the challenges and issues espoused by AP similar to that of most other legal
establishments. Hence, the findings presented in this research could quite easily
form building blocks to implement KM initiatives in other legal establishments.
In this paper, the researchers have established and analysed the importance of
sound KM initiatives in AP. The business environments in which organisations
compete (law firms included) are continuously changing. Given the advancement
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of the legal practice today and the competitive nature of the industry, it is
imperative for legal establishments to adopt KM initiatives as an essential part of
the legal set-up.
42.8 Further Research
The legal domain not only provides challenging opportunities for managing
knowledge but it is also one of the areas where it is often most poorly understood
and deployed. This predicament is slowly being addressed (particularly in South
East Asia with the exception of Singapore) as more and more KM-focused projects
are initiated and professionals with better understanding of KM are getting
involved. This research has strong orientation towards mapping out a KM strategy
for a leading legal establishment, presenting gaps and espousing prevailing
opportunities. Work on knowledge management strategies never ends and challenges are always present. The next phase of this research shall encompass
knowledge creation and management initiatives which is to be undertaken by AP
once the proposed KM initiative espoused for AP has been rolled out, i.e. endorsed
by the management.
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