Advancing Legal Excellence through Innovative Solutions

Raechel (Rae) Towner is the Legal Operations Manager at Upgrade, leveraging over a decade of experience in legal operations and intelligence analysis. Her career encompasses significant roles, including Senior Legal Operations Specialist at Grove Collaborative, Senior Legal Operations Consultant and Intelligence Analyst at Hyperion Global Partners, and Legal Operations Project Coordinator at eBay. Towner’s diverse background highlights her exceptional attention to detail and proficiency in navigating complex legal procedures.

What does a typical day entail for you, and what are the key responsibilities assigned to you by the organization?

In my diverse experience across various legal operations roles, the day-to-day activities have been influenced by the distinctive goals of each organization. Mainly during my tenure as a consultant, our focus was driven by the diverse priorities of clients. However, fundamentally, the role consistently entails budget management, process enhancements, and significant problem-solving. It revolves around continuous analysis to identify improvement areas and make processes more efficient and robust. Daily, the work involves handling intake, overseeing multiple projects, and fostering relationships within the legal team and across functions.

Can you share insights into the challenges you’ve encountered in your roles and how you’ve navigated them?

A significant challenge I have consistently encountered in my career revolves around adopting a macro perspective on the diverse focuses within legal operations, such as contract management, enterprise legal management, matter management, and litigation management. While there is a multitude of specialized software for each aspect, the difficulty lies in ensuring seamless communication and integration between these various pieces and teams. Despite the abundance of technology, the crucial task is demonstrating value for the legal team and showcasing contributions to the overall enterprise, organizational goals, and business team priorities. This challenge is amplified by the lack of a unified legal technology platform, with different tools often failing to communicate with each other. Although some legal tech platforms now offer APIs for basic integration, there is still a gap in achieving a comprehensive, one-stop-shop solution. Bridging these gaps and fostering harmonious collaboration among different tools and teams remains a persistent challenge across various organizations and industries.

“Having been involved in legal operations since 2016, I’ve observed the rapid emergence of SaaS products in the legal landscape, with a current emphasis on AI, growth, and profitability in 2024.”

How can the communication gap between software systems and organizational silos, particularly the disconnection between Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT), be improved to enhance overall organizational efficiency?

In 2024, my primary goal in my new role within a rapidly growing organization is to address the challenge of silos within the legal team. Given the natural occurrence of silos, especially in a remote work setting and with diverse legal tech preferences, my approach focuses on being the interpersonal face of the legal operations team. Amidst the tech-centric solutions, I believe in bringing back the human element to bridge communication gaps. The aim is to position the legal operations team as the unified face of the legal department, serving as a cohesive middle ground akin to a Venn diagram. By fostering open conversations and knowledge-sharing, I intend to eliminate silos and ensure everyone is well-informed about tools, methodologies, and potential cross-functional applications. Through this approach, I hope to discover new possibilities and enhance our growing team’s overall collaboration and efficiency.

What is your advice for fellow peers and colleagues in the industry?

Having been involved in legal operations since 2016, I’ve observed the rapid emergence of SaaS products in the legal landscape, with a current emphasis on AI, growth, and profitability in 2024. Amidst this technological surge, it’s crucial not to overlook the significance of people and relationships. The effectiveness of technology is directly tied to the individuals using it and the relationships cultivated. As a reminder, the role of legal operations is essentially a bridge, and decisions—whether cultural, technological, or procedural—should prioritize both productivity and the human element. Despite the focus on technology and AI, it’s vital to remember that success in 2024 involves not only achieving goals and boosting the bottom line but also nurturing meaningful connections and fostering collaboration among people.