In this episode, our guest Sam Marshall dives into the distinct digital workplace strategies tailored for the legal space, shedding light on the unique challenges and solutions that differentiate it from other industries. He discusses how law firms are navigating the transition to Microsoft 365 and the importance of creating robust intranet solutions that cater specifically to their knowledge-centric needs. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in information retrieval, structured metadata, and professional service aspects in shaping effective digital workplaces.

In this episode, Sam shares insights on how to:

• Implement agile and mobile-friendly digital workplaces
• Manage and integrate various digital workplace tools
• Maintain a digital workplace over time
• Balance communication, engagement, and collaboration in intranets
• Adapt digital workplace strategies to organizational evolution

Key takeaways: 

• Many law firms are transitioning to Microsoft 365, initially migrating their messaging workloads followed by SharePoint and various workflow applications to enhance their digital collaboration.
• The legal sector has historically lagged in adopting cloud solutions compared to other industries, but this trend is shifting as intranets and extranets increasingly migrate to cloud-based platforms.
• Digital workplaces often fail due to inadequate ongoing management and governance, resulting in a gradual decline in functionality and user engagement after the initial implementation phase.
• Industry specificity plays a significant role in shaping the features and functionality of intranets, with legal intranets, for example, emphasizing knowledge retrieval and structuring.

About the guest, Sam Marshall:

Sam Marshall is the owner of ClearBox Consulting and has specialized in intranets and the digital workplace for over 20 years, working with companies such as GSK, Vodafone, Diageo, Sony and Unilever. His current activities focus on intranet and digital workplace strategy, and the business side of Microsoft 365. Sam is a regular keynote speaker at international conferences and has been named a ‘Contributor of the Year’ for his CMSWire column seven years in a row.

“Digital workplace isn't such a widely adopted term, I just find it so much more useful when you talk about that bigger picture rather than getting hung up on, is this internet or is this not internet?” – Sam Marshall

Connect with Sam Marshall:

Website: https://www.clearbox.co.uk/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammarshall

Connect with Ted Theodoropoulos:

Website: https://getinfodash.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tedtheo

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@getinfodash/podcasts