Law://WhatsNext Zero to One: A Builder’s Journey with Jenn McCarron
In this episode of Law://WhatsNext, we welcome legal ops guru, pioneer, visionary and friend, Jenn McCarron - President of CLOC, former Director of Legal Operations at Netflix and Spotify - for a conversation about her renaissance year and visions for the future of legal operations.
We go light, deep, introspective and playful around:
“writing your own funeral” on jobs and being honest with yourself around your strengths, ambitions and (as a by product) your limitations (we all spend a lot of time at work)
The discipline, rigour, humility and vulnerability that comes with honing the craft of “writing” (Jenn and a mystery co-author might be building some provocative frameworks for reimagining how we might perceive our current roles and their potential)
Using the odd job interview to sharpen your intuition and feeling for who you are and what you do
Becoming more intentional with the time, energy and attention Jenn is dedicating to her creative pursuits and passions
Staying sharp with a couple of high profile consulting commitments at a prominent private equity firm and social media business, the CLOC Presidency and observing the market and how its evolving from a different vantage point
Jenn’s influential Legal Ops 3.0 framework, which envisions legal operations evolving beyond implementing foundational systems to becoming data-powered enterprise wide strategic partners
Some recent reading, including Jevons Paradox: A Personal Perspective by Tina He, where we reflect on the idea that technology meant to create efficiencies often paradoxically increases workload (rather than creating more space) and we consider that legal ops professionals often "sell efficiency" without controlling what happens with the time saved.
The episode concludes with a preview of the upcoming CLOC Global Institute, where Jenn hints at exciting new programming developments. We will report back our thoughts and reflections from the event in Las Vegas next week!
We covered a lot but the time came and went in a blink. Jenn always brings bright, bold and effusive energy to every touchpoint, conversation and interaction.. We hope (but secretly suspect) you’ll find something in this chat to inspire a creative thought (or two) or reframe a perspective.
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