Digital transformation is changing the way that corporate legal departments operate. More organisations are wanting legal to align its transformation strategy and goals with that of the entire organisation – focusing on improving efficiency and optimising process. To do this, the legal team needs to identify gaps where new tools, talent, and process can spearhead meaningful growth. Technology is the driver here as the tools legal departments invest in not only enable change, but also sustain it.

A major area where digital transformation has proven to improve process, increase ROI, and save on costs is eDiscovery. While many have embraced AI-powered review tools, investing in a platform that can simplify eDiscovery and investigations throughout the entire lifecycle of a matter will support corporate legal departments even further on their transformation journey.

Here are four ways that corporate legal departments can digitally transform eDiscovery workflows by leveraging meaningful partnerships and modern technologies:

1. Choosing the right platform: Using a modern Software as a Service (SaaS) platform is ideal. A SaaS platform radically simplifies the consumption of services by reducing the time to deploy new software, easing adoption and enabling flexible consumption models. To achieve transformation goals, legal departments need a platform that is easy to use and can integrate with other eDiscovery tools. Choose one that can support a range of needs including large-scale collection and processing, early case assessment, analysis, review, and production.

2. Streamlined and secure access: When vetting modern technology, look for solutions that allow legal teams the ability to access programs quickly and without fear of security compromise. Compelling features include single sign-on (SSO) capabilities with federated identity access and multi-factor authentication. The SSO feature is valuable, as it allows users to access all services with a single login, enhances security, and streamlines the user experience. As always, research into a provider’s security controls is of the utmost importance before entering into a new partnership.

3. Digital relationship and process: It is not just enough to invest in a new tool. Legal teams must also ensure that the legal tech utilised can enhance outdated workflows and that team members understand and effectuate changes to process. For example, a platform that can intake work requests but also update and track such requests is beneficial. This is a simpler way to manage requests and ensure completion versus doing so via email. Training and oversight will be necessary during the transition period.

4. Reporting: Partner with a provider that can offer reporting insights into matters such as spend history and project overview. Such reports will help determine whether or not the department is meeting transformation goals and what needs to be changed in order to better support the organisation. Attractive reporting features include customisation and real-time options.

Epiq has several offerings to help corporate legal departments digitally enhance their eDiscovery practice. This includes Epiq Discovery, Epiq Access, and Epiq Processing – all fuelled by the Epiq Service Cloud. Key offerings include SSO capabilities with federated identity access; web-based reporting, analytics and insights; and enhanced security.