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Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/1172374
www.canadianlawyermag.com 17 an edition specifically on the role of the maintainers — the unsung heroes who keep our technology running and relevant to those who use it. That's both sides of the vendor/ customer divide, too. One study suggests that programmers spend 70 per cent of their time maintaining code versus writing new apps with new code. Tweaking old code, old products or old precedents to create the new is the reality on the ground for most of us, and we should celebrate that. Actually, making this stuff work internally is the job of the heroes, whether it's the data clean-up involved to get business intelligence platforms or any kind of AI working, digging deep into the user interface to make a tool intuitive to the mental models of your lawyers or comprehensive system and regression testing to get any kind of application working within your firm's tech stack (or just the Word ribbon of any modern law firm). I could go on: It takes a village. This is what needs baking into our IT budgets, ensuring we can recruit the "Tweaking old code, old products or old precedents to create the new is the reality on the ground for most of us, and we should celebrate that." real game-changers internally: those who will take the vanilla product filled with machine-learning magic, topped with AI sprinkles and make it work in the real world. They're the ones working with lawyers and watching how it gets used; those pushing for improvements, fixes and new features for greater adoption. They're also the ones that will ensure that the shiny new toy doesn't end up on the scrapheap of technologies that are barely held together with "spit, glue and maybe even chewing gum." #bringbackboring Kate Simpson is national director of knowledge management at Bennett Jones LLP. She leads a team of KM specialists in delivering practice tools and resources that leverage the firm's intellectual capital. Opinions expressed are her own. A reputation built on trust. Our clients' best interests come first and our opponents know we are prepared to take each case to the final hearing. Engaging one of Canada's oldest litigation boutiques gives you the edge. HILLCOUNSEL.COM