Canadian Lawyer

18 M A Y 2 0 1 6 w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m So as we enter into a perpetual dia- logue on robots and machines taking over not just non-value-added tasks and processes but entire levels of pro- fessional counsel through artificial intelligence, machine learning, or natu- ral-language programming, the imagi- nation is definitely aglow with embers of possibility. It's great to see disruption enter the conversation in the legal services industry — even if only measured in trace amounts per volume. However, let's clear up some differences in language. Innovation and improvement are not the same thing. Innovation is doing things differently, while improvement is doing things better. Innovation usually means the introduc- tion of new concepts into new products and services that offer new ways of creat- ing value. While innovative moonshots are intriguing, meaningful improvements are also compelling. As pointed out in Atul Gawande's The Checklist Manifesto, small innova- tions or improvements can lead to big results. Doctors and health profession- als may be able to state their best prac- tices, but they somehow routinely fail to execute the basics. In an exercise that has been repeated countless times and created positive results far beyond mea- sure, Johns Hopkins Hospital created a drop in central line infections to zero from 11 per cent and saved the hospital $2 million. The trigger was a simple checklist with five items including a reminder for staff to wash their hands and wear a mask. No need to quibble on whether that was an improvement or an innovation. A good process wrapped around a simple technology can produce outstand- ing results. Conversely, the greatest tech- nology wrapped around a terrible process does not yield optimal benefits. The cul- ture where the technology and process are being implemented also plays an enor- mous role in the ultimate success of the innovation or improvement. In terms of legal tech, the "best" tech- nology is not necessarily going to be the winner as there is always a well-marketed VHS to beat out a superior Betamax. The main reason VHS surpassed Betamax was the ability to do what consumers wanted — record movies beyond 60 minutes (the Betamax format limit). While simultaneously working for Xerox and doing some work with an NGO T E C H S U P P O RT hen John F. Kennedy made his famously audacious procla- mation that the United States would put a man on the moon by the end of the decade, it was 1962. The famous "moonshot" speech was made to inspire big thinking, beyond what was conceivable at the time. In Kennedy's words (roughly), the goal was chosen not because it was easy but because it was hard and would serve to organize and measure the best of the nations' ener- gies and skills, not to mention financial resources. It was a worthy goal, essentially, no matter what it would take to get there. Civili- zation has not been the same since those famous words by Kennedy and the even more famous words that followed Neil Armstrong's first steps for man on the moon. You don't have to aim for the moon Improving simple processes can go a long way to better client service. By Jason Moyse and Aron Solomon W O P I N I O N @aronsolomon @jasonmoyse

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