Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/18157
framework for scoping, planning, executing, monitoring and completing different kinds of legal work. Many project management professionals were understandably delighted at this trend, because it seemed to promise a demand for their expertise, the opportunity to gain a higher profile in firm planning and operation, and the opportunity to rub elbows at the table with executive management. However, LPM is a different animal from other forms of project management. The skills and attitudes valuable in IT or manufacturing project management systems actually can be counterproductive in law firm settings. Yes, there are superficial similarities: LPM and “other PM” both encourage extensive planning before execution begins. Both draw on methods for executing tasks to clearly defined standards, using consistent approaches to produce uniformly excellent outcomes. Each has a distinct nomenclature. Generally speaking, however, manufacturing formulaic and extremely technical. Similarly, in IT, the project management charter and execution tends to be linear and has all participants moving toward a clearly defined goal. Certified project managers can spend thousands of hours learning the details and nuances of their discipline. Legal project management differs in focus. The “The goal is to drive greater consistency and efficiency into decisions and judgments made by human beings in response to widely varying (and often intentionally hostile or obstructionist) circumstances.” project management is about continually improving repeatable processes — making sure that each widget meets rigorous standards and is just like every other widget. It tends to be highly mathematical, highly 8 Project Management ILTA White Paper goal is to drive greater consistency and efficiency into decisions and judgments made by human beings in response to widely varying (and often intentionally hostile or obstructionist) circumstances. LPM recognizes that legal issues are not always precisely controllable and that legal goals are not always attainable, no matter how skilled the lawyers. In short, project management focuses on delivering invariant results; LPM focuses on delivering value as efficiently as possible under the circumstances. Several law firms have downplayed this difference, believing that such project management methodologies as Lean and Six Sigma will translate readily to law firms. Those firms employ professional project managers who work alongside lawyers to integrate project management constructs into the lawyers’ practice of law. In addition to adding another layer of overhead, many