Navigating the Challenges of Transitioning to a New CLM System with Trayce Marcelle

In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, the strategic utilization of technology has become a paramount driver of success. It holds the key to unlocking unprecedented levels of productivity, efficiency, and innovation. But here's the catch: technology alone is not enough. To truly harness its power, organizations must foster a culture of collaboration, breaking down silos and engaging every department in the transformative conversation.In this episode of the Contract Heroes Podcast, we sit down with the incredibly experienced Trayce Marcelle who is a seasoned professional with over 20 years of experience in legal operations management consulting and the Head of US - Legal Operations and Technology Consulting LOD + SYKE. LOD & SYKE are the leading and rapidly expanding experts in legal technology, have collaborated to provide clients with exceptional alternative legal services. They are globally recognized as the biggest and most swiftly advancing specialists in this field.During our conversation, Tracy discusses her experience in legal operations management consulting and the importance of incorporating technology into legal operations. She emphasizes the need to make technology work for you and involves other departments in the conversation. We also highlight the challenges of implementing digital transformation projects and the importance of having a clear action plan. The conversation then shifts to contract lifecycle management (CLM) and the challenges of implementing CLM systems. Tracy provides practical solutions and suggests starting with a few key contracts or workflows. We also discuss the challenges of transitioning from one system to another and emphasizes the importance of changing perceptions and proper planning. WHAT WE DISCUSS:[01:15] - Trayce’s background[02:32] - Some of Trayce’s significant projects in legal innovation and legal tech consulting[06:05] - The importance of involving other departments in legal tech projects[07:23] - How to engage other departments in legal projects for meaningful impact[09:14] - The need for a clear action plan in digital transformation projects[10:17] - The challenge of starting a project without mapped processes[10:37] - Implementing CLM across different industries and regions, and the importance of not over planning.[12:22] - Simplifying processes and using metadata to make strategic decisions based on contract execution data.[15:12]  -  Prioritizing implementation based on specific business needs and starting with a few contracts for quick wins and user adoption.[17:09] - The importance of collaboration between commercial and legal teams in the negotiation and implementation process of legal technology[20:14] - Strategies to generate excitement and overcome resistance for CLM implementation(20:33] - The importance of understanding business requirements and the overlap of spend when transitioning to a new tool(21:13] - Changing the perception of contracting(21:50) - Pre-implementation planningNOTABLE QUOTES:[00:07:35] “You want to create an environment of envy. You want to create an environment where people are talking about what you're doing and are excited about it. You have to create champions. And that means when you're doing your requirements gathering exercise, you understand what people want out of the system.” - Trayce[00:11:08] “We are firm believers that you don't boil the ocean. If you spend a year planning an implementation, by the time you're ready to implement, it's all wrong, and it's all changed, as soon as you put them on paper, it's dead.” - Trayce[00:21:19] “So, you start looking at data governance and usage and ado