CEB is a member-based advisory company with services combining
talent management with best practices and decision support. One of
its 11 practice areas is Legal, Risk and Compliance. While it is
not inexpensive for a company to become a member, its resources are
extensive and global, with a focus on drivers of business
performance.
I recently had the opportunity to review one of the CEB's
approaches to assessing the effectiveness of 20 law department
activities, all with a view to developing a "world class"
legal department. Their diagnostic tool sets out questions in four
broad categories: "opportunities for creating value in the
company, optimizing talent for higher-value work, operational
efficiencies, and the effectiveness of external counsel." The
categories are compatible with but not identical to the four
perspectives anchoring a balanced scorecard: customers, learning
and growth, internal business processes, and financial.
