ILTA White Papers

Change Management at King & Wood Mallesons — A Social Media Case Study formed. It included a partner acting as chief editor, at least 10 lawyers across offices who sourced content or wrote articles, a business development representative and two knowledge management representatives. The committee used a wiki page to coordinate editorial responsibilities and to capture and share relevant information for the blog. The wiki included: • An editorial roster (to coordinate responsibilities for identifying topics, writing and editing) • A style guide and image use policy • A workflow guide for drafting, editing, approving and publishing blog posts • A blacklist of topics that should not be addressed in a blog post (because of conflicts and other reasons) A six-month internal pilot phase allowed the team to experiment, learn and tailor the style of the blog before launching it publicly. It also enabled the team to demonstrate the capability and commitment required to produce a high-quality blog over a sustained period. The IP Whiteboard blog is now recognized as one of the firm's social media successes. Its success cast a positive light on the social media landscape at a time when many in the firm were ambivalent, skeptical or concerned about the firm using social media. Our IP Whiteboard blog continues to flourish, paving the way for other King & Wood Mallesons blogs. A Coordinated Approach Since the 2009 launch of the IP Whiteboard blog, the opportunities presented by social media have become more widely recognized and accepted. Consequently, the number of people and teams involved in the firm's social media activities has expanded. To bring the diverse capabilities of these teams (and their business objectives) together, the firm established a coordinating body known as the Social Media Taskforce. Formed in mid-2011, the taskforce includes representatives from the firm's shared services teams as well as a number of practicing lawyers. Each participant brings a range of skills and experience to the table. • Business Development: Branding, networking, communications and reputation-building • Technology: IT implementation and support (particularly for internal social media programs) • People and Development: Recruitment and alumni engagement programs • Knowledge Management: Editorial expertise, relationship-building and knowledge-sharing • Partners: Deep insight into the firm's expertise and the needs of its clients The taskforce has created a unified vision for the firm's social media strategy and developed a plan to deliver that vision. It has engaged with the firm's leadership team to articulate the benefits of social media to the firm's business strategy. And, most important, it has provided a formal structure in which disparate teams come together to deliver high-quality business outcomes through social media tools. This is illustrated in the areas of training and resourcing. Training Few change initiatives succeed without a training and awareness component. The KM and communications teams, together with practicing lawyers, contribute to the program. The communications team is delivering a partner- focused training and mentoring program with an emphasis on networking and profiling. The KM team is giving our lawyers and clients the knowledge and skills they need to understand social media and effectively participate in channels such as LinkedIn and Twitter. ILTA White Paper 55

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