This article appeared in Cybersecurity Law & Strategy, an ALM publication for privacy and security professionals, Chief Information Security Officers, Chief Information Officers, Chief Technology Officers, Corporate Counsel, Internet and Tech Practitioners, In-House Counsel. Visit the website to learn more.

For legal stakeholders seeking to take their existing legal operations programs to the next level or start new programs from scratch, there are a few all-too-easy traps that can stunt growth, cost political capital and cause headaches. Having a strategic plan, budget and critical executive buy-in is not enough to avoid these four common issues:

1. Thinking Too Narrowly About Sourcing the Right Labor In the Right Place At the Right Price

It takes an ecosystem of skills to have a successful legal function, which ideally includes operational experts, technical specialists, data analysts, project managers and, of course, lawyers. Unbundling legal business services from the practice of law is now a standard practice for running a law department, so matching resources with the appropriate work is now table stakes for avoiding overspending on legal services; using a mix of internal employees, alternative legal service providers, law firms and other providers, domestically and offshore, is central to getting this right. Legal operations teams, including leadership, should have multidisciplinary backgrounds and leadership experience outside of legal departments in order to bring new perspectives, scrutiny into current practices and fresh ideas about alternative ways of delivering results.