Corporate counsel John Griffin of Alliance Data Systems Corp. envisions a day soon when smart computer programs can peruse thousands of company contracts and flag when there's a problem created by changing events.

On Friday he was one of 580 tech-curious professionals—many of them in-house counsel—who attended the Conga Connect conference in Orlando, Florida, focusing on contract management. They worked in user groups, networked with other professionals, and listened to keynote speakers like the Daymond John of "Shark Tank," who welcomed "my fellow sharks" who like him, he said, are also disruptive "agents for change."

In the case of in-house counsel, they often are agents who have to deal with change. Griffin said he is one of about 50 in-house lawyers for Columbus, Ohio-based Alliance Data, with about 15 being contract attorneys.