
"People are more important than technology when implementing Legal AI" - but what does that mean?
Have you thought about how your organizational culture and work habits can affect user adoption and thus the implementation of Legal AI? With the right approach, AI can not only streamline your work processes, but also free up time for more complex and strategic tasks.
A global survey from Boston Consulting Group (BCG) shows that three-quarters of leaders see AI as a top three strategic priority. The transformative potential of AI is clear, but implementing and scaling AI is often more of an organisational challenge than a technological one. Company culture and employee work habits play a crucial role in this process.
As BCG's research shows, you should allocate your resources in a 10-20-70% split. 10% of effort to algorithms, 20% to data and technology, and 70% to working with people, changing work processes, incentives, leadership and culture. But how do you move from a focus on the tangible, technology and algorithms, to the more intangible and contextual, people, work processes and culture?
Implementation intentions: A key to success
You probably know what it's like to meet a good friend in town that you haven't seen in a while. "Hey Charlotte, good to see you. Let's organize a dinner!". And what happens next? Most likely, nothing. But what if you said instead: "Hey Charlotte. Good to see you. Why don't we find a date? How about Wednesday at 19.00 for pizza at my place?". Is it going to happen? More likely than not, yes.
It's the same theory of human behavior that is examined in a study by Sarah Milne et al. They were interested in exploring how much effect a specific plan to start exercising had on whether or not participants started to exercise. In the study, participants were divided into three groups: a control group, a motivation group and an implementation group.
The results showed that the motivation group, who only received information about why it is beneficial to be active, and unhealthy not to be, did not change their behavior. In the implementation group, 35% exercised before making a concrete plan. But consider this - after the implementation group made their concrete plan, 91% went to the gym! An increase of 56%! Isn't that crazy?
Many different mechanisms are at play here. But a concrete plan is more binding. A concrete plan is easier to follow when you're tired, busy or your child is sick. Here we try to save energy and revert to our habits if we don't have a plan. Another essential thing is the "not-invented-here" syndrome. If you want to change something, innovate, do new things, it's important to be part of the journey. To have a say. That's why personalized plans are so effective.

Behavior change, regardless of context, often follows the same psychological and cognitive patterns. The study by Sarah Milne et al. shows that concrete implementation intention plans are effective in changing behavior. This applies not only to physical training, but also to other types of behavior change, including the adoption of new technologies like AI.
How we put people first
Organizational culture, work habits and an understanding of how people act and relate to new things are crucial to how AI can be integrated into a lawyer's daily life. At Saga, we focus on supporting the implementation by focusing on people through these 3 key components.
- Proactive learning and adaptation: Lawyers need to be supported and motivated to be open to learning new technologies and adapting their working methods. That's why we facilitate training programs and workshops with a focus on hands-on practice, as well as constructive discussions that build knowledge about the possibilities and limitations of the technology.
- Collaboration and knowledge sharing: Effective AI adoption requires collaboration across teams and departments. We support lawyers to share their experiences and best practices with colleagues to foster an AI-friendly culture.
- Implementation intentions: It's not enough to simply inform about the possibilities of AI. To change work habits and ensure the adoption of AI, lawyers need to be involved and self-managing in how and when they will use AI in their daily work. They need to be motivated to make concrete plans that make sense in their daily lives.

What's next?
Consider how AI can be integrated into your workday. Start with small, targeted projects and measure the results. Share your experiences with colleagues and management to foster an AI-friendly culture. A successful AI adoption program requires collaboration across the organization. Leadership needs to be clear about how AI supports the company's strategy and why it's important for future success.
AI is not a threat, but a support that can help us deliver better results faster. But lawyers need to be part of the journey - it's the only way to ensure successful adoption of AI.