Integreon Wins IACCM'13 Innovation Award for 'Outstanding' Contract Management Services&Support

Nov. 6, 2013 - PRLog -- MUMBAI– 1 November 2013 –Integreon (http://www.integreon.com), a leading global provider of outsourced legal, document, research and business support, has been awarded recognition as“Outstanding Service Provider (https://www.iaccm.com/news/contractingexcellence/?storyid=1502)”for 2013 by the International Association for Contract and Commercial Management (IACCM)during its annual Innovation Awards ceremony held Wednesday, October 9thin Phoenix, Arizona.The award reflectsIntegreon’s delivery of exceptional contract management services and support to Microsoft. Results were determined by an independent,cross-industry, international panel of judges appointed by the IACCM.

“Four years ago we began the search for a service provider who could go beyond mere augmentation of resourcesand help us re-design and improve upon our contract review processes,” said Lucy Bassli, Assistant General Counsel at Microsoft. “Through the relationship we established with Integreon, we’ve seen a dramatic improvement in the efficiency of our contract review process. Our in-house team has also been able to focus on higher level activities while furthering their ownlegal careers here at Microsoft. We are thrilled to have these achievements recognised by the IACCM.”

Prior to engaging with Integreon, Microsoft realised that its existing paralegal resourcing model for legal contract review was not sustainable in the long term. Thevolume of procurement contracts flowing into Microsoft’s Global Contracting Officewas significantand growing rapidly. The turnaround time for legal review was averaging three days per contract andcausing delays inthe procurement process for needed goods and services. In response, Microsoft initiated a dual track effort to study their current contract processes and the opportunities offered by legal process outsourcing (LPO). After a rigorous selection process, Microsoft selected Integreon as its LPO partner.

Integreon’s paralegals and lawyers operating from delivery centres in Fargo, North Dakota and Bristol, UK work as an extension of the Microsoft legal department. The close collaboration and integration of the Integreon and Microsoft teams ensured that the engagement realised short term successes and laid the groundwork for expansion of the programme as greater volumes and types of contracts, including foreign language contracts, were brought into scope.

Microsoft’s cost for legal contract review has been significantly reduced.Today theIntegreonteams in Fargo and Bristolhandle 20,000 contracts per year in 14 languages across 125 countries. At the same time, the average turnaround time for legal review has dropped from three days to less than one, and the percentage of contracts meeting the agreed upon turnaround time has increased from 86 percent to 99 percent. The increased productivity and reduced costs to manage contracts were complemented by high quality output, as results consistently exceed Microsoft’s 98.4 percent quality target.

“The secret sauce in this success story of legal departmenttransformation is quite simply the strength of our partnershipwith Microsoft and, more specifically, the depth of integration and collaboration between ourrespective teams,” explainedMark Ross, Vice President, Legal Process Outsourcing at Integreon. “With Microsoft, we have a partner who has embraced the ‘art of possible’ and shares our passion for legal process improvement and innovation.”

“LPO has come a long way in five years. What began as purely a labourarbitrage approach is now about delivery of value through legal process improvement. The LPO model has matured from what was originally an emerging practice to an integral element of the overall spectrum of legal services delivery options,” said Bob Gogel, CEO at Integreon. “Our corporate clients increasingly turn to us, as innovators in the field, to collaborate with them on the transformation of their legal function. The Microsoft example illustrates LPO at its best.”

For an in-depth look at Integreon’s engagement with Microsoft for contract management and review, read our new case study (http://www.integreon.com/our-clients/microsoft-case-study...).

Integreon’s range of contract review, drafting and management services include:

·         Contract Mass Review & Abstraction: On-location, onshore and offshore teams to review masses of contracts, apply industry-leading technology to accelerate the process, abstract requisite data/information and ensure high quality results. Useful in M&A events, audits and implementation of contract management software.

·         Contract Management Support: Offering procurement and sales organisations the opportunity to leverage teams of lawyers and paralegals to support the buy- and sell-side of contracting. Resources available in dedicated team, time-block or other innovative (i.e. fixed per contract pricing) models to support client contracting requirements.

·         Contract Globalisation:Ability to review, redline and negotiate contracts in multiple languages from our European-based LPO delivery center. Project management services available that integrate offshore corporate counsel and outside counsel across jurisdictions for complete global contracts support.

·         Contracting Process Redesign:Deep experience deconstructing and reengineering legal processes using Lean and Six Sigma techniques, applying best practices and flexible resources and optimising the mix and utilisation of technology. Analysis of which aspects of the contract review work performed by lawyers and support staff add value and which should be eliminated, automated, or delivered by alternative means.

Integreon has received more than 30 awards over the past five years for outstanding service delivery in the legal field, including recently being named among the world’s Best 5 Legal Services Providers (http://www.integreon.com/blog/2013/06/integreon-named-by-...) by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals® (IAOP) and a Top Ranked Legal Services Provider (http://www.integreon.com/blog/2013/04/integreon-recognize...) in the prestigious Chambers Global 2013 guide.

For more information about Integreon’s award winning services for legal, document, research, and business support, please visit www.integreon.com.