Agenda Day 1
8:00 am - 8:30 am
REGISTRATION & COFFEE
8:30 am - 8:35 am
EVENT DIRECTOR'S WELCOME
Carla Rodríguez -
Senior Conference Producer, Programme Director,
IQPC Exchange
8:35 am - 8:45 am
OPENING REMARKS FROM THE CHAIRPERSON
Dan Ruderman -
President,
DTRudy Associates
8:45 am - 8:50 am
LIVE POLLS
8:50 am - 9:35 am
PANEL DISCUSSION: FLIP THE SCRIPT - SWITCHING FROM A RESISTANCE TO ENABLEMENT MINDSET TO WIN CHANGE MANAGEMENT
Chryssa Stefanou -
Director, Global Head Legal Operations,
CSL Limited
Lyudmila Todorovska - Head of Global Digital & Technology - HR, Corporate Affairs & Legal, The Heineken Company
Mark Schwarz - Group General Counsel, Public Policy & Legal Operations, Vontier
Dan Ruderman - President, DTRudy Associates
The word "resistant" is commonly used to describe in-house lawyers' attitude to change management - a concept often discussed amongst peers on a high level. But by taking a two-fold approach of exploring why said resistance exists, and focusing on positively engaging lawyers, legal operations leaders can achieve effective change that sticks. Negative framing of people is antithetical to how leaders can think about their talent as an asset that can be leveraged for a more sustainable, and impactful change. To concentrate on the behavioural and psychological training as much as the technological could be the key to transformation.
The Heineken Company
- Learn to instil a sense of positivity, engagement and motivation for lawyers to become self-starters around change
- Consider change initiatives where each step delivers standalone value, and high-impact change
- Explore the advantage of using change management models, such as ADKAR, frameworks to overcome the fear factor of transformation
- Discuss building implementation muscle memory in legal teams so that successful frameworks can be reused
Lyudmila Todorovska
Head of Global Digital & Technology - HR, Corporate Affairs & LegalThe Heineken Company
9:35 am - 10:05 am
PRESENTATION: PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST - UNLOCKING POTENTIAL TO TRANSFORM TEAMS, NOT JUST WORKFLOWS
Jeremy Hopkins -
Head of Legal Operations,
Johnson Matthey
Within legal operations teams, efficiency is no longer just about processes – it's about people. By consolidating teams, centralising panels, and integrating technology, the function can undergo a transformation that allows lawyers to focus on high-impact strategy. Where managing lean teams can be a challenge, standardising process and ensuring the right skills can unlock the true potential of teams, as well as optimise workflows.
- Learn how to drive cultural adaptation through training, internal communications, and stakeholder engagement
- Explore how undergoing legal rationalisation work ensures teams are the right shape and fit for the optimal business structure
- Consider how knowledge application and feedback capture can motivate and empower teams
10:10 am - 10:40 am
FOUNDATIONAL THINK TANK: FROM AI ADOPTION TO ENTERPRISE IMPACT: ENHANCING THE ROLE OF LEGAL OPERATIONS
As AI evolves from isolated tools to connected systems that retain context and institutional knowledge, legal could become an intelligence layer for the enterprise as they help the business move faster, make better decisions, and manage risk at scale. Contracts are central to that opportunity: connecting legal with Finance, Procurement, and Sales. But the knowledge behind their terms often remains in individual inboxes or with the people who negotiated them. Contract Intelligence can extend legal expertise across the enterprise, embedding approved standards into everyday workflows and enabling trusted business self-service, creating true enterprise impact.
• Explore where legal operations teams can lead this change and what controls support adoption
• Discuss where AI can deliver the greatest business value beyond time saved
• Consider how teams can make contractual knowledge and approved legal positions available across the business with appropriate oversight
• Determine what measures demonstrate success, from adoption and faster decisions to reduced risk and stronger commercial outcomes
10:45 am - 11:15 am
COFFEE BREAK & NETWORKING
11:20 am - 11:50 am
DEVELOPMENTAL THINK TANK: THE SWEET SPOT - DETERMINING THE BEST OPERATING MODEL FOR YOUR LEGAL OPERATIONS FUNCTION
Christine Butler -
Group Legal Operations & Technologies,
Menzies Aviation Plc.
As legal operations departments evolve beyond traditional operating models, defining the "right" fit for the function has become both a strategic priority and a challenge. By decentralising, organisations can balance cost and quality, particularly when outsourcing work to external entities that act as an extension of in-house teams. A centralised approach can offer standardisation across teams and markets that creates consistency. There's much to consider, but if legal operations leaders get it right, they can refine their approach across diverse environments in an increasingly complex landscape.
- Examine the spectrum of operating models, from centralised to decentralised, and hybrid – and discuss the practical realities of each
- Assess regulatory differences, contrasting legal systems, and cultural variations that must be considered in decision making
- Gain insight into how to design models that are scalable, flexible, and aligned to the wider business
10:10 am - 10:40 am
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
10:45 am - 11:15 am
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
11:20 am - 11:50 am
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
11:55 am - 12:35 pm
MENTOR-MATCHING NETWORKING
In this unique networking opportunity, attendees will be matched with a peer from a different level of legal operations department maturity to discuss key focuses, challenges, and approaches that have worked for them
12:35 pm - 1:05 pm
PRESENTATION -THE ART OF THE (AI) DEAL: ACHIEVING SMARTER, FASTER CONTRACTING THROUGH EFFECTIVE TOOL DEPLOYMENT
With legal operations teams expected to deliver increased efficiency year on year, the usefulness of AI in contracting is clearer than ever. From contract review and information extraction to intake management and workflow automation, organisations are experimenting with a mix of agentic and GenAI to drive performance. But legal operations leaders are navigating a crowded landscape of tools that still require human oversight, so how can they turn AI ambition into operational reality in legal workflows? Whether early in their AI journey or scaling existing capabilities, they must implement flexible, user-friendly solutions that can evolve with business demands.
• Determine where AI can deliver tangible value when implemented to shoulder admin and contracting tasks
• Explore how to deploy agentic AI as a "virtual associate" that undertakes contractual work to support, not replace, human expertise
• Understand the importance of setting governance guardrails and maintaining lawyer oversight to combat the risk of hallucinations
1:05 pm - 2:05 pm
LUNCH
2:05 pm - 2:35 pm
DEVELOPMENTAL THINK TANK: SHOW ME THE MONEY - USING AI TO BECOME A BETTER PARTNER TO THE BUSINESS
For many legal departments, the pressure isn't just to adopt AI, but to prove that every investment delivers measurable business value. As scrutiny over legal spend intensifies, legal operations leaders are increasingly turning to AI to uncover savings, improve forecasting, optimise outside counsel performance, and provide finance-ready insights that influence business decisions. Done right, AI can help legal move beyond cost control to become a trusted commercial partner that drives smarter investment across the legal function.
• Discover how AI can identify opportunities to reduce legal spend while improving outcomes
• Leverage AI-powered analytics to strengthen budgeting, forecasting, and outside counsel management
• Explore practical ways to communicate legal's financial impact in language that resonates with finance and business leaders
• Share strategies for balancing AI innovation with trusted data, governance, and measurable ROI
2:05 pm - 2:35 pm
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
2:40 pm - 2:45 pm
LIVE POLLS
2:45 pm - 3:30 pm
PANEL DISCUSSION: THE STORY OF DATA - MAKING LEGAL’S IMPACT IMPOSSIBLE TO IGNORE
Steve Brealey -
Head of Legal Tech Strategy & Execution,
Barclays
Silke Engel - Global Director Legal, Legal Operations & Technology, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
Sonya Rogerson - Head Legal Transformation & Real Estate Novartis Operations, Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research
Adrian Camara - CEO, Athennian
In many organisations, legal is still seen as a cost centre, not a value-generator. For legal operations leaders, redefining impact through tangible KPIs, actionable dashboards, and data-driven reporting can be a crucial step to proving strategic contribution. But ultimate accountability rests with the data. By ensuring integrity at the source, and designing metrics that resonate with the wider business, legal operations teams can leverage data storytelling to translate variables such as time saved, risks mitigated, and costs avoided into tangible business value.
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research
- Explore why legal is considered a cost – not profit – centre, and how making dashboarding visible and tangible can counter this
- Gain an understanding of what makes a KPI relevant to the legal function
- Hear how to start with clean, accurate, aligned data you can leverage to accelerate business outcomes and decision-making
- Learn how to establish reporting that's understandable to all levels of employees, from trainees to stakeholders
Silke Engel
Global Director Legal, Legal Operations & TechnologyCoca-Cola Europacific Partners
Sonya Rogerson
Head Legal Transformation & Real Estate Novartis OperationsNovartis Institutes for Biomedical Research
3:35 pm - 4:05 pm
ADVANCED THINK TANK: A MATCH MADE IN CONTRACTUAL HEAVEN - HARMONISING IN-HOUSE BILLING GUIDELINES AND EXTERNAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Avi Aggarwal -
CTO - HR, Procurement & Legal,
Deutsche Bank
It's a truth universally acknowledged that internal billing guidelines must align with law firms' terms and conditions. Yet when they contradict each other, the lack of sync can be detrimental to both parties when looking to optimise their partnership. The priority must be to ensure guidelines are clear, practical, and comprehensive, so that firms dealing with many contracts can manage billing productively. The introduction of AI within eBilling tools can be useful, but is the technology ready to track billing effectively? Whatever the solution, legal operations teams must establish coordination between external terms and their own billing if they want their guidelines to remain a reality.
- Examine how to be clear about billing guideline adherence when negotiating with external counsel
- Consider the implementation of eBilling tools to support billing guideline review and enforcement
- Walk through an eBilling workflow to determine how specific your review rules must be
- Explore setting up a close contact within the law firm to be a champion of your billing guidelines
4:10 pm - 4:40 pm
COFFEE BREAK & NETWORKING
4:45 pm - 5:15 pm
FOUNDATIONAL THINK TANK: FROM DAY ONE - MAKING YOUR MARK IN ESTABLISHING A ROLE
Sue Manik -
Divisional Director, General Counsel Office,
St James's Place
Starting a role in legal operations can feel like being handed a blank sheet of paper, irrespective of your own level of experience. Putting together a roadmap to strategically approach the early stages, set priorities, and create meaningful impact is essential. But navigating these initial decisions can seem like an operational maze, especially with the universally added pressure of ensuring business alignment.
- Map out understanding the business fundamentals through engaging with key stakeholders across the organisation
- Assess where to focus efforts and break down the legal landscape to identify which priorities to address
- Consider when to consult external entities to fill knowledge gaps and advance results
- Discuss how to balance operational improvements with respect for existing structures and processes
3:35 pm - 4:05 pm
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
4:10 pm - 4:40 pm
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
4:45 pm - 5:15 pm
1:1 BUSINESS MEETINGS
5:20 pm - 6:05 pm
ROUNDTABLE 1: TECH REALITY CHECK - BALANCING AI ADOPTION, GOVERNANCE AND VALUE
5:20 pm - 6:05 pm
ROUNDTABLE 2: CAUTIOUS PROGRESS - GOVERNING AGENTIC AI WITHOUT SLOWING IT DOWN
6:05 pm - 6:10 pm
CLOSING REMARKS FROM THE CHAIRPERSON
Dan Ruderman -
President,
DTRudy Associates
