Reports & Guides

5 Steps for a Successful CFO-GC Partnership

Learn how a strong partnership with the CFO is one of the best tools to help GCs get more value out of every budgeted dollar.

July 19, 2023

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What Will I Learn?

Through our partnership with leading legal and finance leaders, we developed a 5-step playbook to help General Counsels (GCs) build stronger, more effective relationships with their finance counterparts. This playbook is designed to ensure your legal team remains well-resourced to address corporate legal needs, even in challenging economic times.

In this guide, you will learn how to:

Identify key legal levers and establish measurable KPIs
Set up productive meeting cadences
Clearly articulate business risks to stakeholders
Explore all available legal resourcing options
Collaborate effectively with business leaders for better outcomes

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Challenges for GCs

General Counsels (GCs) are facing dual challenges: tighter budgets and increasingly complex workloads. An Axiom survey of in-house legal leaders reveals:

99% report an increase in the volume and complexity of legal matters.
92% are already understaffed, with 98% expecting further budget cuts.
Hiring freezes are anticipated by 94%, making it difficult to address resource gaps.
Meanwhile, law firm rates have reached a 15-year high, exacerbating cost pressures.

In such a scenario, GCs need innovative solutions. One promising approach? Partnering with the CFO to maximize the value of every dollar allocated to legal needs.

Building Partnerships

To navigate economic challenges, GCs can adopt these strategies to create a productive relationship with their CFOs:

1. Identify Legal "Levers" and Establish KPIs

Benchmarking metrics against similar-sized legal departments helps identify cost-effective resourcing options while aligning on key performance indicators (KPIs). These insights enable GCs and CFOs to explore resourcing, automation, and cost-saving levers while understanding their impact on risk mitigation.

2. Establish a CFO Meeting Cadence

Regular and consistent communication with the CFO ensures alignment on priorities and maximizes the value derived from budgeted legal expenditures.

3. Articulate Business Risks of Budget Reductions

GCs must clearly communicate the potential business risks—particularly with reductions in force (RIFs)—in terms the CFO can understand, fostering informed decision-making.

Optimizing Resources

When addressing legal resourcing and aligning with the CFO, GCs should:

4. Consider the Cost Implications of Resourcing Options

Compare the efficiency of in-house staff, flexible lawyers, and law firms. Educate the CFO about the factors influencing resourcing decisions, demonstrating why law firms are often a less efficient choice.

5. Leverage Business Leaders

If roadblocks arise with the CFO, collaborating with business leaders can be invaluable. Work together to determine which team’s budget should support specific legal requests, ensuring alignment on resource allocation.

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