In-House Outliers

Hosted by Brightflag

Technology

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Episodes

170

Latest episode

Jun 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

In-House Outliers shares the stories and secrets of those who have taken unconventional paths and challenged conventional notions of how corporate legal departments should operate.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

June 4, 202621 min

Scaling Legal Operations Across a Global Team with ABF's Dan Wate

In this episode of the In-House Outliers podcast, host Anna Richards speaks with Dan Wate, Legal Operations Manager at Associated British Foods, about managing legal operations solo across a global team of 150 lawyers in 14 countries.Dan shares his journey from joining ABF before legal ops had a name, to building a function that spans a complex, multinational business. He covers two core strategies for scaling as a team of one: having a clear plan to stay proactive rather than reactive, and building an unofficial team through trusted relationships across finance, IT, HR, and procurement. The conversation also touches on why being nice is a genuine professional skill, how to approach vendor and outside counsel relationships as partnerships, and what those new to legal ops should know about building transferable skills.

May 21, 202625 min

From Buyer to Partner: Building Better Legal Tech Relationships with Novartis's Michael Francony

In this episode, Michael Francony, Senior Legal Project and Operations Manager at Novartis, shares what it really takes to transition from buyer to true partner when working with legal technology vendors. Drawing on experience from both sides of the table he offers a grounded perspective on what makes implementations succeed or fail.The conversation covers how to define the "why" before jumping into execution, and Michael's four F's framework for vendor relationships: friendly, fair, firm, and fun.The discussion also touches on stakeholder management, the challenges of measuring ROI without baseline data, and how AI is reshaping the legal technology landscape — from established vendors to AI-first solutions built at a pace that would have been unthinkable just a year ago.

May 7, 202621 min

Bridging Legal Ops and Finance with Generate's Michelle Garza

In this episode, Michelle Garza, Legal Operations Manager at Generate, discusses how she built a deep and productive partnership between her legal ops and finance teams. She shares her journey from executive assistant to legal ops, and how she transformed a chaotic, email-driven accrual process into a streamlined, centralized system using Brightflag.The conversation covers practical strategies for gaining finance team trust, including learning their tools and language, implementing consistent project coding, and providing real-time visibility into legal spend.The discussion also touches on vendor management, invoice processing, and how accurate, timely accruals became a credibility-builder with finance — ultimately saving an estimated 20 hours of work per department, per month.

April 23, 202625 min

The Rise of the Legal Engineer with Wordsmith.AI's Elly Meenan

On this episode Elly Meenan (Legal Engineering Evangelist at Wordsmith.AI) discusses the rise of the Legal Engineer role and what it means for the future of legal work. The conversation focuses on how legal engineers use technology to automate legal work and build scalable systems, bridging the gap between legal expertise and technical execution.Elly also shares insights on breaking into the field, offering advice on developing technical skills, building a portfolio, and establishing a personal brand, alongside her experience creating a legal operations job board.

April 9, 202626 min

The Expanding Role of the Modern GC with OTC Markets Group's Daniel Zinn

On this episode Daniel Zinn (General Counsel, Chief of Staff, and Corporate Secretary at OTC Markets Group) discusses the expanding role of the modern general counsel. Dan shares how his role has evolved organically from pure legal counsel to encompass strategic business partnership, operational leadership, and business development. The conversation explores how Dan's multi-faceted role allows him to be involved in strategic discussions from the ground up, rather than just solving problems after they arise.

March 26, 202626 min

The Future of Legal Ops with Legal Operations Leader Mary O'Carroll

On this episode, legal operations leader and industry icon Mary O'Carroll joined Brightflag's Anna Richards to discuss the evolution of legal ops roles, the differences between in-house and law firm AI adoption, and the importance of community. Mary also shared practical advice for CLOs looking to build a legal operations function.

March 12, 202629 min

Building a Durable Legal Ops Function with Sanofi's Dimitri Lucas

On this episode, Dimitri Lucas (Legal Operations & Digital Transformation Manager at Sanofi) discusses his approach to developing an effective legal ops function in high-pressure corporate legal environments.Dimitri also shared tips for navigating change management, thoughts on the benefits of building upon small wins, and insights into the customer success principles he's found to be effective in legal operations.

February 26, 202638 min

Outside Counsel Management at Scale with John Deere's Lindsay Schuyler

On this episode, Lindsay Schuyler (Outside Counsel Strategy & Spend Manager at John Deere) joined the show for an in-depth discussion about how to effectively select, manage, and evaluate outside counsel at scale.Lindsay also shared her insights into how to demonstrate the value of the legal department to the broader business, and how legal ops can position themselves at the forefront of technological innovation.

February 5, 202626 min

New Beginnings with Brightflag's Anna Richards

In his final interview as host of the In-House Outliers podcast, Alex Kelly sat down for a candid conversation with Brightflag's Head of Community Anna Richards, who will be leading the show going forward.During their discussion, they touched on the value of community for legal ops professionals, how legal teams are balancing "efficiency vs. effectiveness" when evaluating AI tools, and ways to strengthen relationships with outside counsel.

January 22, 202632 min

Surveying the Legal Landscape with Cockroach Labs' Adam Becker

On this episode, Adam Becker (Director of Legal Operations at Cockroach Labs) joined the show to discuss the current legal technology landscape, how generative AI will impact outside counsel partnerships, and the unique challenges of building out a legal ops function.