How CIOs are reshaping technology in law firms for unified operations – sa.global

For years, law firms invested tactically in point solutions for time recording, billing, conflicts, CRM, and HR processes. Each system answered a specific need, but together they created a fragmented operational picture. At a time when partners want granular profitability views and finance teams are under pressure to accelerate cash flow, CIOs are rethinking what technology in law firms is really for.

The shift now is toward unified, finance-centric platforms that connect intake, pricing, time, billing, collections, compliance, and reporting on a single data foundation. For mid to large independent firms, that is no longer a nice-to-have. It is becoming the only way to run the business with clarity and confidence.

Why technology in law firms is now a finance and operations conversation

For many firms, recent years looked successful on the surface. Fee income grew, lateral hiring continued, and demand held up in key practice areas. Yet the financial picture is more nuanced.

PwC’s Law Firms’ Survey 2023 reports that across the UK Top 100 firms, average UK fee income grew between 8 and 9.7%. However, with inflation averaging around 10%, real income actually fell slightly. Even more telling, 44% of Top 100 firms reported falling profits, despite headline revenue growth.¹

For CIOs, this is a signal that incremental improvements are not enough. Finance leaders need:

• Better control over working capital and lockup
• Clear visibility of profitability by client, matter, office, and partner
• Faster, more reliable billing and collections processes
• Assurance that financial data is consistent, auditable, and compliant

Fragmented systems make all of that harder. Spreadsheets that sit outside core platforms, regional finance tools that do not align, and separate intake or pricing systems all create friction.

Margin pressure, lockup, and the cost of fragmentation

The same PwC report highlights that business support functions see “improving working capital performance” as their top priority, with many firms acknowledging significant untapped opportunity in reducing lockup.

CIOs know that lockup is not just a policy issue. It is also a data and workflow problem. When matter management, pricing, time entry, billing, and credit control sit in silos, it is difficult to:

• Spot slow-moving WIP early
• Intervene where billing cycles routinely slip
• Apply consistent credit and collection rules across jurisdictions

Unified platforms make these patterns visible at scale and give finance teams tools to act on them.

What unified technology in law firms looks like for finance and operations

The move to unified environments is about rethinking the operating model around a single source of financial and client truth.

A single prospect-to-cash backbone

Instead of treating intake, conflicts, pricing, billing, and collections as separate islands, CIOs are designing a single prospect-to-cash flow:

1. Client and matter intake with standardized data capture, risk checks, and initial pricing assumptions.
2. Budgeting and pricing that link directly to the firm’s financial model, so finance can monitor expected margins from day one.
3. Time and expense capture that feeds directly into WIP, with clear visibility for partners and finance.
4. Billing workflows that support different billing arrangements, approvals, and regional tax requirements without manual workarounds.
5. Collections and credit control tied back to the original matter and client context, so conversations are informed and focused.

When technology in law firms supports this continuous flow, teams can intervene quickly instead of reacting months after a matter closes.

A finance-first data model

In many firms, finance teams still need to reconcile multiple versions of reality: local ledgers, legacy practice management systems, and multiple spreadsheets. A unified platform re-centers everything on a finance-first data model, with:

• Consistent chart of accounts across entities
• Multi-currency and multi-entity support baked in
• Client, matter, and sector hierarchies that align with how the firm actually reports
• Shared definitions of profitability, realization, and contribution

This structure strengthens the CFO’s ability to produce consistent, reliable reports. It also gives CIOs a stable foundation for integrating systems like CRM or employee onboarding platforms while keeping financial data aligned.

Built-in compliance and auditability

Independent law firms are dealing with overlapping regulatory regimes: SRA Accounts Rules, GDPR, AML/KYC obligations, and increasingly strict client guidelines around billing and data handling.

Unified technology in law firms helps by:

• Enforcing approval workflows for key financial transactions
• Logging who approved which write-offs, discounts, and transfers
• Providing clear audit trails for client money movements
• Centralizing documents and data relevant to risk and compliance teams

Instead of chasing information across systems and inboxes, compliance teams work from a single operational record.

How CIOs are leading the shift in technology in law firms

CIOs are uniquely placed to connect financial, operational, and data priorities. The firms that are moving fastest share a few common patterns.

Rationalizing around a core platform

Rather than trying to integrate everything with everything, CIOs are:

• Selecting one core cloud platform to anchor finance, matter, and client data
• Retiring legacy systems that duplicate functionality or fragment data
• Using APIs and low-code tools to connect specialized applications back into that core

This approach allows innovation at the edge while preserving a single operational and financial source of truth. This is especially important for firms that need to coordinate offices in multiple regions without building a different tech stack in each country.

Turning data into forward-looking finance insight

Once finance and operational data live in a unified model, CIOs and CFOs can move beyond historic reporting. Common use cases include:

• Dashboards that highlight lockup by client, office, or practice
• Early-warning indicators when WIP exceeds budget or milestones
• Scenario modelling for pricing and resourcing before proposals go out
• Predictive cash flow views that combine pipeline, WIP, and receivables

These capabilities signal a shift toward a more insight-driven operating model, where firms rely on connected data to guide decisions and anticipate future needs.

A connected cloud foundation for innovation in legal industry operations

For CIOs seeking a unified environment where data flows reliably across intake, finance, and operations, the Microsoft Industry Cloud for Law Firms provides the architecture to make that level of integration possible. It brings together Azure, Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Microsoft 365 to create a common data and workflow layer tailored to legal operations. Partners like sa.global add legal-specific capabilities that matter most to law firms, such as:

• Global accounting and tax support for multi-entity, multi-currency structures
• Billing and e-billing that handle complex fee arrangements, regional requirements, and consolidated or split bills
• Accounts payable and disbursement management with controlled workflows and electronic invoicing
• Client accounting and credit control that link client money management, aged debt, and collection workflows
• Financial reporting and profitability analysis with built-in consolidation, predictive cash flow, and multi-level profitability views
• WIP and A/R tracking aligned with matter, client, and sector views

Because these capabilities sit on a single Microsoft data platform, firms can also layer in legal collaboration tools, analytics, and AI responsibly, without recreating silos. For CIOs who want technology in law firms to directly support working capital, margin, and operational control, this combination is a strong fit.

Conclusion

Law firms are increasingly recognizing that disconnected systems limit visibility, slow down processes, and create avoidable friction. A unified platform helps teams work from shared information and creates a more consistent experience for both lawyers and clients.

If your firm is exploring how technology in law firms can improve operational clarity and overall performance, sa.global can guide you in building a connected environment.