Law Firm Honored By CIO Magazine Five Of Past Six Years
Chicago – Foley & Lardner LLP announced today that the firm will receive a 2006 CIO 100 Award given annually by CIO magazine. The award marks the fifth time in the past six years that the firm has been recognized by the magazine. The CIO 100 celebrates the top 100 organizations worldwide that exemplify the highest level of operational and strategic excellence in information technology (IT).
The 2006 honorees are recognized by CIO as organizations that have utilized information technology in innovative ways to deliver business value, whether by creating competitive advantage, optimizing business processes, enabling growth or improving relationships with customers.
“We have invested significant resources over the past several years to develop industry-leading proprietary technology to assist our clients in managing increasingly complex litigation and transactions,” said Ralf Boer, the firm’s chairman and CEO. “Our clients view our strategic use of technology as a competitive edge which adds value by enabling corporate legal departments to serve their internal business unit customers on a more efficient and cost-effective basis.”
Foley earned the CIO 100 award because of its ability to provide world-class collaboration tools and unique IT applications that allow the firm’s clients to better manage their legal departments. In effect, the firm provides an outsourcing capability to its clients by building custom technology applications that solve a specific management problem.
“Our clients value our ability to provide more than just standard legal opinions, which provides us with an opportunity to enhance our clients’ experience,” said Doug Caddell, the firm’s chief information officer. “We view IT as more than just an expense to be passed on to our clients, but as a strategic tool to develop into a value-added service offering.”
For example, Foley client Bank of America utilizes FOLEY:ClientSuite, the firm’s proprietary extranet technology, to track more than 200 active matters currently handled by the firm. All documents and correspondence for each matter, including a vast array of resource information and legacy documents, are accessible in real time by the Foley attorneys and Bank of America in-house counsel and executives involved. Previously, the documents existed in hard-copy format in various bank locations across the country and required hours to receive via facsimile. By using FOLEY:ClientSuite, the documents are available immediately.
More information on FOLEY:ClientSuite can be found by accessing this link . The firm also created a unique, full-time position within its IT organization called a Technology Consultant. This individual combines technology and consulting skills that enable the firm’s clients and prospective clients to effectively utilize its technology services.
Foley will receive the CIO 100 award at the magazine’s eighth annual CIO 100 Symposium® and Awards Ceremony on August 22 at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego, CA.
Foley & Lardner LLP provides the full range of corporate legal counsel. Our attorneys understand today’s most complex business issues, including corporate governance, securities enforcement, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property counseling and litigation, outsourcing and information technology, labor and employment, and tax. The firm offers total solutions in the automotive, emerging technologies, energy, entertainment and media, financial services, food, golf and resort services, insurance, health care, life sciences, nanotechnology, and sports industries.
