We don't usually think of a call to a help desk as a warm and fuzzy interaction. Tech teams seem to take the approach of "take the call, find the problem, fix the problem, take the next call." What about our tech teams' ability to build rapport and empathy with our user base? In this ILTA Radio session, some top IT leaders discuss teaching technical team members to acquire and use more soft skills in addition to their highly sought-after computer engineering skills.

Speakers:
Stuart Cook is the Director of Information Systems at Graves Dougherty Hearon & Moody in Austin, TX. He is directly or indirectly responsible for all computer operations, networking, voice and data infrastructure, software acquisition and updating, information security and training.

James McKenna is Fenwick & West LLP's Chief Information Officer. He is responsible for its information technology, security, development, audio visual and practice support. Previously, James was with Morrison & Foerster LLP for 17 years. He has directly managed all aspects of IT, practice support and information security, and is a Certified Information Security Systems Professional. James has written articles, won awards and sits on the ILTA Board of Directors.

Luke Schnoebelen is the Manager of Learning and Development at Shook, Hardy & Bacon, managing technical training and elearning development. He is solidifying a development process to improve the technology expertise for all firm employees, associates and partners. Luke also assists with all facets of in-house CLE, technology adoption and general promotion of process improvements.

Michelle Spencer's skills reside at the intersection of people, processes, technology and learning. She can translate technology for non-technical people and manage projects by getting groups connected and communicating, enabling them to work effectively towards their end goal. Michelle is adept at managing learning and IT projects from both the technical and human perspectives. She uses her knowledge, gained from three decades spent on both legal and IT project teams, to help your team.

Recorded on 5-14-18

IDC forecasts the SD-WAN space will reach $6 billion in technology and service sales by 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of more than 90 percent over the next five years. In this ILTA Radio episode, representatives from vCom cover how SD-WAN is taking the networking world by storm -- and why it must be a part of every IT organization's strategy. The cost savings and improvement in application performance offer law firms a game-changing approach to managing entire networks.

Uniquely positioned to address this rising trend, vCom can help IT organizations leverage SD-WAN as a key component to a successful IT life cycle strategy. To learn more, visit www.vcomsolutions.com/sd-wan.

Speakers:
Bob Barnes leads vCom's collaboration spend business unit. He oversees the collaboration sales and operations teams, managing the entire collaboration life cycle and ensuring a successful customer engagement. Bob also oversees the company's sales operations organization, managing the first step of the customer onboarding process and ensuring that telecom engineering and professional services are seamlessly implemented for customers.

Audrey Bold is the Vice President of Marketing for vCom Solutions. She is responsible for driving the strategic growth of the company's brand of software and services. With over 18 years of marketing and product experience, Audrey is focused on increasing awareness of vCom's value proposition, expanding share within strategic target markets and enhancing its customer base.

Sameer Hilal is a co-founder and the Chief Operating Officer of vCom, a managed service provider focused on procure-to-pay life cycle management for IT spend in the areas of telecom, network, mobile, collaboration and cloud services. The company's enterprise customers, including leading law firms, leverage its award-winning cloud-based software and professional services to gain unprecedented visibility and efficiency, and transform how their IT environments are managed -- from design and onboarding to billing and support. With over 15 years in business, more than 220 nationwide customers, 10 consecutive years of 98 percent customer satisfaction and 10 consecutive years as a best-place-to-work in the SF Bay area, vCom is revolutionizing how IT spend is managed.

In April 2014, members of ILTA's user support volunteer team recorded a podcast on some common trends in training at that time. These topics continue to be widely discussed, so we take another look to see how (or if) our thoughts have changed since then. We cover:

• The modern trainer
• Performance support
• Ways to support informal learning
• Mobile learning
• Gamification

In the next couple of months, we'll be recording a 2017 Trends in Training podcast to tackle several new topics, so be on the lookout for that, too.

Speakers:
Denise Ash is the Training Manager at Jackson Kelly PLLC, where she has worked since 2011. Previously, she worked as a user support specialist at Robinson & McElwee PLLC. An active ILTA volunteer, she is a member of the Apps and Desktop Content Committee and a member liaison for Charleston, West Virginia. In 2010, Denise won ILTA's User Support Champion award.

Jeanne Marie Boswell is the Director of Technology Training for Paul Hastings LLP. For the past 17 years, she has overseen the evolution of the training role from one that teaches technology to one that innovates and facilitates change. Name a 21st century legal learning topic, and she and her team have probably flipped it, filmed it, webcast it, gamefied it or set it to music. Jeanne Marie is a past-president of the New York Professional Legal Trainers Group, served on the ILTA User Support Steering Committee and is an active member of ATD.

Marsha Kuhn has been a Training & Computer Support Specialist with Downs Rachlin Martin PLLC for almost 19 years. She is responsible for the technology training at the firm, and provides end-user support as needed. Marsha was a member of the ILTA user support group, and has been a computer application instructor at the Community College of Vermont for over 20 years.

Michelle Spencer's skills reside at the intersection of people, processes, technology and learning. She can translate technology for non-technical people and manage projects by getting groups connected and communicating, enabling them to work effectively towards their end goal. Michelle is adept at managing learning and IT projects from both the technical and human perspectives. She uses her knowledge -- gained from three decades spent on both legal and IT project teams -- to help your team.

Listen in as two seasoned law firm trainers discuss training with four attorneys. They ask the questions that we've all wanted to ask and get honest answers that will help us better serve the attorneys in our firms. You'll definitely learn something as these folks get real!

Attorneys
Roy L. Smart III, Partner, Parker Poe Erica R. Messimer, Associate, Parker Poe Justin M. Long, Partner, Bracewell & Guiliani LLP Conor Civins, Partner, Bracewell & Giuliani LLP

Trainers
Michelle Spencer, Senior Trainer, Bracewell & Giuliani LLP Stacie Oste, Training Manager, Parker Poe

From the Legaltech Asia Technology Summit in Hong Kong, hear how Analytics and Predictive Coding are being used in Hong Kong and China. Learn about how these technologies being viewed by Hong Kong regulators and about some cultural challenges in China.<?xml:namespace prefix = "o" ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Join Brian Donato, CIO at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP and Eric Mosca, Director of Operations at InOutsource as they discuss the key takeaways from the 2013 ILTA Conference Session: Nimble Approaches to Information Governance: The Small and Mid-Size Firm Perspectives. 

Law Firms around the country are anxious to determine the overall effectiveness of their information security programs and to understand if their practices are aligned with industry peers.

Please listen in as Meg Grant, Vice President, Marketing at Digital Defense and a LegalSec Vendor Advisory Team member reviews the results of the LegalSec Report, A Study of the Legal Industry's Information Security Assessment Practices. The report, published in August and released at the ILTA Annual conference, provides un-biased and relevant knowledge surrounding information security programs and practices within North American law firms.

Grant will highlight key findings and provide context surrounding all the results.

A copy of the report may be downloaded HERE

Communication is the imparting or exchange of information, and technology has transformed these exchanges, making them easier, more collaborative and increasingly dynamic. However, not all communications technologies are adopted quickly, and some never make it to the floor. Some of those that have taken off have been dubbed "disruptive," i.e., they've created a new market and affected or displaced earlier technology. What disruptive communications technologies have landed in legal, and what additional changes can we expect? ILTA interviewed thought leaders from the member and vendor communities to get their insight in this area. Hear Rick Varju's interview on the podcast below.

Visit the ILTA website to hear each participant's interview.

Communication is the imparting or exchange of information, and technology has transformed these exchanges, making them easier, more collaborative and increasingly dynamic. However, not all communications technologies are adopted quickly, and some never make it to the floor. Some of those that have taken off have been dubbed "disruptive," i.e., they've created a new market and affected or displaced earlier technology. What disruptive communications technologies have landed in legal, and what additional changes can we expect? ILTA interviewed thought leaders from the member and vendor communities to get their insight in this area. Hear Donald Sternfeld's interview on the podcast below.

Visit the ILTA website to hear each participant's interview.

Communication is the imparting or exchange of information, and technology has transformed these exchanges, making them easier, more collaborative and increasingly dynamic. However, not all communications technologies are adopted quickly, and some never make it to the floor. Some of those that have taken off have been dubbed "disruptive," i.e., they've created a new market and affected or displaced earlier technology. What disruptive communications technologies have landed in legal, and what additional changes can we expect? ILTA interviewed thought leaders from the member and vendor communities to get their insight in this area. Hear Mike Russell's interview on the podcast below.

Visit the ILTA website to hear each participant's interview.