Press ← → or spacebar to navigate · ESC to exit

Clarke Willmott | IT Leadership Framework

Listen.
Shape.
Deliver.

Item 1 / 1
Page 1 / 9

The first 90 days are not about arriving with all the answers. Yes, there will be quick wins to be had, but we are building for the long term. Through a process I call Listen, Shape and Deliver, I will establish credibility, gain a deep understanding of the business and people, and build a clear enough picture to make informed decisions. We want to deliver improvements that genuinely matter to the firm, in line with its values.

This page methodically details how I would make a strong start at Clarke Willmott and ready myself to shape and deliver a long-term strategy.

Career History
2025 – Present
Law Firm (current employer)
Law Firm · Bournemouth
👤 ~150
IT Director with full strategic and operational responsibility. Defined the multi-year IT roadmap aligned to the firm’s 2030 strategy; leading replacement of a legacy PMS with a SaaS platform, and delivering the iManage Cloud migration.
2021 – 2025
InfoTrack UK
Legal Tech · London
👤 ~350
Head of IT through a period of rapid growth, scaling from 90 to 350 people. Sat on the senior leadership team; shaped the technology strategy to support aggressive commercial targets. Built the infrastructure, security posture and team capability to sustain a business where availability and data integrity were non-negotiable.
2018 – 2021
Keeler Medical
Medical Manufacturing · Windsor
👤 ~165
Head of IT across UK and US sites, with board-level reporting responsibility. Led technology strategy through significant transformation in a regulated, IP-sensitive manufacturing environment.
2014 – 2018
L-3 Security & Detection Systems
Security & Defence · Bracknell · ~450 staff
UK Head of IT. Drove a data services strategy designed to inform sales decisions and improve customer retention, introducing a subscription-based model as a net new revenue stream. This work forms the basis of White Paper B.
Early career
2007 – 2018
Barloworld Handling
Industrial Equipment · Maidenhead
👤 ~850
2005 – 2007
Steel Construction Institute
Engineering & Research · Ascot
👤 ~60
Expertise & Experience
IT strategy and organisational leadership

Defined and delivered multi-year IT strategies across law, legal technology and regulated manufacturing. Board-level stakeholder engagement, technology roadmap ownership, investment planning and aligning IT capability to business growth objectives.

ISO 27001

Multiple implementations across legal and regulated environments. Led certification programmes from gap analysis through to audit and accreditation.

Cyber security

Controls design, incident response planning, BCDR and regulatory compliance. Experienced in building security posture from the ground up.

Vendor governance

Supplier selection, contract negotiation, SLA management and performance oversight. Experienced in resetting underperforming managed service relationships.

M&A technology

IT due diligence, integration planning and post-acquisition stabilisation. Led technology workstreams through acquisition at Keeler Medical.

AI & automation

Governing adoption before it governs you. Experienced in building acceptable use frameworks and identifying genuine automation opportunities.

Developing effective teams

Built and developed multi-disciplined IT teams across law, legal tech and manufacturing. Focused on psychological safety, clear accountability and doing their best work.

01
No preconceived ideas
Every firm is different. I arrive to listen and understand the challenges and the opportunities. I commit to bringing an open mind and truly listening for the signals when I walk through the door. This enables informed decisions.
02
Doing this with you, not to you
Change works best when people are part of making it happen. I work closely with teams to understand what they need and what we are trying to overcome, then involve them in what comes next.
03
Foundations before features
Security, resilience and governance underpin everything. Law firms trade on reliability and credibility. Before doing anything truly innovative, let us check those foundations and be confident we are ready to build great things.
04
Commercial awareness
IT exists to serve the firm and its clients. Every investment, every decision, needs to be grounded in commercial reality. I keep that lens on throughout.
Listen
Days 1 to 30
Meet the people, map the technology and find the friction. Build a complete picture before forming any view.
Shape
Days 31 to 60
Validate what has been learned. Sense-check findings with leadership. Present options, not mandates.
Deliver
Days 61 to 90
Fix the foundations first: security, governance and supplier accountability. Quick wins follow. Strategic initiatives when the platform is stable.
People first
  • Meet partners and practice leads. Understand what success looks like from their perspective, not just from IT.
  • Meet every IT team member. Understand capability, culture and what is already in motion.
  • Meet key suppliers. Understand contractual position, service commitments and current performance.
Technology landscape
  • Full inventory of systems and integrations. What exists, who relies on it and why it matters.
  • Security and risk posture. Where controls are strong, where they are not and what is already managed.
  • Programmes already in flight. What is committed, what is stalled and what has no clear owner.
What I am listening for
  • What is working well. Things that should be protected, not changed.
  • Where friction slows the people who rely on IT. Technology that gets in the way rather than helping.
  • Where quick wins exist. Improvements available without disruption or long lead times.
The first 30 days are not passive. If a supplier is underperforming or something can be fixed without disruption, I will move on it.
Confirm and sense-check
  • State of the Nation summary. A concise document covering key findings, risks, themes and early opportunities. Not a report for its own sake.
  • Validate with leadership and relevant partners. ‘Have I understood this correctly?’ Not ‘Here is what is wrong.’
  • Test assumptions against what people experience. What appears in reports does not always match what happens day to day.
Form recommendations
  • Priorities shaped by evidence, not instinct. Findings from Step 1 become structured recommendations with clear rationale.
  • Present options, not mandates. I bring expertise and a recommended direction. Decisions stay where they belong.
  • Identify what moves first and why. Not everything can be a priority. Sequencing matters as much as selection.
Asking ‘help me understand why we do it this way’ is not the same as saying it is wrong. The purpose is curiosity, not disruption.
Fix the foundations
  • Security, compliance and risk controls
  • Governance and change management
  • Supplier accountability and SLA clarity
  • Anything that creates exposure gets addressed before anything new is built on top
Deliver quick wins
  • Improvements identified in Step 1
  • Low-risk, visible changes
  • Things that reduce friction for the people who rely on IT
  • Visible early progress builds credibility and trust across the firm
Begin strategic initiatives
  • AI and automation; governed and purposeful
  • Data integration and reporting
  • Longer-term transformation programmes
  • Only once the foundations are stable. Built to last, not rushed to impress
These are starting points for the Listen step, not conclusions. What I find may look very different to what I expect.
Document Management
iManage Cloud migration
A migration I have already delivered. I would want to understand the current state, migration scope, timelines and dependencies before forming a view on approach.
Data and Reporting
Integrated data and clearer reports
At present, key data sits across several separate systems making it hard to get a clear, reliable picture of how the firm is performing. Bringing that data together allows people to see meaningful reports without having to piece the information together manually.
Financial Systems
ELITE 3E and the day-to-day experience
ELITE is a strong financial management platform, but the day-to-day experience around it can often be improved. Understanding where the gaps are and what integration options exist would be an early priority.
Supplier Management
Managed service relationship
I understand significant work has been done to improve the Xerox arrangement. I would want to understand the current contractual position, performance levels and where accountability sits before forming any view.
01
Trusted, Stable and Approachable
IT is reliable and resilient. It is not a source of anxiety for the business. People trust it to work; when something goes wrong, they trust us to fix it.
02
Partnering, not serving
IT is part of business conversations, not on the receiving end of them. We understand what the firm needs and help shape how to get there.
03
Change that sticks
Improvements are delivered in a way people adopt and rely on. Not projects that are technically complete but practically ignored.
04
A team that is confident
The IT team knows where it is going, why it matters and how its work connects to the success of the firm. Clear ownership, clear direction.
My approach to IT leadership
1. Listen. Shape. Deliver. 2. A Strategic Approach to IT 3. Delivering Successful Change
Tools I would bring to the role
4. The 10Past Principle 5. Team Performance Phases 6. CW’s Heartbeat
Strategic white papers
A. Keeler: Product Lifecycle Strategy B. L-3: Connected Fleet Intelligence