The design and delivery of modular legal services: implications for supply chain strategy

Abstract

We explore how professional legal services and their supply chains can be modularised. Based on a review of the service modularity, supply chain modularity and supply chain strategy literature, we posit that the scope of service modularisation should be determined by, and aligned with, the supply chain strategy of a firm. We develop a conceptual framework that links the service and supply chain modular architectures with the supply chain strategy of service firms. The framework provides the foundation for an empirical confirmatory analysis through in-depth multiple case studies in 10 law firms in the UK. We identify the current status quo of service and supply chain architectures of professional legal services and then explore several options for their modularisation. Our findings show that legal services are currently over-customised, offering significant opportunities for the application of modularity across their supply chains. We generate insights to show how service modularity can be applied to the service offering, processes and supply chain levels of law firms. We also demonstrate the effects of each level of modularisation on the selection of appropriate interfaces and on the decomposability of services.

Keywords:

• service modularity
• service supply chain strategy
• legal services
• empirical case study