SAP's legal department leveraged PERSUIT to create a more disciplined, structured approach to managing outside counsel. Under the leadership of Gabriel Harnier, the transformation focused on three core areas: firm selection, fee arrangements, and procedural optimisation.
The initiative was born from real cost pressure — but rather than viewing it as a constraint, Harnier's team treated it as a catalyst. By running matters competitively through PERSUIT, SAP introduced visibility and rigour to every external engagement.
The results were striking. Targets that had been set for a three-year horizon were achieved in just nine months. Beyond cost avoidance, the programme drove user adoption across the enterprise and fundamentally changed how the legal team engaged with its panel firms.