Seven key stages of data-driven thinking

Human beings create 328.77 million terabytes of data per day. However, that data only becomes useful when people analyze and apply it to make better decisions. 

It’s the same story in the legal world. Whether you realize it or not, everything you do generates data — from the contracts you sign to the cases you complete. We live in a data-driven world — and it’s time to start thinking with that mindset.

In this blog, we’ll explore why data is critical to evidence-based decision-making and the seven steps that can help you start thinking in a data-driven way.

Why data-driven thinking matters

Data-driven thinking is about using data to make informed decisions, solve problems, and inform strategies with evidence-based insights – not intuition and guesswork. 

This means collecting data, analyzing it to create actionable insights, and applying those insights to real-world scenarios to develop more effective strategies.

However, for data-driven thinking to make a meaningful impact, you must continuously apply it to your day-to-day decision making. It should be at the heart of everything. To help you get started, let’s break the data-driven thinking process down into seven definite steps. 

The seven steps behind data-driven thinking

Data-driven thinking can be applied to any scenario that involves solving problems or making complex decisions. Let’s explore what that might look like in a law firm environment — in this case, using the example of a mitigation specialist wanting to learn how well the firm’s lawyers perform in court.

1. Define the problem

First, you’ll define the problem you want to address by clarifying what it is and determining its scope. 
In our theoretical scenario, that problem is a lack of insight into your lawyers' effectiveness in court, including their strengths and weaknesses. To ensure you fill all the gaps in your knowledge, you’ll need to question the many variables that may impact a lawyer’s performance. 

For example, you may want to question if your firm is more likely to succeed at trial when representing claimants or defendants, how many cases of a given type went to trial, and did the success rate vary between different courts?

2. Identify the relevant data sources

Next, you must find the relevant data to solve your problem. Take the time to explore what sources and methods of data collection are available to you and which can add value.

Following our narrative example, you’ll likely earmark data related to trial dates and durations, different courts and judges, case types and the role of the client, legal representation on all sides, and the trial's eventual outcome.

3. Collect and analyze the required data

Now comes the time to collect the relevant data from its sources. 

Keeping in context with our law firm scenario, that includes judgement data from public sources such as the national archives, and online court listings. You may also reference internal court calendars, interview lawyers, and gather insight using data entry forms.

Once collected, you can visualize your data using sharable charts and tables to identify trends and correlations more easily.

4. Interpret the results

After this, you must interpret the results from your analysis and draw actionable conclusions. 

This will help you identify what’s influencing lawyer performance and how these factors impact your law firm’s trial success rate.

For example, you may be able to see whether you’re more successful when working with a particular judge, or if your law firm is more successful when working as a claimant or defendant. You may even learn that certain lawyers work better together than others.

But the value of this stage hinges on the scenario —  and the quality of the data you’ve gathered and analyzed.

5. Make decisions to drive change

Here’s where the results of your data analysis are used to drive meaningful change. 

Using the insights gained, your law firm can now develop strategies to improve your lawyers’ success rate in court. For example, you may choose to personalize training for lawyers struggling in specific case types. Or you may also use data that reveals your firm’s impressive success rate in family cases to target your marketing campaigns.

Whatever the case, this is your opportunity to demonstrate the power of data-driven thinking and tackle the problem you identified in step one.

6. Monitor and evaluate

The journey doesn’t end when you start enacting change, though. You’ll now need to look at the effect your decisions are having on the problem, determine whether they’re working, and adjust as necessary.

This requires consistently monitoring the effectiveness of your actions, and making informed adjustments based on feedback from those they impact. It’s hugely beneficial to continue to collect and analyze new data as part of an ongoing investigation.

7. Communicate the results

This is perhaps the most important step of all — clearly communicating the results of your analysis and decision-making to the relevant stakeholders. How you achieve this will depend on the audience. 

For example, lawyers will want to explore legal implications — such as whether a case strategy works well with certain judges. Clients will be interested in data relevant to their case and how it can help you improve their chances of success. And the firm will want to understand how these insights support strategic goals and contribute to long-term growth.

Ready to apply data-driven thinking?

Improving your data and strategic decision-making doesn’t happen overnight — but building a habit of applying these seven steps can make a powerful difference. Whether you’re refining internal processes, evaluating legal outcomes, or identifying new opportunities, embedding data into your decision-making will help you move with more clarity, confidence, and impact.

If your data-driven thinking has led you to explore how the right technology could improve your workday, schedule a demo to learn how iManage can help.