Peter Wallqvist has departed iManage RAVN to set up on his own as a strategy consultant for automation and machine learning, advising businesses on how to effect meaningful transformation, starting with understanding what their business processes are before they decide how to apply technology.
Wallqvist, who co-founded of RAVN Systems in January 2010 and sold the business to iManage in 2017, left at the beginning of November. As a non-executive director of AIM-listed company Bebgies Traynor Group, which just announced his move to the stock market, he has kept the move quiet until today (10 December).
Speaking to Legal IT Insider, Wallqvist said: “My plan is to advise companies on taking this journey of digital transformation, which sounds very high minded but through the decades we’ve met so many clients that don’t know where to start with these technologies. My idea is to help clients explore the possibilities for their businesses to employ technology. There is this gap between the technology vendor like iManage RAVN and the client and someone needs to bridge the gap between the technology and how it is embedded in the company’s business process so they can use tech at it’s best.”
In terms of the sort of clients that Wallqvist envisages working with, he said: “It’s such an obvious benefit for corporations: if you can reduce the costs by 10%, that is 10% more profit.” He added: “I’d love to work with law firms but they have to have decided they want to become more efficient. Everyone says they want to, but in my experience it’s not that clear cut. So yes, but with the caveat that they have to have decided that and have the right business structure.”
At Legal IT Insider we have been banging the drum that the partnership model makes it difficult to embrace meaningful change and Wallqvist said: “I would completely deconstruct or even reimagine the business model they employ. They are going to have competitors that are built to take advantage of efficiency gains and they have a fear of the Big Four so their best defence is to preempt that by adopting a new business model.”
While Wallqvist plans to take on a fairly high level strategic advisory role he said: “I am still an engineer and I don’t mind getting my hands dirty. I think I have the spectrum to be able to have a conversation at board level and to actually understand what’s happening.”
Asked if he will be recommending and working with iManage RAVN he said: “It’s early days but I know that technology very well and it’s a distinct possibility.”
It has been two years since iManage acquired RAVN and Wallqvist said: “I have nothing but positive things to say about iManage and RAVN has been an amazing journey from beginning to end.” Wallqvist’s decision to leave is in large part driven by the fact that he is moving to Portugal.