Hi, and welcome to the last Orange Rag newsletter of 2022.
It has been another bizarre year, really. One of celebration at seeing one another in person, and exhaustion at seeing one another in person. We have been at conferences and large gatherings and dinners and awards, hasn’t it been amazing? I have loved seeing so many of you in person – I’ve been to two ILTACONs this year! The conversations people have face to face are so different to the ones we have over Zoom. To be frank, though, everyone has had enough now, and I think I can safely say that we’re all looking forward to retreating into our homes for the Christmas break.
2022 has very much been a year of two halves. The record-breaking level of investment activity in 2021 carried over into 2022 – the ‘State of European Tech 22’ report found that by the end of the first quarter of 2022, investment levels in tech generally were tracking a staggering 52% up from 2021.
Then came the second half, which has been plagued by economic uncertainty and rising energy prices. We have seen investment fall dramatically (40% by the end of Q3, according to the report above) and legal tech redundancies have begun, set against a backdrop of mass layoffs at tech giants such as Twitter, Meta and Amazon.
Relativity in December informed its staff that it is laying off 150 people, and there is nervousness that more will follow, although vendors that are not heavily capitalised are likely to be able to sit it out for longer. In a note of optimism, law firm IT heads tell us that they are yet to feel the pinch of the economic uncertainty, although strategic advisers warn us that clouds are brewing.
Behind the scenes throughout the year, and responsible for much of the economic turmoil, has been Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the political turbulence surrounding it. The Spring of this year saw many multinational law firms pull out of Russia in protest, and the international community rally to support those in need of assistance.
And so, for our last top story of the year, we’re doing something a bit different. We bring you the inspiring tale of a Ukrainian senior account manager at global digital transformation consultancy Avenga, who talked to us about how the company was able to protect its people, hit its project delivery dates, and maintain client relationships despite the invasion. It really is a lesson to us all, as we face choppy waters, that communication, planning, and taking care of our people are absolutely vital as we head into 2023.
Caroline Hill