If you feel like you're spending more time firefighting than lawyering, you're not alone. For many in-house teams, legal ops feels like a luxury – something reserved for big legal departments with budgets, bandwidth, and business analysts.

But you don't need a dedicated legal ops function to start getting the benefits. With a few simple process tweaks, even small teams can work smarter, save time, and feel more in control. Here are five improvements you can put in place this quarter – no extra headcount or budget required.

1. Build a bank of repeatable templates

How often are you re-drafting the same types of documents from scratch? Whether it's NDAs, supplier terms, or data processing addenda, creating a centralised bank of pre-approved templates can:

• reduce drafting time dramatically.
• improve consistency and reduce errors.
• allow the business to self-serve on low-risk agreements.

Start small: pick three high-volume, low-risk document types, and agree a final version with your key stakeholders. House them in a shared folder and make sure everyone knows where to find them.

2. Track your team’s work – even if it’s just in a spreadsheet

You don’t need a fancy matter management system to get a handle on workflow. A simple tracker can help you:

• understand what’s on your plate (and where things get stuck).
• report on volumes and trends.
• make the case for more resource.

Include columns for who owns the task, what it relates to, when it came in, and what’s blocking progress. Review weekly, and look for bottlenecks you can eliminate.

3. Define your intake process

One of the biggest time drains? Unstructured, drive-by legal requests.

Set up a simple intake process – even a dedicated email inbox or form can work. Encourage the business to use it by:

• clearly explaining what information you need (e.g. contract value, parties, deadlines).
• sharing it regularly in team meetings or on Slack.
• politely redirecting ad hoc requests to the intake process.

This helps you triage better, prioritise effectively, and keep track of what’s coming in.

4. Create a contract summary template

When you’re pressed for time, explaining the key points of a contract can feel like a chore. But it’s also essential for enabling the business to use agreements properly.

Make it easier by drafting a short summary template that covers:

• key commercial terms.
• renewal and termination rights.
• data, liability and IP provisions.

You can complete it once per contract, and re-use it when questions come up later. Even better: get the business to fill it in first, then check it.

5. Stop re-answering the same questions

How many times have you typed out an email about the same policy or clause? If you find yourself repeating information, it’s time to document it.

Create a lightweight knowledge hub with FAQs, playbooks, or annotated contract templates. Start with the questions you get most often, and expand over time. It doesn’t have to be pretty – clarity is more important than design.

Small changes, big relief

You don’t need a six-figure budget or a legal ops hire to start improving how your legal team works. These small tweaks can free up time, reduce stress, and give you more headspace for the work that really matters.