The world of intellectual property is changing fast. The systems that help rights owners manage their IP assets are changing, too. As technology advances, new features and functionality are helping elevate IP Management to a strategic activity. If it is time to modernise your Intellectual Property Management System (IPMS) and take advantage of the benefits the latest technology can offer – this blog is for you!

First steps: start with what isn’t working

Switching to a new IPMS can be daunting, and it isn’t something you’ll do many times in your career. Before you start, identify what you want from the new system compared to your current position.

New IP management systems typically promise “efficiency” and “productivity” gains, but what does that look like for your business? A good place to start is by identifying the pain points that currently affect your team. What are the jobs they spend most time on? Where do they get frustrated? It might be that searching records is clunky and unintuitive. Perhaps they don’t trust automated date calculation features, or the system doesn’t sync with other software in the business. Wherever time or accuracy is being lost in a process is where you can look for improvements. As a starting point, here are common pain points among formalities teams:

• Inadequate reporting tools and functionality
• Migration fears
• Outdated User Interface
• No or little customer support
• Limited dashboard functionality to cope with different user-centric roles
• Lack of end-user workflow customisation
• Missing or poorly populated rules engine
• The inability to easily integrate with other IP or business systems
• Weak audit trails
• Keeping up with technological trends – AI, Automation, API access
• Costly to customise

 

By taking your current frustrations to prospective providers, rather than simply listening to slick presentations that bombard you with new features, you’ll get a better sense of how their solution can help.

Beyond the specific problems you want to solve, you should also review your business plan. If you plan to expand the services you offer, choosing an IPMS that can support them is crucial.

Here are five more areas to analyse when choosing an IP Management System Provider.

Features and functionality: appearance, adaptability, and analytics

Modern IP Management Systems deliver an array of features beyond the core functions that manage trade marks, registered designs, and patents. You can expect:

• Intuitive interfaces that can be tailored to user preferences and offer built-in accessibility features
• Straightforward, powerful matter search tools enabling rapid data discovery
• Advanced, customisable data visualisations
• AI and automation tools handling data import and intelligent AI document scanning with automatic record updates
• Custom reporting tools that are user friendly
• Flexible record linking enabling you to connect any record to any other, so you get a full picture of the rights and all associated matters
• Interactive family tree visualisation for all IP types enabling a complete brand overview to support strategic decisions
• Comprehensive analytics capabilities
• Full audit trails showing granular data for every change made to any record

Your evaluation of the solution should include a live demo of the system using your own data, before you make any commitment to purchase. You’ll be able to check the vendor’s claims against reality and avoid the risk of purchasing ‘vapourware’!

Onboarding roadmap: managing a successful IP record migration

One of the most common concerns we have come across in our years in the business is that data will be lost or corrupted during the migration process. Prospective IP Management System providers should provide:

• A complete, staged project roadmap
• Detailed data migration plans mapping data from its home in the incumbent system to its new location in the target system
• Realistic time frames for completion and validation of each stage with contingency built in. In our experience, even a complex, multi-source migration should take no longer than 12 weeks.
• Customer references – there’s really no substitute for experience when it comes to IP data migrations. Talking to someone who has already completed a similar project is invaluable
• On-boarding training for all users, tailored to their role.

This last point is crucial – user resistance can derail even the most well-planned IPMS change programme, especially among naturally risk-averse lawyers.

Security: protecting systems

Any third-party software provider should be subjected to rigorous due diligence to ensure their solution doesn’t introduce cyber risk into the business. Ensure providers:

• Are certified to international standards such as ISO27001 and relevant local standards
• Have strong data protection awareness and safeguards in place
• Provide secure access via SSO
• Conduct regular security audits, penetration tests and vulnerability scans, and share outcomes
• Have emergency procedures in place to protect customers and data in the event of malicious attacks or identified vulnerabilities

Additionally, if the IPMS integrates with a large language model to provide AI tools, there must be adequate privacy restrictions in place to ensure that data being processed is not fed back into the LLM.

Looking ahead: scalability and collaboration

Choosing an IP Management System is not a one-time acquisition; you are entering into a partnership with the provider that could last many years. Consequently, you should explore:

• Ability to scale: as your business grows, will the software grow with it? What are the financial implications of increasing use?
• Technical evolution: what is in the product roadmap? What provision is made to futureproof it? Does the provider have realistic plans for AI inclusion?
• Ecosystem integration features: Does the solution interface with national registries, international organisations, and other key IP databases?
• Technology integration capabilities: Can the software integrate with the rest of your IP technology stack? Does it support syncing with collaboration tools to streamline workflows?

Integration potential is a particularly important consideration. In the mid-term it is possible to conceive a world where much of the IP management process can be managed by AI agents (with humans in the loop). This will only work if the systems involved talk to each other. Providers should be offering open APIs together with the documentation you need to work with them – without incurring extra expense.

Service and support

As your new IP Management System settles in, you’ll need support to solve any teething troubles. Make sure you’ve explored:

• Service and support arrangements in your region
• Service Level Agreements
• Training provision: Will the provider continue to offer training to new joiners, and when new features are introduced?
• Other users’ experience of working with the provider

Finally, be alert to the potential for hidden costs. Pricing that “starts from” an attractively low amount can quickly escalate if it doesn’t include all features. Similarly, avoid unnecessary and long contract tie-ins; there’s no need to agree to anything longer than 12 months.

Selecting an IP Management System is a strategic decision that demands careful consideration of its scalability, technical roadmap, integration capabilities, and the quality of service and support provided. By evaluating each area, organisations can ensure their chosen solution not only meets current requirements but also remains robust, futureproof, and adaptable to changing business needs. This comprehensive approach will ultimately safeguard your investment and empower your team to streamline IP management and eliminate the pain points that arise through using legacy technology.