Meet Keith Burke, KLDiscovery’s VP of Global Channel Partner Sales & Legal Technology

“What I value most about the company is the people, their willingness to work collaboratively and cross functionally to help our clients and partners be successful.” Keith Burke VP, Global Channel Partner Sales & Legal Technology

Would you describe the full range of KLDiscovery’s partner and franchise programs and the benefits they offer?

KLDiscovery provides a variety of programs, enabling collaboration opportunities to suit many types and sizes of businesses. And, we continue to invest in enhancing the programs and bringing new innovations to the market.

Our eDiscovery Franchise Program was launched in 2023 and is available to all US-based entrepreneurs looking to capture new revenue streams in the growing eDiscovery market. In fact, the value of the global eDiscovery market is projected to reach $18+ billion by 2030. With this remarkable growth trajectory, serial entrepreneurs and the next generation of legal technology business owners can leverage KLDiscovery’s proven business model, global footprint, full technology stack, and repeatable and scalable processes to diversify their service offerings, attract and serve more clients, and capture a segment of this rapidly growing market.

Both KLDiscovery and Ontrack offer partner programs. On the KLDiscovery side, SaaS partnerships include Nebula®, Relativity Server, and Relativity One. The programs are built to help entrepreneurs reduce operational costs and infrastructure needs, providing scalable paths to growth with multiple delivery options and best-of-breed support. On the Ontrack side, which is focused on data recovery, the Authorized Partner Program is ideal for computer retailers, consultants, and companies in the IT service, education, and government sectors. This program provides a comprehensive suite of benefits including new data recovery revenue streams, exclusive partner discounts, and access to a global network of engineering and R&D expertise.

We also offer a reseller program enabling companies to earn substantial commissions by simply referring clients to KLDiscovery without the need to deliver services or support.

Given the array of partnership options, describe the level of customization available and how a partner could move through different programs.

Organizations have the option to partner with KLDiscovery in a manner aligned with their business goals. Over time, as goals and needs evolve, the level of partnership can evolve to meet them. For example, we may have a partner in the Nebula Partner Program who becomes a franchisee or one of our resellers transitions to a SaaS partnership. Because we offer legal software and services across the EDRM and we invest in continuous improvement, our backend systems are seamless. Not only do we make it easy for partners to work with us, they can add on downstream services or transition their type of partnership as they grow and expand.

Part of the investments that led to a record-breaking year in revenue attainment in 2023 included launching an industry-first eDiscovery Franchise Program. How did this program come about?

eDiscovery growth drivers include a proliferation of data volume and types, ongoing globalization increasing cross-border matters, and an evolving regulatory environment making legal and compliance requirements more difficult and costly. There are countless entrepreneurs in eDiscovery-adjacent businesses like computer forensics, scanning and reprographics, language translation, cyber incident response, and more who could capitalize on this growth as the eDiscovery industry remains fragmented. But challenges lie in the expense required for software licenses, IT security, and business and operational expertise. KLDiscovery’s eDiscovery Franchise Program was created as a turnkey solution to address the barriers to capturing this growing market.

As a previous entrepreneur in the legal industry, tell us about your career path and how you came to hold your current position.

When I finished college, I was considering law school and took a position in a law firm focused on construction litigation. After two years at the firm, I was recruited to a regional company providing scanning and copying before eDiscovery became prominent. The company was later acquired by a larger organization and after that experience, I decided to open Elite Document Solutions in April 2007. We operated as a regional provider for 9 years. In that time, we had several organizations interested in acquisition. Most of the prospective acquirers wanted to take the company in a different direction, but we wanted our team members to have opportunities to grow. KLDiscovery supported our vision and acquired Elite Document Solutions in 2016, welcoming the team with open arms. Today, we still have more than 15 of the original employees at KLDiscovery.

When I joined the company in 2016, my role focused on the acquisition, with the primary goal of moving existing clients into our new technologies for a more efficient workflow. Later, I was promoted to roles directing the Northeast region, helping with merger and acquisition activity, leading special projects, and business development. Today, I wear many hats with the flexibility to not only manage a book of business, but also oversee the partner channel at KLDiscovery.

How did your role as a previous business owner uniquely prepare you to work with companies interested in KLDiscovery’s partner and franchise programs?

The partner channel was a natural progression for me since I was a small business owner. I speak with business owners of all sizes and types and in our conversations, I can quickly and easily relate to their pain points because I used to have the same ones. In developing rapport with entrepreneurs, I am able to show how KLDiscovery can maximize efficiency and reduce their overall spend. Drawing on my experience, I assist partners with building and expanding their eDiscovery practices. Leveraging KLDiscovery’s legal software and services, they are able to compete with industry players who may have a much larger footprint.

In working with partners who are utilizing our software, we share feedback about requested features and updates with our development team. Nebula boasts 150+ developers and monthly updates, which is more frequent than competing products on the market. Because Nebula is KLDiscovery’s platform, we have an advantage over competitors who do not own their software and therefore do not have direct input on the roadmap of enhancements.

You are a member of the ABA Forum on Construction Law and have multiple Nebula Academy certifications. How do you leverage these associations and certifications to support KLDiscovery’s partners?

My membership in the ABA Forum on Construction Law has been a longstanding one and KLDiscovery sponsors some of their conferences. Attending industry events is one way I stay abreast of the latest trends and technologies. I share that knowledge with our partners to help them expand and grow their success.

Nebula Academy is an incredible resource KLDiscovery continues to invest in because it empowers users to get more hands-on in the software. Some clients want KLDiscovery to handle the bulk of the work, but others want to do it themselves. Nebula Academy certifications enable users to create not only a baseline knowledge of the product, but they also provide an opportunity to develop expertise. When my team brings in new partners, we direct them to the Nebula Help site, which shows partners how to do every activity and task in Nebula step by step and includes a link to the Nebula Academy where they can sign up for courses. Nebula Academy offers an educational program showcasing how robust the platform is with extensive features and functionality. For partners who take advantage, the courses and certifications serve as building blocks to be more self-sufficient and reduce spend.

KLDiscovery invested in 330+ new team members and promoted 120+ employees in 2023. Were any of the new hires or promotions on your team? Tell us about your team and their areas of focus.

We recently promoted a tenured KLDiscovery employee to a position on my team. This new business development role focuses on the day-to-day activities required for managing partnerships, eDiscovery, and industry events. The other members of my team have decades of industry experience and they are dedicated to partner prospecting and responding to franchise inquiries.

My team enjoys working with colleagues across KLDiscovery’s global footprint. What I value most about the company is the people, their willingness to work collaboratively and cross functionally to help our clients and partners. We have experts with years of industry experience who are dedicated to our partners’ success.

We extend our sincerest thanks to Keith for generously offering his time and expertise, providing us with an insider’s view of KLDiscovery and shedding light on the investments and contributions being made to enhance the partner and franchisee experience.

This holistic strategy ensures our unprecedented success in 2023 was not a rare accomplishment, but a solid foundation for continued growth and sustainable excellence. Keep an eye out for more features spotlighting the individuals and investments driving KLDiscovery's enduring progress.