That gap between capability and growth is exactly what Harbor's 2026 Marketing Priorities Survey explores.
Across the industry, marketing and business development leaders have invested heavily in MarTech, analytics, and AI. Yet despite these investments, many firms are still struggling to translate capability into measurable growth.
The reason is simple: the infrastructure isn’t keeping pace.
The Stack Isn’t the Strategy
A recent Harbor’s gathering of global law firm leaders revealed a telling reality:
100% of firms say their MarTech stack is incomplete, and most are still adding or replacing tools.
But the bigger issue isn’t what’s missing, it’s what’s not connected.
Integration maturity remains low, with most firms still in planning stages and none reporting a fully integrated stack. Without integration, data remains fragmented, insights remain limited, and ROI remains constrained. These findings are shaping the questions we're asking in the 2026 Marketing Priorities Survey now underway.
AI Is Exposing the Gaps
AI is a top priority for 77% of firms, but adoption is slower than expected. Not because of lack of interest, but because of lack of readiness.
Firms are struggling to define use cases, manage expectations, and navigate resource and governance constraints. Most critically, they are trying to deploy AI on top of disconnected systems and inconsistent data.
AI doesn’t solve these problems. It magnifies them.
The Data Challenge Beneath It All
According to global CMBDO leaders, quality remains one of the biggest barriers to progress.
Eighty-one percent of firms report outdated records. Eighty-six percent rely on ad hoc personnel to manage data quality — and only 14% have dedicated resources in place.
The result is a cycle of reactive cleanup rather than sustained improvement, undermining trust in the very systems firms depend on to drive growth.
To move from managing a MarTech stack to activating it as a growth engine, CMBDOs must shift focus in three key areas:
- Prioritize integration over expansion. More tools won't solve fragmentation. A connected data ecosystem will — and firms that treat integration as a prerequisite to AI, not an afterthought, will move faster and waste less.
- Establish ownership of data quality. Data must be actively managed, not periodically repaired. That means dedicated resources, defined accountability, and a shift from cleanup as an event to quality as an ongoing discipline.
- Take a problem-first approach to AI. The firms making progress on AI aren't starting with technology — they're starting with specific business challenges. Capability follows clarity.
Closing the Gap
The firms that will lead in the next phase of legal marketing won’t be those with the most tools. They’ll be the ones that finally make their systems – and their data – work together. Because growth doesn’t come from the stack itself. It comes from what the stack enables.
Harbor's 2026 Marketing Priorities Survey is designed for the leaders navigating exactly this. Participating firms receive a personalized benchmark dashboard and early access to the full 2026 report — giving CMBDOs additional context as they assess their data strategy, integration maturity, AI readiness, and growth priorities. The survey closes June 22. Participate here.
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