During a consulting project over a decade ago, I prepared a compendious resource book. It contained a wealth of aids to help inside counsel know when to retain outside counsel and what tools to select to best manage them.
I have not seen other examples of such a compilation, but still believe the idea has merit. Especially for large departments, it helps to compile policies about outside counsel and even forms, guidelines, and other resources that can be thrown into the fray. The department will achieve more consistency and will more easily train its lawyers in the art of partner management.