Even in the dullest world of office work, technology will boost productivity. Here are 5 ways to maximize your technology investment.
By Joseph Marquette
When considering ways to stretch the already stretched dollar, law firms can often create substantial improvements to their own productivity without any new capital investments. It’s done by understanding where the opportunities for improvement lie and by leveraging the very people you already employ to make it happen. The hardest part may simply be admitting that there are better ways to run your business. The most successful organizations — in any industry — are ones that embrace the concept that they need to be a better firm tomorrow than they are today.
5 Ways to Maximize Your Technology Investment
1. Encourage innovation internally. Most law firms have a group of people who love technology and are anxious to use it all day – every day. Deputize and encourage these people to ‘push the envelope’ and distribute what they learn to the rest of the firm. Adobe Acrobat is a great example of a solution in which most firms only use a fraction of its functionality. There are numerous features available that could save hours a day at many firms but no one is using them. Challenge the users of the system to take advantage of the programs you already own – learn their features, its short-cuts and tricks. It could change the way you handle numerous everyday tasks and save a ton of time and money.
2. Create a culture of constant improvement. The surprising and often underappreciated thing about technology is that even in the dullest world of office work, a constant flow of new ideas will enhance productivity. Once you identify the tasks or features you wish to employ in point #1, recognize that you cannot stop there. Improvement must be a constant and ever-present expectation of the overall business. There are probably dozens of technology tools used by your firm every day and, if industry standards hold true, you’re only using 10% of them. By challenging people to continually better leverage those tools to better their efforts, you’re finding new ways to gather a return on your technology investment. Shoot for 15%, 25% or even 50% percent utilization. Again, be a better firm tomorrow than you are today.
3. Ask clients for suggestions. Your best clients are the ones willing to tell you how you can do your job better. Unfortunately, most firms never ask. Just as you need to encourage constant improvement and leverage your technology savvy resources, you also need to ask your client to help you serve them better. Odds are you will be very surprised by their responses but it will provide a very clear path to meeting their expectations in the future. This feedback can be invaluable when prioritizing your tasks from points 1 & 2!
4. Leverage your vendors. Never let your software or hardware go stale. Having a software tool that has not been updated, reviewed, or retrained in over 12 months is an investment that is rapidly losing its value. You can leverage your vendors to push this initiative. Look for their insight and support for training, customization or even simply insights on how other people are using the software. What problems {File Number: 00038613} have they seen other clients resolve through better use of their software? Then set expectations with your providers to continually follow up with your key users to evaluate how your tools are meeting the needs of the firm. This does not necessarily mean spending more $$ on your software, but it may. And never confuse ‘Vendor’ and ‘Sales People.’ Work directly with the vendor to create this sort of program.
5. Always use technology to make things EASIER! The biggest challenge with new technology is that its introduction is often met with disruption, confusion and resistance. That will never change. However, in the timeline of these new tools, you should expect things to eventually become much easier. Whether you are using a new document management tool, practice management system or billing software, in a relatively short period of time, the firm should see everyday tasks become easier and more streamlined. If not, contact your vendor to see why not. Perhaps the firm is not using the tool as it was meant to be used or your staff has simply not been adequately trained. There are may be other reasons for the slow down; however, the bottom line is that it is important make sure the tools are helping – not hindering your business. Hopefully these items will stir-up some ideas and get you started in the right direction.
Joseph Marquette is the President of Accellis Technology Group, a legal technology services and consulting firm located in Cleveland, Ohio. A graduate of the University of Illinois, Joe has gathered extensive experience in the IT field by serving as the Chief Technology Officer for a large Internet company, Vice-President of Consulting services for a national technology consulting firm, President of a regional technology firm, and now founder of Accellis Technology Group. During his professional career, he has been responsible for the implementation of a wide range of enterprise business applications for business large and small across the country. Reprinted with permission.
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