Last week I wrote a post on planning for business continuity during unexpected interruptions in operations. Ari Kaplan of Ari Kaplin Advisors wrote an article on Law.com that also addresses disaster recovery. He tells of a miserable experience trying to recover data from a cracked hard drive when his child pulled his laptop to the ground when tugging on the power cord (an experience I have narrowly escaped many times with my children).
He shares some tips he received from Jeffrey Brandt on protecting yourself from what he terms "data armageddon":
- Centralize Contacts - Keep all critical contacts on your person (ie, on a mobile device).
- Remote Data Housing - Host your data remotely. ** I personally don't think this is required so long as you have good, reliable backups that are kept offsite. However, for business continuity, having your data accessible from anywhere has its merits. **
- Duplicate Or Near Duplicate Systems - create redundancy in your servers. Replicate them so that if one goes down, another comes online.
- Secure Your Backups - keep backups offsite at a secure location. Preferably in a fire-proof vault.
- Map and identify your information - this is good advice to corporate clients as well - "in every subsequent litigation [it will have to explain] what happened and why it could not produce data for that specific date range".
- Test Regularly - this is one that will bite if not followed. Test your backups regularly to make sure your backup software is working properly.
There are several technologies that take advantage of "universal access" capabilities. For example, LexisNexis has a product called NetDocuments® that hosts and manages email and documents offsite that allows access even from a mobile device.
Kaplan has an answer to those who balk at spending such time and money to protect their data: "Although planning and preparing is not cheap, contact someone who has lived through disaster recovery and he or she will convince you that it is priceless."
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris®. For information about Juris products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:
877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Disaster Recovery by Brian J. Ritchey
Paula Black knows graphic design. John Remsen, Jr. knows marketing. The author of The Little Black Book on Law Firm Branding and Positioning has teamed up with Remsen to create The Little Black Book on Law Firm Marketing and Business Development.
The layout of the book has the trademark of a graphic artist - plenty of variation of font, paper type and thickness. This is no dry business book!
The content is, of course, what matters. The book takes a mixture of survey findings, anecdotes from several managing partners representing mid-sized firms, and a simple formula for marketing success:
Build a plan;
invest in the plan;
implement the plan;
measure the results.
John Remsen founded The Remsen Group in 1997 to help bring effective and cost-efficient marketing and business development programs to commercial law firms of all types and sizes. The Remsen Group provides services ranging from developing firm-wide marketing plans to helping firms plan firm retreats. The Remsen Group also organizes and presents the managing partner forum.
For more information or to purchase the book, click here.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris®. For information about Juris products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:
877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Marketing by Brian J. Ritchey
To understand how the economics of your particular law firm are changing as related to staff leverage, compute and track more than one leverage number:
- Snapshot leverage: The snapshot metric consistently measures the ratio of associates to partners at the same time of year to determine the direction of movement in leverage, i.e., calendar quarter, end of year. For this purpose, the only adjustment should be to convert “part-time” associates to full-time equivalents.
- Performance leverage: The performance metric converts all counts from the end of period numbers to full-time equivalents for the period. For example, a new associate hired at mid-year and in training for three months would be .25 percent of a full-time associate for the year, whereas under the snapshot measure, the associate would count in full.
- Hours leverage: Hours leverage, like the snapshot metric, is a period computation. In this case, the ratio being computed is the ratio of associate hours to partner hours. This computation is self-adjusting for part-time and recently hired fee earners and also is impacted by utilization. Underutilization lowers the ratio and improved utilization increases leverage without any increase in operating cost.
Why is leverage an important management tool? Without leverage, partner income is limited to the income-producing “work” capacity of the partners. Leverage increases partner income by shifting a portion of the income-producing capacity from the work done by the partner to the work that the partner can achieve through “delegation and supervision” of others.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center: 877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Leverage by Tom Collins
Shortly after posting Wild Weather, Fires, Floods Threaten Law Firms, I received an e-mail from Ed Poll telling me about a new publication he has authored. The special report, Disaster Preparedness & Recovery for Law Firms, is scheduled for release in June but can be ordered now. According to Ed, the book draws on the work of more than a dozen firms that came together after 9/11 to create a recovery template for their firms.
Ed wrote the following about his new book:
Disaster planning is one of the most specialized, most overlooked, and most vital business planning endeavors. The goal is to develop a recovery strategy to get your firm up and running again and thus ensure its survival. This volume gives you the critical steps, including:
- The essentials of a comprehensive recovery plan
- How to create a team to plan the firm’s response
- Where legal ethics and disaster planning intersect
- Must-dos to safeguard and support your people
You can order Disaster Preparedness & Recovery for Law Firms in advance of its June 2007 distribution date for the prepublication price of $47.00.
Ed Poll, J.D., M.B.A., CMC, advises law firms and their leaders on practice management, business development, and financial matters. He is a nationally recognized coach and the author of a widely read series of practical guides for law firms. His advice has benefited national, regional, and local law firms. Ed is unique in that he has long-term experience in both business and law. For more about Ed or his consulting enterprise LawBiz®, visit his web site or the blog Ed hosts.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center: 877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Blog by Tom Collins
The answer to increased performance is to step back from the daily wars of the law practice and ask, “How can we do this smarter? How can we tie our revenue and fortunes to something more than just the partner’s billable time?” Leverage in terms of fee earners, technology, knowledge management, relationships and, yes, pricing strategies is an important part of the right answer. As for fee earner leverage, its impact on per-partner earnings is well known and understood. So, it is surprising that 75 percent of midrange law firms are not successfully implementing the strategy.
The chart shown below is one of many included in the 55-page Juris, Inc. Law Firm Economic Survey published last year. The survey reflected the financial performance of midrange-sized U.S. law firms for the year 2005. Survey results confirmed the important role that leverage plays in determining law firm partner earnings. The first quartile, the top performing 25 percent of law firms, earned more than twice the per-partner income of the next highest group.
The same survey indicated that associates in half of the surveyed firms worked less than 1400 hours. Even among the top performing 50% of firms, the average billed hours for associates ranged from 1550 to 1600. The majority of midrange law firms are both under leveraged and underutilizing the associates that they do have. The only way out of that income-limiting box is invest in improved scheduling and delegation with respect to existing non-partner resources. Partners need to give up some short term income shifting their individual effort from “billable work” to business development, recruiting, mentoring and professional development.
That is apparently a hard call for the majority of midrange firms to make. I’m reminded of a cartoon I saw years ago. A Gatling gun salesman was standing at the entrance to a medieval tent as the guard, complete with armor and spear, was saying, “I’m sorry, but the general says he is too busy fighting the war to meet with you.”
Work on this year’s annual Economic Survey is currently underway. Click here to participate and to automatically receive the results and analysis without charge.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center at 877/377-374, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Leverage by Tom Collins
One never goes home with plans to use all 60 hot tips and gadgets from those "60 ideas in 60-seconds" conference sessions. But there are always at least three you can’t wait to try. As I was cleaning out my C drawer, I ran across my notes from last year's Wisconsin Bar conference on Technology. Here are my three from the 60 Tips session at that conference:
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The marker-shaped spot remover Tide to Go® actually works! Keep one of these $3 items in your office, at home, and packed for the road.
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Conducting satisfaction surveys has never been so easy, so professional, or so inexpensive. Go to http://info.zoomerang.com .
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My favorite tip is the Two Out of Three Rule. All clients/matters should have a minimum of two out of the following three attributes:
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Interesting and challenging matters
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People you enjoy
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They should pay you
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center:
877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Blog by Tom Collins
I mentioned it some time ago, but it is worth reminding readers that there is an annual conference dedicated to driving law firm sales and building client loyalty. The annual RainDance conference is organized by The Legal Sales and Service Organization (LSSO). The 2007 conference is being held at the Four Seasons in Dallas, June 12th through the 14th.
Check out the agenda and the Association’s web site. Membership in the LSSO and the conference are worth your consideration.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center: 877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Blog by Tom Collins
Lawrence and Jill Rose Kohn, writing in the April/May 2007 issue of Law Practice, explained that “Staying Connected” gives those entering the legal profession an edge up. Why? It gives you the edge because “staying in touch” is the performance secret of successful rainmakers.
It is so simple! It is so basic! Rain happens when you stay in touch with colleagues, acquaintances and all those with whom you have had business contacts. The idea is to never waste a relationship. Yet, it happens every day as attorneys get caught up in day-to-day fires and demands of a law firm. It happens because as our career and social contacts put us in touch with more and more people, our prior relationships fade into the past.
At least that is what happens if you fail to do one simple thing—keep records and use them. An old proverb says the best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago; the second best time is today! If you are not using a database to keep up with the people who can become clients, referral sources, or your promoters and sponsors, the second best time to do it is today.
If your firm doesn’t already have an enterprise level contact management system like ContactEase, you can encourage them to make the investment in one. But don’t wait another day. Go online and purchase a product for your own individual use. Two frequently used and inexpensive products include Act and Goldmine. I prefer Goldmine, but you can’t go wrong with either and they are both less than $200. You can also find other similar products by searching for "contact management software" on the Internet.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center at 877/377-3740, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Marketing by Tom Collins
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Bruce MacEwen, an economist at heart, reminded law firm leaders that sooner or later, they are going to face another recession. His post on Adam Smith, Esq. noted that the Hildebrandt/Citigroup 2007 Client Advisory anticipates that the 2007 bottom line for U. S. law firms will be squeezed by increasing cost with little, if any, revenue growth over 2006.
Morepartnerincome’s outlook for midrange law firms is more optimistic. Nevertheless, as Bruce reminds us “….we all know one lies in store sooner or later.” The important question posed by MacEwen is, “Will you be ready?”
Prepared organizations not only survive the periodic downturns of a cyclical economy, they prosper in relation to peers. They come out of recessions stronger with increased market shares. Bruce MacEwen’s post includes some examples from the commercial world. Morepartnerincome offered the following 2007 advice in the earlier post Law Firm View of the Economic Outlook for 2007:
While the outlook is for a good year, it may be one best suited to consolidating your gains and strengthening your law firm financial health and operation performance—emphasizing improved planning, workflow efficiency, and the firm’s overall performance metrics. Concentrate on improved effective rates, better scheduling and delegation to the firm’s associates and paralegals as well as on faster billing and collection. Use this period to replace any remaining legacy systems. You don’t want to get caught in recession or downturn with systems that are no longer supported or that become operationally unsound. Nor do you want to have the competitive disadvantage of being behind your peers.
Morepartnerincome.com is sponsored by Juris, Inc. For information about Juris® products and services for increasing law firm performance and partner income contact Juris National Sales Center at 877/377-374, e-mail info@juris.com or go to www.Juris.com.
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Filed under Operations by Tom Collins
Modeling the Law Firm's Financial Performance
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"More Ideas in Disaster Recovery For Law Firms"…
Posted by Brian J. Ritchey: Last week I wrote a post on planning for business continuity during unexpected interruptions in…