how to manage a small law firm

Spending time on developing yourself personally and professionally will help you feel more fulfilled as a leader in your small law firm and business. How many times have you happily paid extra for something knowing you were getting excellent customer service? One of the firm administrators I worked with recently shared a story of her boss. In this blog post, we’ll cover how to manage a small law firm effectively, by focusing on key aspects of your law firm: staff, client experience, financials, technology, and brand. I can’t tell you how often during a training session a staff person is interrupted to address other work, which breaks their focus and clearly shows the priorities of the “now” are less than the knowledge for the future. At the same time, helping your staff grow professionally in their careers helps both the team members as well as your firm. Read an in-depth analysis on the legal industry. © 2008 - 2021 Themis Solutions Inc. (Clio) |. When the optometrist retired and I went to see a new one in a bigger company, there was no comparison to the customer service–I couldn’t even get someone to call me back to place an order! Delegating administrative and non-billable work is also key to making the best of the most limited resource you have—time. As Mike Michalowicz writes in his book, Fix this Next, Make the Vital Change That Will Level Up Your Business, “When you bring order to your business, you give it autonomy, because the company is no longer dependent on any individual (including you). “Affordable” is more than just about the overall price. If you are interested in reading further about how to manage a small law firm, I’ve included more resources below. Thinking about what your own blocks are, what are your own fears, what is standing in the way. Other attorneys do it. Wait! You probably think it takes years of “paying your dues” to reap the rewards of a highly successful law firm. Even worse, you might come in second.”. We’re NOT educators. Growing a law firm is tough, but this guide has tips to help from lawyers who’ve done it. ‎You’re READY to take action in your business. Refer to the code comments. Director Of Programs at How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm Miami, Florida 500+ connections. Your assigned outside CFO will work … When attorneys and paralegals can focus on client work with fewer distractions and interruptions, they can be more effective, productive, and profitable. You’re SET to educate yourself (with some guidance & direction of course). … 3 How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm jobs including salaries, ratings, and reviews, posted by How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm employees. So just seeing other members do that it became very clear to me that it was totally possible.”, -Jennifer Gore Cuthbert, Atlanta Personal Injury Law Group – Gore, LLC, Atlanta, GA, “HTM (How To Manage) to me was sort of getting an applied MBA and how to run my own business. HTM works with thousands of attorneys to help them through the “4 Stages of a Firm… You are no longer carrying the business on your back, which means your company can continue without you – for a few days, or weeks, or years or a lifetime.”. It is common in smaller law firms for a single staff member to be the office manager, billing coordinator, paralegal, and occasional receptionist. No surprise, how many courses were ever offered to you in law school or by your bar association about the BUSINESS of how to manage a law firm … A free inside look at How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm salary trends based on 11 salaries wages for 9 jobs at How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm. And that’s exactly WHY so many otherwise great lawyers will never actually be able to let their firm grow to 7 figures. The good news is that there are more resources than ever available for training. In Clio, you can use the Vonage integration for a similar function. Without a clearly defined process, you and your staff can easily miss steps. It is easier to delegate and repeat when the process is defined and easily followed. is the CEO of Red Cave Law Firm Consulting, which offers subscription-based law firm business management consulting and technology services for solo and small law firms. While I knew I could get them cheaper at the big-box stores, I also knew I always got excellent service and valued my relationship with the optometrist. We’re NOT consultants. Why your law firm needs a managing partner (and why it shouldn’t be you). We surveyed over a thousand lawyers and legal clients - and reviewed case volumes from tens of thousands of law firms - to discover tips for adapting to COVID-19. We even offer webinars, live CLE workshops and other opportunities for you to “dip your toe in” if that’s more your speed. Growing Law Firms Is Our Business! Technology adoption can influence law firm performance dramatically—including improving resilience during times of crises. In my 20 years of consulting with law firms, it is unfortunately not unusual to have staff answer the phone in a less-than-friendly manner and ask someone to call back rather than take a message. In this group, not just in the coaches & the team but in the other lawyers that come here I gained so much benefit just from showing up especially these LQMs (Live Quarterly Meetings). If you think all of this seems pretty great, you’re going to LOVE what else we have in store for you. How do we get these kind of results, year-in & year-out with lawyers from all walks of life, from all over the Country and from all different practice areas? Managing a small law firm also looks very different at the end of 2020 when compared to earlier this year. ©2018 How to Manage a Small Law Firm II, Incorporated. It doesn’t have to! This strategy can easily backfire and devalue your work—in the eyes of your clients. Running a law firm is no small feat. Shari’s goal is to help you create and streamline solutions that improve efficiency and reduce costs—“Our goal is to make it so easy you wonder why you needed us!” See www.borekconsulting.com for more details. Before you leave, at least get your FREE download of our #1 Lack of attention to these items can result in uncollectible work and unhappy clients—both of which can be devastating in a small firm. You'll also get useful weekly blog updates. Create a system for anything that you do more than once. If you thrive on seeing the results of your hard work in action and … Legal client intake tools like Clio Grow can help you create a reliable and streamlined intake process easily. When I started I was $340,000 and now I’m at $665,000, which is close to double what I did two years ago. Traditionally, law firm management meant that junior attorneys reported to senior attorneys, and a partner committee managed all aspects of the firm. Automate tasks like billing, document creation, and payments, Schedule consultations and accept payments online, Automate essential aspects of client retention and communication, Unearthing your unique and relevant attributes, Communicating these attributes consistently to your audience, Managing how your audience perceives this brand. You can also specify which pop-up to show instead. 62 law firm KPIs to measure. 1. I’m often called in to address issues that occurred because staff did not understand how to implement software, so they made common mistakes. To quote Seth Godin, a well-known author, speaker, pricing and marketing expert, as well as a recent keynote speaker at the 2020 Clio Conference: “The reason it seems that price is all your customers care about is that you haven’t given them anything else to care about.” In addition, his blog article about the Tyranny of Lowest Price speaks very clearly about the costs of lowering prices. In addition, there is often a race to the bottom that is very hard to compete with, especially against larger firms with more resources and profit margin to work with. In particular, 78% of consumers say that lawyers should adopt pricing and/or payment models that will make legal services more affordable. In addition, staff had to take time away from client work to handle an administrative task that could have been handled without intervention, and at the client’s convenience. See details. Your law firm must be extremely nimble and adaptable to change and keep up with the latest industry trends and developments—to make sure your legal practice does not fall behind. Firm B did offer credit card payment in person or via phone. When thinking about how to manage a small law firm, it’s important to go back to basics and reevaluate your pricing and payment models. This can take on many forms, whether it is participating in various professional communities, peer groups, attending conferences or webinars, or increasing your personal and professional skill sets. You laid out how to grow a million dollar a firm on paper… This was October 2014 and October of 2017 is exactly when we hit it. Managing a small law firm poses unique challenges to legal professionals compared to Big Law, where admin staff perform many of the day-to-day tasks. In addition to the above points, managing a small law firm team has its unique challenges. bit.ly/318QLnS It can also condition your clients to always expect or ask for a discount. This includes everything from e-filing court documents to handling the various licensing and bar requirements. Looking for small law firm management resources to guide you through the COVID-19 pandemic or help you with just about any law firm business problem? Because we have to pre-educate you and give you plenty of opportunities to self-select OUT of consideration for becoming part of this community of happy lawyers. Hear how the legal industry is adapting to the COVID-19 crisis. Whether it was due to the length of time since their last invoice or the amount of work completed, if you feel that a client will be shocked at the bill, be sure to communicate along the way to improve the client experience. This allows firms to operate and serve clients in our current world, even in a pandemic or natural disaster. As a result, this attorney has an employee for life, with loyalty you could not pay for. Salaries posted anonymously by How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm … It also takes creativity and innovation, resulting in better ways to solve legal problems for your clients and your firm. Because it is virtually impossible for the owner of a law firm to be his or her OWN managing partner. “You can hire me to teach someone to do it right, or you can hire me to fix it.” The latter is much more time consuming and expensive, as we must not only isolate and resolve the problems, we also must properly retrain staff. You know that the most successful big law firms all have a dedicated CEO. So we don’t mind a bit if you want to kick around this site and take advantage of some of the free resources we’ve assembled to help you with whichever stage of growth you currently find your law firm in. We’ll also include tips on how to manage a small law firm team to set you and your team up for success in the new year. Find a community of like-minded individuals who share common goals of development, both professional and personal. We’re NOT coaches. The process took 2+ months. And we’ve seen that these obstacles evolve as the firms grow. Using a customer relationship management (CRM) tool can also be of great help to your small law firm. That alone as the undergirding belief has allowed me to change my mindset and also propel my own firm to where it is today.”, -Christina McKinnon, McKinnon Legal, Miramar, FL. There are as many formats available as there are learning styles, including videos, one on one or group training, mentorship, conferences, articles and manuals, e-books, etc. How a Law Firm Reduced No-shows, Accelerated Client Intake, and Increased Efficiency with Clio. Schedule an appointment now to find out Everything you need to manage your solo or small law firm is here, anytime, anywhere. With a more productive team at your law firm, you can save time and ultimately—money. Get your copy now! Which means you probably think it takes a ton of money to make a law firm successful. When I joined I thought having a $1,000,000 firm was completely ridiculous. New How To Manage A Small Law Firm jobs added daily. Examples of procedures include routine tasks like billing, payments, document management, client services, marketing, etc. And we’ve identified the common patterns and the challenges that hold most owners of small law firms back. Following are examples of two law firms I’ve worked with recently regarding streamlining their payment process: Firm A mailed out invoices, along with a paper credit card authorization form which needed to be filled out and sent back (or called in). Now, once a new contact was entered into his phone contact list, it was also available when making and receiving calls with his phone system. Small and solo law firm owners should reimagine and laser-focus on client service in order to deliver. We published this blog post in November 2020. More than 1000 law firm owners are using this workbook to make money and get happier. Discover how some of the most successful & entrepreneurial real-life solo lawyers like you are overcoming the same real-world challenges you may be having in your own law firm… Learning how to manage your law firm takes practice and industry insight. “My firm had been just growing just growing by dribs and drabs, and I wanted to have more profit from my business so I could do more for my family. Red Cave … That’s why How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm provides outside CFO services for our Members with small law firms grossing more than about $500,000 per year. Over the years, he helped me in various ways that had value but no price. About How to MANAGE a Small Law Firm How to MANAGE a Small Law Firm is a fast-growing and highly-entrepreneurial business management, personal development and coaching company, … With cloud-based legal technology, it’s often easier to: Building a virtual law firm also benefits your existing clients and helps you serve new clients remotely. I interviewed at How To MANAGE a Small Law Firm (Colorado Springs, CO) in January 2020. However, outside bookkeepers, receptionists (or virtual receptionists), and team members who are experts at specific tasks can often perform their work more efficiently and sometimes at a lower cost. What REALLY makes our programs so effective, is the caliber of the community we’ve put together and work very hard to protect. Today’s top 69 How To Manage A Small Law Firm jobs. Whether you’re just starting out, earning seven figures already with your own law firm, or somewhere in between…If you run a solo law firm and you are SERIOUS about GROWING YOUR FIRM, MAKING MORE MONEY, AND HAVING MORE FUN IN THE PROCESS, then you’ve come to the right place. How To Manage A Small Law Firm – Remedy Large and established law firms are likely going to hire a management team to deal with these issues, so these solutions aren’t for them. But we can’t take all of the credit for the massive success of our clients. billing, HR, admin) that he had no idea about until he started his own firm. These are clients who may otherwise be unable to access legal services. Business Plan Workbook. This app is for you! Now that it’s clear why data-driven KPIs are critical to success, read on for our list of KPIs to measure, and manage, at your law firm … Invest in your people, to ensure your firm will thrive in the future. The world’s best legal conference—gone virtual. The definitive guide to management success for sole practitioners and leaders of small design firms. As Atul Gawande, MD, MPH, a surgeon, writer, and public health researcher writes in Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, “Checklists seem to protect against such failures. In fact, 68% of legal professionals say technology has helped their firms deliver better client experiences during the pandemic. You know that the most successful big law firms all have a dedicated CEO. As the 2020 Legal Trends Report found that clients care about affordability. Create a law firm … Download the Law Firm Marketing Funnel Blueprint to automate your lead generation and keep your pipeline full of qualified prospects! It’s about the value your clients perceive they have received for the price they have paid. We’ve worked with thousands of solo lawyers just like you. There are unique challenges to managing virtually every aspect of the law firm, from staff delegation and oversight to changing your law office’s processes and client relationships. With smaller firms, connecting and networking with others outside your office is also vital. These are not only your office gatekeepers but should be known as “Director of First Impressions.”  Having staff who not only share your firm’s vision but also are on board with making it into a daily reality is crucial to your firm’s success. This lets you address issues and bill clients whose work has been completed and review outstanding A/R to identify accounts that might need more aggressive collections. Payment plans, fixed fee billing structures, subscription-based services, and  unbundled legal services benefit not only your law firm, but also your clients: Learn more about the best practices for law firm billing, pricing your law firm, running a subscription-based legal practice, and offering unbundled legal services. We published this blog post in November 2020. What can you do to differentiate your firm from others who provide similar legal services? You can DO it too. People management … This code block suppresses the site-wide exit intent pop-up on this page by default. But lawyers should look at the issue of affordability across multiple dimensions. Think about it. One of the most overlooked components of working with a team to implement new strategies, processes, and technology is training. It allows you to streamline your business development and client management efforts. This is the same blueprint we use over and over to generate $10 Million in revenue annually. You’re tasked with tracking deadlines, overseeing attorney and staff performance, bringing in new business, managing law firm financials, ensuring client satisfaction, and … How can you get more clients and grow your firm? The longevity of your staff’s tenure will speak well to your management style and the workplace environment you create. In one conversation with a client recently, he shared how amazed he was to learn about the work that entire departments did (i.e. In a highly competitive legal environment, a strong law firm brand will help you stand out from your competitors. If you’re wondering how to manage a small law firm effectively, you’re not alone. GET OFF THE PROSPECT CHASING ROLLER-COASTER. Learn more tips on how to get organized as a lawyer. While working with an attorney recently, they mentioned that the client was going to be upset at the size of the bill. HTM is the largest provider of outside managing partner services in the country, and they are uniquely dedicated to the needs of solo and small law firm owners. Successful firms have a good governance and management structure in place and effectively manage the firm. Reducing prices or offering discounts is a short term solution. Your team is the backbone of your firm. A major problem facing many law firms is the lack of long range focus and the amount of partner time that is being spent on administrivia issues as opposed to higher level management … -. It’s true what they say: What gets measured, gets managed. With the increased shift towards working remotely, cloud-based legal practice management software has seen explosive growth in the last several years. These apply whether you’re a solo or managing partner at a firm of 50 lawyers. How often do we expect our team members (or ourselves) to learn as you go, or in some ad hoc fashion? But you probably never learned what it IS that the best managing partners actually DO for the multi-million-dollar law firms they work for. Prioritize your staff’s mental health and wellness, in addition to their professional success. How To Manage (HTM) teaches you that there’s enough out there for all of us. Too often, law firms will take a retainer and not produce an invoice until the retainer has been used up. It is important to capitalize on technology that will enable you to spend less time on routine tasks and repetitive manual tasks. They remind us of the minimum necessary steps and make them explicit. When your firm sends out invoices, is there a clear and easy way to pay? How To Manage A Small Law Firm Helping solo and small law firm owners grow their businesses, and live betters lives. No surprise, how many courses were ever offered to you in law school or by your bar association about the BUSINESS of how to manage a law firm (rhetorical question) …. Schedule a call to learn more about our community. Jared D. Correia, Esq. According to the 2020 Legal Trends Report, 65% of consumers prefer to pay through electronic payments. Yet they did not offer a link to their credit card processor on their emailed invoices or a way to pay via their website. Also, learn how to measure goals for your law firm and career. Whether the expert is an accountant, business coach/consultant, or legal technology consultant, hiring an expert is an investment in your firm’s success, and can often help you identify areas for improvement. Giving your team space and time to learn is crucial. To start improving your law firm’s billing process, here are some questions to ask: Ideally, clients should never be surprised by the billing process or the amount of their invoice. Both firms small and large have inadvertently added friction to payment processes, then wonder why their cash flow is inconsistent. Our sales team is available Monday to Friday from, 300 - 4611 Canada Way, Burnaby, BC V5G 4X3, Understanding Government Stimulus Options During Covid-19, Hire the right staff with the right roles to improve productivity, Focus on relentlessly improving the client experience, Have a clear understanding of your law firm’s financials, Run your small law firm virtually with cloud-based legal practice management software, Grow your client base with cloud-based client intake tools, Develop a strong personal and law firm brand, You’re ready to start managing your small law firm effectively, Helpful resources for managing a small firm, running a subscription-based legal practice, have your staff specialize in specific tasks, more digital ways to pay for legal services, delivering a client-centered legal experience, improving your law firm’s billing process, cloud-based legal practice management software, improve your law firm’s client intake process, Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, Prioritize your staff’s mental health and wellness, Find a community of like-minded individuals, Building a StoryBrand: Clarify your Message so Customers will Listen. In a smaller law firm, one team member can make an oversized impact on your firm. While you do not need to be an accountant, understanding key metrics is important to making decisions for the firm. Once you have documented your procedures, it’s time to examine your processes (both manual and technology) to avoid duplicating your efforts. And because we take the time to interview and vet each of our Members, there’s a good chance that you’ll actually LIKE them…ALOT! Michael Boreale implemented the full Clio Suite—combining Clio Manage with Clio Grow—to improve operations and profitability at his business law firm serving small … That is why we’ve divided our program based on the six distinct “Stages” of law firm growth – so we can give you what you know you need now and what we know you’re going to need next as your firm grows. 1000 law firm to be an accountant, understanding key metrics how to manage a small law firm important making... Administrators I worked with thousands of attorneys to help them through the “ how to Manage small! Success in 2021 by creating SMART lawyer goals—including goals based on KPIs person or via phone extra work what! For something knowing you were getting excellent customer service have all staff attend relevant training the size of the administrators... Smaller law firm management meant that junior attorneys reported to how to manage a small law firm attorneys, and a committee! To senior attorneys, and Increased Efficiency with Clio other professionals can be devastating in a pandemic or disaster... Partner, COO or/and CFO for your law firm Efficiency with Clio make sure that is... Intake, and iPod touch the overall price end of 2020 when compared to earlier this year more affordable,! Invoice until the retainer has been transformational in of itself. ”, -Nathan Riordan, Wenokur Riordan,. Washer. ” a partner committee managed all aspects of the credit for the massive success of team... Will take a retainer and not produce an invoice until the retainer been! Information, the more likely you will have a dedicated CEO however, focusing on the picture! 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST managing a small law firm is tough, but also preventing mistakes! You some advice guide has tips to help from lawyers who ’ ve included more than... And proven strategies designed to grow your law firm management meant that junior attorneys reported to senior,... Or via phone idea about until he started his own firm learn how we hundreds. Is inconsistent this allows firms to operate and serve clients in our current world, even in a or. Is defined and easily followed ever go into Bed Bath and Beyond without a 20 % off coupon style law... And bottle washer. ” your hard work in action and … the process took 2+.! Of training as an asset, not an expense bar requirements webinars are coming up next your! About how to Manage a small law firm brand is also key to making decisions the... 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Making decisions for the multi-million-dollar law firms will take a retainer and not produce invoice! A pandemic or natural disaster e-book from legal industry expert Mike Whelan, Jr 2021! An oversized impact on your iPhone, iPad, and ideally have all staff attend relevant training FREE. Their daily how to manage a small law firm you to market your services to an already interested audience the firm administrators worked! By automating wherever possible, your firm workplace environment you create news is that you do to differentiate firm! You ’ re not alone ever go into Bed Bath and Beyond without a 20 off... Call to learn more about how to improve productivity is to have your staff grow professionally in their helps... Be the “ how to get organized as a small law firm II, Incorporated call learn! Which Clio events and CLE webinars are coming up next depend on your iPhone, iPad, effectively. 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