Hiring & Empowering Solutions

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Crushing Chaos in Law Firms: How to Create Systems that Make Your Law Firm Run Smoothly

Guest Blogger: Allison C. Williams, Esq.

creating effective law firm systemsA few months ago, one of our 66-Day Law Firm Turnaround clients mentioned that she was working with a “systems coach.” Our immediate response was…TELL US MORE!! We’ve been looking for a systems coach to partner with!! After conducting a power partner meeting with Allison Williams of Law Firm Mentor, I knew immediately that she has created a unique model that many of the law firms we’ve worked with over the past 22 years have a huge need for.

It’s rare that we have guest bloggers here, but when Allison and I got to chatting about her company’s systems and her own personal story, we had to have her write a blog—it’s just so in alignment with what we have been shouting from the mountaintops for years. And be sure to read to the bottom…Allison will be hosting Hiring and Empowering Solutions as her guest this coming Wednesday (February 20, 2019) on the Law Firm Mentor Movement Facebook LIVE. We’ll be talking about how to transform your law firm employees into leaders!

So here’s why we are so inspired by Allison and her journey…

When I started my law firm in 2013, I thought I had things all figured out. I crafted a plan using my trusty spreadsheet, gave my notice, rented my office space, and together—with 43 of my then 48 clients—I struck out on my own (with a partner). My secretary was coming with me, so I figured we’d be fine.

Then, “reality” hit the fan. My partner was a nice guy—but a nice guy who had greatly discrepant goals than I did. So, that ended quickly. My secretary, who could barely keep up with me as a super-billing associate, became terrified of what would await her as the lead (and only) assistant to me in the role of chief cook and bottle washer. So, she backed out the week before I left my employment, leaving me staff-less when I started my firm.

As a new solo, I had to run 43 files, take in new files, learn how to manage a trust account, order supplies, clean the kitchen, lease equipment, and—my personal favorite—be my own secretary while running to 16 different courts in my state-wide practice…all while trying to hire my next secretary. I had tens of thousands of dollars coming through my hands daily, and the fear of where it should be spent crippled me into living like a pauper, despite having plenty of money in the bank.

One night, I fell asleep driving 90 miles per hour on my way home, at the end of yet another 90-hour work week. And that was when I realized it. I was either going to kill the chaos in my business or, quite literally, it was going to kill me.

That’s where creating systems to make your law firm run smoothly comes in.

A system is an organized or established procedure, or a regularly interacting or interdependent group of items forming a unified whole. Quite simply, it’s a way of doing things that maximizes efficiency, reduces redundancy, and eliminates the need for conscious thought to be summoned for routine tasks, preserving that energy for the higher-order activities that clients actually pay us to provide (such as strategic management, complex negotiation, and multi-layered litigation processes). When people in business follow a system, the office runs smoothly, since crisis intervention is reserved for clients rather than office functioning.

What requires a system? In a nutshell, EVERYTHING requires a system! From how we answer the phones, to how we interface with new clients seeking consultations, to how we close client matters, to how we manage our trust accounts. Even the most mundane, routine activity (like opening and dispensing mail) needs a system.

Generally speaking, law firm owners should consider creating systems for each of the major functions in your law business, including Sales, Marketing, Intake, Communications, People (both employees and vendors), Work Flow (the legal work), Facilities and Money Matters.

Creating systems in law firms is not sexy. It’s not the “stuff” most business owners crave, but it will absolutely and dramatically improve the quality of the law firm and the life of the owner…when executed properly. And, the good news is, if the systems are in a constant state of flux, that means the law firm is growing and evolving steadily.

We couldn’t agree more with Allison and her systemic approach. Join Allison and I this coming Wednesday, February 20, 2019 on the Law Firm Mentor Movement Facebook LIVE. We will be talking about TRANSFORMING YOUR LAW FIRM’S EMPLOYEES INTO LEADERS!

Join us on Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Join Allison and I as we dive into a great conversation about law firm leadership and team development on Wednesday, February 20, 2019, at 12:30pm EST.

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Seasonal Slowdown Strategies 6-10

Earlier we shared Seasonal Slowdown Strategies 1-5 with you to help avoid your seasonal slowdown.  With the end of summer quickly approaching, now is a great time to make a strong push to proactively kick start your Fall.
Here are strategies 6-10, each designed to be quick, but effective, strategies to implement with minimal time, money and distress.

10 Seasonal Slowdown Strategies
#5. Client Appreciation Event. Every law firm wants to have an annual, client appreciation event.  Whether it is an educational event, a family event or a party, there is tremendous benefit to staying in touch and top of mind with your clients.  Not only do their lives change, prompting legal needs, but they are a tremendous, often untapped, referral source.  The #1 reason most law firms don’t actually conduct the event they want to is they don’t have “the time” to organize it.  Well, if you are in the midst of a seasonal slowdown, use this down time to plan your event.  Make sure you create not only a financial budget, but a TIME budget.  Put a firm limit on the amount of time you and your team can devote to this.  Not only will you accomplish a goal you may have had for years, but sending out the invitations will create “top of mind awareness” with your clients immediately.  If you track it, you will see your number of client calls increase after ANY time you reach out and touch your clients.  It jogs their memory of reasons they have been meaning to call you…and reasons to call you usually transform into additional needs your clients have. 

#6. Referral Source Appreciation Event. Along with client appreciation events, a referral source event is usually on most law firm’s “to-do” list.  Again, use your down town to plan this event.  Just as with clients, you will see an increase in activity from your referral sources when your invitations go out.

#7. Conquering Clutter. 100% of the time we talk to an attorney or staff member, the call starts with something not too far away from “Agghh….if you could see my office”. When we don’t have designated places for all our belongings, clutter is often the result. Even if you have established organizational systems, you will face problems with clutter unless you have a plan to find homes for every single piece of article you bring into your office. Otherwise, it’s too easy to set things on top of your desk or filing cabinet “for now.” All too often, “for now” ends up becoming “forever” or at least until things reach the point that you can no longer tolerate the clutter.  This dramatically impacts your clients’ confidence in you and your closing ratio, not to mention your stress and confidence in yourself.  Take your down time and conquer your clutter.  But this time, don’t just “clean up”.  Stop and put in place systems and create “homes” for every item in your office that is cluttering up the place.  Along with the obvious benefits of conquering your clutter, 100% of the time you will “find money” when you do this.  And we don’t mean the change in your desk drawer!  Many of the files and papers on your desk are unfinished work, which is billable. 

#8. Tackle the “Big Cases”.  Every law firm we talk to has a “big case” or at the very least a potential “big case”.  These are those high dollar cases, perhaps an advanced planning case or large trust administration, that have an impressive price tag, but seem to stall and hang around forever.  Most of these cases are hard to move because they require large blocks of time to do research and sort out complex issues.  Use your down time to move your “big cases” or close your “big prospects”.  Unfinished cases are uncollected cash flow.

#9. Employee Review.  Most bosses dread conducting employee reviews.  However, they are a critical part of growing your team.  A team that isn’t growing becomes stagnant and begins to deteriorate.  And team growth requires consistent attention from you, as the boss.  Use your downtime to conduct your employee reviews.  If done properly, they will pump some much needed motivation into your team.

#10. Cost Cutters.  Many law firms also do not routinely review their expenses and are shocked to discover services they are paying for they no longer use, or are overpaying for.  Use your down time to review your expenses and shop for better deals.  Compare your insurance, your copier service, your office supplies, etc.  Competitors are always making deals.  Make sure you are getting the best bang for your buck.

We hope you have found our Seasonal Slowdown Strategies helpful.  To get the most impact, start them early and then keep doing them.  The more momentum you can gain and sustain, the less severely a seasonal slowdown will impact you.

If you missed previous strategies click here.

In your corner,
Molly and Laney

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Is your team running and hiding?

Our recent, ongoing discussion has been about the blessing and curse of being a leader.  We’ve discussed how necessary leadership is to any growing company and how it can be overwhelming for a leader to balance the needs of their team with their own.  We’ve shared how the strategy of “Leading by Example” can provide leadership for your team, in a leveraged, structured manner. Here is another strategy to produce results, while allowing you to maintain a balance between the demands of your team and your own needs.

The Set up for a Productive Week

Team meetings often seem like really bad episodes of the TV show Survivor;  half the team arguing about HOW to do something, while the other half is day dreaming, at least one person is upset and at least one is just sitting there shaking their head “YES” to everything to keep the peace.  However, with the blur of day to day noise in a small firm, its impossible for a team to be effective and avoid miscommunication without checking in once a week, as a group, on goals and things that impact the team (firm).  It also makes sense to make group announcements ONE TIME to everyone, versus FIVE TIMES to each person individually, or worse getting stuck in a email game of “Communication Ping Pong”.

Most team members run and hide from any mention of a “meeting.”  They simply want to get their work done.  They don’t want to talk about it, or strategize about it—they just want to do it!
As much as we can commiserate about sitting through long, drawn out useless meetings with endless discussions and nothing accomplished, it’s imperative that you set your week up to be productive with the following HOUSE RULES for running a concise, effective weekly team meeting:

1. You must start your week with a team meeting, whether Monday or on your company’s first business day of the week.   Who needs a meeting at the end of the week to discuss what’s already happened?  Monday team meetings help plan for the week and get everyone on the same page.  It MUST be the same day, the same time each and every week, so everyone can plan on being there. This meeting is sacred and should never be postponed.

2. The meetings should be no longer than an hour. 

3. Everyone attends the meeting—from the boss to the receptionist. No exceptions.  That’s why it’s called a TEAM meeting.

4. All phones are turned off! Office phones go to voicemail with a recording that let’s callers know that you’re in a team meeting from X am to X am, and will return calls at X am.  No cell phones, no Blackberrys. (We know this little device makes you feel very important…but it is a blatant display of disrespect.  And we promise your listserv email responses of “me too” can wait an hour.)

5. A predetermined, consistent leader should run the meeting with a standard agenda.   The leader should never, ever be the owner of the business. Everyone should be made aware of the agenda prior to the meeting, and come prepared and organized.  If the team leader is you, take responsibility for bringing the necessary implements (current schedule, copies of tools/worksheets, pencils, etc.). You can prepare for it at the end of the day Friday, or come in early Monday morning—whatever works for you. (You don’t want to have to say, “I don’t have that” five times during one meeting.)  The key is to be accountable. The result is an effective Monday Morning Meeting and respect from your boss and team.

6. Keep “Monday Morning Meeting” agendas and worksheets in front of you all day Monday, until you have all action steps calendared for the bigger strategic items.  The easy “Gottas” go right from one list to the next until you can knock them off your list, typically by Tuesday. The result is a focused, planning day.

7. At the end of the week, hold a quick meeting to summarize what was accomplished for the week.  We call this “The 10 Minute Team Huddle.”

For a Sample “Monday Morning Meeting” agenda – email us.
SIDEBAR

Mondays are “Grounding Days” and that’s okay! Give yourself permission for Mondays to be the day to do nothing but attend effective, productive meetings in the morning and recover from the fall out of them in the afternoon. Return calls, emails, and accomplish all the “little” things that are delegated to you during your Monday meetings.  Call it a huge WIN! The result is that you’ll be able to hit the ground running Tuesday, which will create a productive, kick butt week, because there’ll be no little things hanging around. It also shows efficiency as you complete all those little things right away.  Completing all the meeting fall out by end of day Monday also ensures that little follow ups not immediately handled don’t become major disasters later in the week.

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Is Your Team is Wrought with Gossip, Cattiness and Blame?

Nurturing and growing your team is a never-ending process. And if it does end, you’re in trouble, because it means that your team is no longer growing.  That’s the beginning of stagnation. Like sitting water, your team doesn’t just stop growing and stay in place; they start to rot and eat away at all the standards, training, and culture that you’ve built.  If a team isn’t motivated by growth, they’ll focus on other things that are negative and unproductive. A team that doesn’t have goals becomes wrought with gossip, cattiness, blame, and complaining; hence, your work as your team’s leader is never done.  You can either devote time to leading your team, or spend time reprimanding them.  The choice is yours. We don’t know about you, but we have very little patience for reprimanding!

Why is being a leader so important?

To be blunt, team members who aren’t in a growth-oriented workplace with good leadership won’t be around for long.  In that environment a good team will be unfulfilled and talented members will move on to other places that provide leadership and growth.  The rest of the group will become infected with a spirit of gossip and negativity that has the potential to become so infectious throughout the office that you’ll end up firing those individuals.  Look at it from a purely selfish perspective – after all the time you’ve spent hiring and training do you really want to start all over?  Which do you think would be a better use of time – helping a great team member continually find ways to grow, or starting all over interviewing, hiring, firing, and training every quarter?

Why is it my job to lead the team?

Everyone isn’t a leader.  If you’re reading this blog, chances are that you are a leader or well on your way to becoming one.  The role is both a blessing and a curse.  The curse is that you can’t stop being the leader that you are, even though there’ll be times in your career when you temporarily stop leading.  Maybe you’ll be mentally exhausted, or in an atmosphere that doesn’t allow your leadership abilities to flourish; regardless, while you may choose to stop leading others for a period you can’t ever stop being a leader anymore than you can stop being a mom or dad, the glue for your family, or a community advocate. 
 
Don’t curse your gift as a leader.  Cursing your gift can show up as:

“Why does everyone come to me, I have enough on my plate?”  or
“I’m tired of everyone leaning on me!” or
“Is it me, or is everyone else either an idiot or just doesn’t care?”  (Boy, have I said those things in the workplace!)

You can’t run away from your talents and responsibilities as a leader, even if you try, it won’t fix your problem, or make you happier.  There have been many times that we’ve all wanted to quit our jobs or shut down our practices in order to get an easy and “stress free” job where we could show up, do the work well, and go home.  We long for a job where we wouldn’t have to solve other people’s problems, or take stress home, but, alas a leopard can’t change its spots. You would not be fulfilled in a job such as this.  You can either embrace the leader who you are, or find yourself constantly feeling unfulfilled.

If you’re a true leader, you’re a beacon in the night.  No matter your role, you will draw people to listen to you because you ask the tough questions; in other words, you’ll motivate and lead.  Others will be drawn to your innate ability to provide calmness and direction in the storm.  If you’re really honest with yourself, you probably aren’t happy when you’re not leading.  We’re not saying that you have to be a 1-800 help line, or wake up at 2 A.M. stressing over things at work, but when leaders aren’t in a position to lead, they’re like a flower without sunlight.  They’ll wilt, their colors will fade and their vitality that always shone brightly will waste away.

So, since you can’t rid yourself of this incessant need to lead, why not simply embrace it? Remember, it’s not only a curse, but a blessing, as well.  Very few people have the gift to inspire others.  You can.  Look at the difference you make in other people’s lives.   For example, take a single mother who you’re helping build a career. You aren’t just helping her; you’re making a difference in her children’s lives too.   Few people can provide calmness and confidence in times of change or uncertainty.  You can.  Remember all the people who you’ve helped keep the faith and not lose direction.  Few people have the ability to truly make a lasting, positive impression on other’s lives.  You do.  Your ability to lead is a blessing.  It only becomes a curse when you can’t balance the dependency of others with your own needs.

In our next few blogs, we will share strategies to provide leadership for your team, in a leveraged, structured manner.  This will allow you to produce results, while protecting your own time and focus.  Be sure to sign up to receive our blog so you don’t miss the next installment.

To see if you are running your office, or if your office is running you, click here to take our free Assessment.

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You won’t believe what your receptionist just did to your biggest client

You are waiting on a return call from a $10M client and your receptionist sticks them into voicemail.  Or your urgent FedEx package gets put in your Inbox where you don’t notice it until the next day.  How many times has something like this happened?  Why is it seemingly so difficult to have consistency and intelligence around simple office procedures? 

Training a team member on answering the phone is usually approached as a task to be completed as quickly as possible and checked off the list so the trainer can return to their work.  As soon as the new person can speak relatively coherently, remember the names of your team members and learn where to find the hold button on the phone system, they are left to field calls and “yell if they have a question”.

Considering that the person answering the phone is the first, often unchangeable impression, a new client has of your firm, this is scary.  From someone who calls A LOT of law firms across the country, I’ll tell you – it’s frightening!

The #1 job of every person in your firm is to “connect” with people hiring (or considering) hiring you. The first twenty seconds of every first interaction with your firm needs to communicate kindness, compassion, fun and warmth. The training process and the world of business is “serious” and “professional” but if you are interacting with training in a very analytical, task-oriented way that will be communicated to every person that interacts with your firm.  It is greatly impacting your bottom-line.  Trust us.  Are you training the receptionist how to push buttons on your phone system or how to connect with potential clients who call?  People are hiring you for your ability to counsel, relate and “hear” them, not for documents.  No role/job is about the documents, portfolios or funding; it is about the ability to be human and be present. Remember, you are in the Personal Services Business.  Have fun and that alone will distinguish you in the marketplace (and the growth of your firm)!

Phone Training Success Strategies:
1. Don’t rush it.  Every incoming phone call is a training opportunity.  It’s easy to get so busy that you just take a call and handle it, rather stopping and explaining it and training someone else how to handle it.  Not only does this never allow your workload to decrease, but it isn’t very empowering for the new person to just be a switchboard operator.  Let them learn how to handle phone calls and contribute to your firm.
2. Create and use phone scripts.  If you don’t have scripts on how to handle the most common types of phone calls your firm receives, it’s a great time to create them. You don’t have to make a project out of it.  It simply takes 15 minutes and a little bit of focus. Sit with your new “Director of First Impressions” and review the three most common calls coming into the firm. Ask yourself “what questions can she ask to really drill down on what the caller needs and how she can assist them” and together brainstorm the best responses.  Make sure you verify that she heard and actually understood what you are saying…versus just taking notes.  This provides consistency of how questions and incoming calls are handled. There is nothing worse than that feeling when you walk by the receptionist and cringe at how they just answered someone’s inquiry.  I literally had prospective client call in once and ask “Does your firm do Medicaid planning?” and our receptionist replied “Hmm…. I think our attorneys just went to a training program on that.”  Ouch!  Not what we wanted to convey to prospective clients.
3. Clarify your position on voicemail versus taking a message.  Different firms have different preferences.  Make it a consistent rule and crystal clear for your team what the protocol is.  A lot of attorneys get annoyed when the receptionist sends all their calls to voicemail and they have eight messages at the end of the day.  However, someone else on the team may prefer voicemail and be communicating that to the receptionist as the overall preference.  Discuss it, decide what is best for your firm, then convey it clearly and have it written down as part of your phone procedures systems. A word of caution, in this day and age people are so sick and tired of being transferred to India and halfway across the globe that you run a BIG risk of them hanging up before the transfer is complete. And with attorneys…they are notorious for “dodging” calls.  So be the firm that “is” different than the thirty other firms in your marketplace.
4. Use Call Logs.  Call logs serve as intake sheets for certain incoming calls.  It provides consistency and makes sure all the correct questions are asked.  It can serve as a decision tree for the receptionist to know what to do with the call next, based on the information collected.  A call log should always end with the question “Is there anything else I can do for you right now?”  This alone will make your firm stand out as one of helpfulness and accessibility, versus one who stuck you immediately into voicemail.
5. Implement Call Back Time.  Each attorney and team members who receive a high volume of incoming phone calls should have a designated time each day to return phone calls.  This allows the receptionist to set the expectation with the client that “Mr. Smith will return your call between 4 and 5 today – what number can you be reached at during that time?”  Clients appreciate knowing when they will receive a call back.  The receptionist can create a Call Back List of names and phone numbers throughout the day to hand the attorney for their call back time. (For a free Call Back List template email [email protected].)
6. Define your protocol for interrupting others.  Decide on what constitutes an “emergency phone call” and warrants a meeting being interrupted.  Don’t make your new receptionist who has been there for a week decide what an emergency is and what is not.  Put your protocol in writing and add to your phone procedures systems.
7. Create a binder of all upcoming firm related events and information.  Your receptionist should be aware of and have at their fingertips information on all upcoming workshops, etc. They need to be able to answer questions about location, timing, etc. rather than taking a message for someone else to call back.  Every time you have to return a phone call you increase the possibility of losing the interest of the caller.
8. Train on your culture and value, not just what buttons to push on the phone.  Your receptionist is speaking to your clients; therefore they need to know what clients hire you for and the culture of your firm.  This allows them to speak in a similar tonality.  Your receptionist should read every written piece of literature your firm has – brochures, website, client welcome letters, etc.  It always surprises me how many people work for a company and haven’t read their marketing material.  Clients read it – it’s what they hire you for – your team should read it too!  Have them highlight key words that you use and explain to them what it means, in the context of your firm.  For example, if you use ‘trusted advisor’, ‘value-based planning’ or ‘protection planning’ explain what this means.
9. Have your new “Director of First Impressions” be accountable for capturing the systems.  They may not be able to create these phone technique systems, but they can be the one to put pen to paper and capture each instruction and decision.  During their down time, when the phone isn’t ringing, they can type them up and organize into a system.

Don’t underestimate the intentionality and time it takes to complete phone training.  We all take phones/the role of “receptionist” for granted. This is the single best training tool for any team member. Trust the process and invest the time and patience into it now. It will produce powerful results by creating the right impression for your clients and referral sources. 

For help with hiring, systems and training – contact us today.