Being a successful administrator calls for an investment. It is the investment of time and patience to train staff to take on delegated tasks and do the work satisfactorily. The payoff is big. Besides ending the frustration of having to do much of the busy work, it allows the administrator to excel in managing the firm. It is the key to professional productivity and the … [Read more...] about 5 proven ways to delegate work and set the staffer up for success on the task
Job descriptions make paralegals a profit center
A Phoenix firm realized its paralegal force was not paying for itself in billings. Instead, the group was not only unsupervised but was being given a lot of non-billable work assignments,. In response, the firm set billing requirements, drew up a paralegal job description, and, to encourage its paralegals to exceed the minimum, developed an objective bonus system. Along with … [Read more...] about Job descriptions make paralegals a profit center
Measure your associates’ satisfaction to keep them on board
Do you know whether or not your firm's associates are content or if there is a mass exodus in your future? Find out with a well-crafted survey. Your firm's greatest asset is its associates, yet associate satisfaction is often overlooked. To keep those associates happy, you need to find out what's making them unhappy, and do that with frequent and focused surveys. … [Read more...] about Measure your associates’ satisfaction to keep them on board
6 proven strategies to make the most of revenues to build profits
Improving the billing turnaround time, increasing the number of attorneys, cutting the expenses: All help the bottom line, but there are higher level issues that require as much or more of the financial attention. The firm's success calls for going past counting the money to evaluating the data, optimising the profit margin, keeping the billing rates up, and getting rid of … [Read more...] about 6 proven strategies to make the most of revenues to build profits
Paying too much office rent? Try these 7 rent-cutters
Can the partners live with less space? After payroll, office space is the firm's second highest expense, in most cases eating up from 7% to 10% of the revenues. With the bite that big, every office needs to look for ways to cut the office cost. Here are some good ways to do just that. And along with them are some lease negotiation factors the firm can use. 1 The same … [Read more...] about Paying too much office rent? Try these 7 rent-cutters
Partner retirement: how to keep the clients and assign the business
When a partner retires, the top business concern is if and how the firm can keep the clients. And there's more than one reason to be concerned, says August J. Aquila, of Aquila Global Advisors, a Minnetonka, MN, consulting firm specializing in succession planning, mergers, acquisitions, and strategic planning for professional firms. Obviously, the firm wants to keep the … [Read more...] about Partner retirement: how to keep the clients and assign the business
Some FMLA questions on using vacation time and counting to 50
Here are three questions on the Family and Medical Leave Act. They are answered by Morganville, NJ, management consultant John McNamara. Briefly, the FMLA requires that employers with 50 or more employees allow up to 12 weeks' unpaid, jobprotected leave for medical and family reasons. FMLA time on top of vacation time A staffer returns from a two-week vacation and asks … [Read more...] about Some FMLA questions on using vacation time and counting to 50
3 proven ways to build a more profitable client base
It's always a good idea for any business to revisit its business plan, making sure it's on track with its vision and meeting the needs of its target customers. Usually this review involves asking itself the three big strategic questions: Where is the practice now? Where do we want it to go? How will we get there? But sometimes it's not always easy to clearly identify where … [Read more...] about 3 proven ways to build a more profitable client base
Nine traps to avoid when checking for conflicts
Before a law firm accepts any new file, it must first ensure that no conflict of interest exists. Yet, despite having stringent conflict-checking procedures, conflicts of interest are still a serious problem for many firms. How do your procedures stack up? Do they address these common mistakes? Any firm knows a conflict of interest can result in bad things. … [Read more...] about Nine traps to avoid when checking for conflicts
How to ask the partners for an evaluation
A formal performance evaluation is an opportunity for you to showcase your hard work and accomplishments, as well as a chance to identify any discrepancies in expectations. Ask the partners these four questions to establish the evaluation criteria and then start a diary to record your achievements. To assure continuing success at the job, the new administrator should make … [Read more...] about How to ask the partners for an evaluation