Ah, the woes of running a law office. You know them well: Reams of reports, scheduling squabbles, technology tangles, and so much more. It takes a lot of skill, patience, and strategy to make a…
YOUR CAREER
What do your online, in-person and on-paper personas say about you?
December 10, 2018 by
A potential employer takes just a moment or two to size up a potential candidate, leaving job seekers little wiggle room when…
MANAGING STAFF
Five reasons why staff hate their jobs and look for greener pastures
October 9, 2018 by
Turnover should be at the top of every manager’s worry list.
Employers don’t realize how expensive it is, says…
MANAGING STAFF
Try this proven 7-part employee award program to build motivation throughout the year
July 20, 2018 by
In a New York state office, the employee-of-the-month award goes beyond cursory congratulations. It is a recognition that lasts all year with seven reward components…
HIRING
How to find out if a job candidate is lying
June 22, 2018 by
Estimates are that as many as 50% of job applicants lie on their resumes. It may not be possible to pinpoint the lies, but it is possible to identify the liars, says…
WORKING WITH ATTORNEYS
5 partnership points that cause more than the usual headaches
March 23, 2018 by
It’s the partnership wonder. Many, many firms, from the smallest to the most sophisticated and well known, don’t have partnerships agreements…
READER TIPS
Good communication speeds up the billing
April 15, 2016 by
What’s the secret to good collections?
“It’s all about communicating,” says Mary Howe of the New York City office of Hughes Hubbard & Reed. And the communicating extends to the attorneys, and clients’ billing staffs.
When Howe came to the firm less than a year ago, she took on the…
MARKETING & COMPLIANCE
Watch out for federal and state laws when promoting your practice on social media and websites
February 12, 2016 by
Social media can be useful for getting a practice’s name out there and helping potential clients find you. But there are legal and ethical issues raised by use of social media. Federal and state laws are also implicated when a law office decides to promote its services whether it be through establishing a website or participating in forums such as…
SURVEYING CLIENTS
How one NY firm uses surveys to get repeat clients
March 20, 2015 by
Like many firms, an Albany, NY, firm surveys its clients each year.
But it takes a different approach.
It focuses on whether the clients feel the firm has their interests at heart. And in the end, it sends the clients the results of the study and what the firm has done in response.
“We began it because we wanted to make sure we were providing clients what they needed,” says Stacy Smith, administrator and marketing director for Carter Conboy. The firm wanted to be sure it covered the entire picture of its legal services and was truly client centric.
And for good reason. About 85% of the annual…
COMPLIANCE
Electronic cigarettes: why your firm needs a “vaping” policy now
November 21, 2014 by
Your employment policies address cigarettes, and so you think you have the smoking issue covered. Well, think again. Electronic cigarettes have created new challenges for employers.
Electronic cigarettes, also known as e-cigarettes, first became available in the United States in 2006 and have grown in popularity. Designed to look like cigarettes, they are battery-powered devices, usually made of plastic or metal, that convert liquid nicotine into a mist, or vapor that the user inhales. The liquid nicotine is often flavored and the vapor produced resembles smoke.
How popular are e-cigarettes? Popular enough to spawn the terms “vaper,” for a smoker, and “vaping,” for the act of…
