ADAPTING TO GROWTH

How Customisable Legal Software Supports Law Firm Expansion

It’s being able to pick and choose that makes all the difference…

Today’s law firm is all about how they can uniquely assist with your problem. You know – the whole bespoke service offering spiel.

But it’s true. Nowadays offering the proverbial man on the street the stock standard legal service offering is enough to drive them to your competitor across the street. And who can blame them really? Everyone wants a service, or a thing that has been tailored exactly to their needs.

The same can be said for the legal tech that law firms use to provide bespoke and tailor made legal services. Because off-the-shelf legal accounting and practice management software may not always align with a law firm’s specific processes, resulting in inefficient and cumbersome workflows that don’t align to the firm’s bespoke service offering.

With customisable legal accounting and practice management software, law firms have the flexibility to create and implement workflows that are tailored to their specific requirements. This allows law firms to streamline their case management processes and automate repetitive tasks, resulting in increased productivity and efficiency.

Customisation also allows law firms to create unique task automation and workflows that match their specific practice areas, enabling them to work more effectively, delivering superior client service.

And when it comes to expanding your law firm, having software that’s able to support your growth in the way that you need it to is crucial.

Additionally, by adopting customisable legal accounting and practice management software, improvements in several key areas are brought about – remote meetings become more feasible and efficient, communication with clients is streamlined, workflows are more transparent, and billing processes are more straightforward. All making for a more enhanced (and enjoyable) overall client experience.

Having software that truly supports your practices’ unique needs and ways of doing things has other knock-on effects too –

1.  It allows for scalability and flexibility for evolving needs – as a law firm grows and evolves, its needs and requirements will most likely change – this is par for the course – so, its legal software must be able to adapt to these changing needs. Off-the-shelf software may not always provide the necessary scalability and flexibility to accommodate a law firm’s changing needs, resulting in potential disruptions and inefficiencies. Customisable legal software on the other hand offers the scalability and flexibility that law firms need to accommodate their evolving requirements. Whether it’s adding new practice areas, incorporating new document templates, or integrating with third-party tools, customisation allows law firms to tailor their software to suit their changing needs. This ensures that the software remains aligned with the firm’s operations and enables smooth growth without disruptions.

2.  It allows time for substance over form – the streamlined workflows facilitated by customisable software allows legal professionals to focus more on the substantive aspects of their work rather than getting bogged down by labour intensive administrative tasks. This shift increases efficiency and allows for a more client-centric approach, where the primary focus is addressing the client’s legal needs.

3.  It puts clients first – customisable legal software is not just about how the technology improves the overall productivity in a law firm but is also about how it reshapes the interaction between law firms and their clients. Customisable legal software provides a platform for more consistent and effective communication, ensuring that clients are kept informed and engaged throughout their legal journey. As any practicing lawyer knows, this level of engagement is particularly crucial in a world where expectations for quick and transparent communication are constantly rising.

4.  It enhances client perception – another knock-on effect of customisable legal software is the tangible impact on a client’s perception of your law firm. Firms that embrace legal tech that evolves as their firm evolves are seen as more modern, efficient, and client friendly. This perception is crucial in an increasingly competitive legal market where client expectations are increasingly demanding.

5.  It enhances reporting and analytics for informed decision-making – customisable legal software enables law firms to generate custom reports and analytics that provide actionable insights. For example, a law firm may want to track the average time spent on different case types, the number of cases won or lost, or the revenue generated from each practice area. Customisable software allows law firms to create reports and dashboards that provide real-time visibility into critical data, empowering them to make informed decisions and drive their firm’s success.

6.  It increases user adoption – customisable legal software can be tailored to match the preferences and workflows of the law firm’s users. This makes the software more user-friendly and intuitive, increasing user adoption and reducing the learning curve for new users. When users find the software easy to use and aligned with their processes, they are more likely to embrace it fully, resulting in higher productivity and efficiency.

How AJS’ customisable legal software can help you

At AJS we pride ourselves on the fact that our legal software is customisable to suit your needs. In fact, from the get-go we are able to tailor-make your software so that it speaks to who your firm is and what your firm does. Uniquely. Here are some other ways that the little touches we put into our products can be customised to suit your needs –

1.  Roles & permissions – gives firms control over exactly what users can see and do on the system, together with levels of access. For example: a user with a partner role may see details for departments, teams, and fee earners whereas a user with a fee earner role may only see their own. Or a bookkeeper may only have access to post business receipts and not trust receipts. Users in a fee earner role will not have access to any of the bookkeeper menus.

2.  System settings – determine the overall behaviour of the system, regardless of the user’s role. Different firms have different preferences, and these can be tweaked as required. For example: Forcing the use of contacts or branches, or defaults used when opening new accounts.

3.  Workflows – AJS supplies standard workflows, but these are completely customisable by the firm to add steps, change the sequence of steps, or use their own precedents.

4.  Posting codes – set up your own shortcut codes to minimise typing regularly used narrations.

5.  Account enquiry colours – add colours for different transaction types, or not. Each firm can select which colours they prefer.

6.  Account enquiry Views – add and remove columns to suit your own requirements and set up favourite views.

7.  Dashboards – select from almost 30 different widgets to build a dashboard that gives you the information that is relevant to you.

8.  Reports – our standard reports have options to change the parameters at runtime. For example: Print it in PDF today and in Excel tomorrow. Change the selection and sort criteria simply by selecting different options from a drop-list. AJS comes standard with a wide selection of reports, but you can add your own **

9.  Invoices & Statements – AJS has several invoice and statement templates, but you can add your own. **

10.  Logging in – use a username and password or two-factor authentication.

(** Pro & Enterprise platforms)

And because AJS’s products are web based and offer a mobile App, you have the flexibility of working from anywhere.

As we have set out above, there are many advantages to having legal software that you’re able to tailor-make to suit your needs – improved client perception included. But it’s the ability to be flexible and scalable that is the cherry on the cake. Why? Because it gives you the freedom to change, evolve and grow as you need to. And that’s everything in a world that demands growth, reinvention, improvement and ingenuity on a constant basis.

The takeaway? Don’t settle for off-the-shelf stock standard legal software. Invest in software that truly meets your needs now. And in the future.

In the meantime, if you are ready to incorporate a new tool into your existing accounting and practice management suite, or if you need to start from scratch, feel free to get in touch with AJS – we have the right combination of systems, resources and business partnerships to assist you with incorporating supportive legal technology into your practice. Effortlessly.

AJS is always here to help you, wherever and whenever possible!

(Sources used and to whom we owe thanks: LinkedIn; Today’s Family Lawyer and Smokeball)

– Written by Alicia Koch on behalf of AJS