Modern systems: Technology trends in mid-sized UK law firms

Helen Hamilton-Shaw of LawNet explores the latest IT trends in '¨mid-sized independent UK firms

Information technology is set to be a game changer as we enter the new era of post-Legal Services Act. It’s certainly the case that your IT must support your business in the delivery of excellence to clients. If your systems don’t match up, the client experience is likely to be damaged.

An IT plan is a minimum requirement for any firm worth its salt these days. We recently canvassed the views of members of our network to identify their strategic IT priorities over the coming year. The hot topics were infrastructure, mobile working, practice and case management systems, smartphone offerings and electronic client relationship management.

Infrastructure

In terms of physical equipment, a number of firms have made the move to cloud solutions. The majority are fairly evenly split in their choice of virtualised or local servers, with software provided on a local PC or through their own servers.

At Breeze & Wyles, the past year '¨has seen the virtualisation of user desktops, with thin client desktop terminals linked to a main server. Practice manager Martyn Bateman says this has helped to ensure consistent functionality across the firm, reduce helpdesk time and is proving more efficient.

Meanwhile, at Harvey Ingram (which recently merged with Borneos), integration and consolidation of systems from the two firms has been the main focus for the past year. The firm plans to completely refresh its infrastructure with new switches, pipes and server provision.

At Mogers, managing partner Steven Treharne has gone for virtual servers. “If we were bigger or smaller, cloud solutions would have been a cost-effective option,” he says. “Instead, we’ve taken a five to seven-year approach – our new servers will work for us in that timeframe, after that we can probably go for cheaper options which will suit the business at that time.”

Mobile working

Mobile working is gradually being adopted across the network. According to our research, only 15 per cent of fee earners are using laptops, and the figure is almost non-existent for support functions.

Similarly, in terms of remote working, there is a huge variety in attitudes. The number of staff enabled for remote working ranged from 100 per cent to just one per cent in member firms.

A few firms have made significant advances in this area. At Mogers, laptops can be docked throughout the building, a move that is intended to enable better use of physical space as the firm grows.

In the open-plan, single-floor offices of George Davies, the shift has already taken place. The firm has introduced a bench seat working environment – a version of ‘hot desking’ – with a communal approach to computer equipment. It reports a huge boost to productivity since the changes, with billings up 17 per cent year-on-year after nine months.

Systems

Customer-focused case management and practice management systems are also high on the agenda.

Harvey Ingram is about to implement a new practice and case management system to provide a unified system across its sites. “The most important thing is the lawyer interface and providing a familiar desktop to ease the transition,” says BD director Tim Percival.

The firm also plans to look at business processes, such as expenses recording and time billing, to see how to re-engineer them. “There’s no sense in simply replicating old practices. It’s an opportunity to improve all round,” adds Percival.

Mogers, which introduced a similar system in recent months, notes that such a change would constitute a significant investment. “The financial investment is one small part. What we underestimated was the time we had to invest to get a system that truly satisfied our ambitions. It’s been tough, but now we have the right platform for the future, including our next step of going paperless,” says Treharne.

The paperless office is already well established at Fidler & Pepper. According to managing partner Mark Slade, the firm’s online case management system has been a game changer. “These IT developments have taken us from our roots as a traditional high street firm to becoming a bigger player, playing quite a different game.”

Smartphones

Online innovations can indeed be a key differentiator in the experience of clients. Gone are the days when you can put a passive ‘who we are’ website online and promptly forget about it. For every firm, it’s about how they can set themselves apart through a customer-focused online presence.

Vanderpump & Sykes found that page views were increasingly being made on smartphones, so it developed a mobile version of their site, with large buttons, less text and simplified navigation.

Mogers’ web presence has taken '¨it into international markets, with a specialist expat offering. It has also recently launched an iPhone app for employment law updates.

Keeping things fresh is also vital. Cullimore Dutton completely restructured its website last year, with an improved content management interface to allow easier news updating and other content. It has seen a boost in its Google search rankings as a result.

Electronic CRM

The other important focus reported '¨by firms is in customer communications'¨ – including email marketing – as '¨they recognise the clear marketing advantages delivered by more sophisticated database content, as '¨well as the right delivery solution.

Breeze & Wyles is looking at how '¨to improve client communications with '¨a new distribution system that links '¨directly to its contact database. '¨Nicholsons is weighing up the options for a CRM add-on for marketing communications, and Mogers’ marketing plan for the coming year includes a '¨bigger role for social networking.

“We tinker currently,” says Treharne. “We are looking at how customers '¨want us to communicate with them. That may mean more email marketing, but we need to clean up our data first, segment properly and fill in the gaps. It’s a big opportunity, but internal efficiencies need to drive developments, to give reliable data over time.”

Whatever comes next, information technology looks set to be high on everyone’s agenda.

hhamilton-shaw@lawnet.co.uk