Practice Innovations

Driving Firm Revenue by Building the Perfect Team – p. 1

Shared Service Centers –Are Law Firms Ready for the Latest Corporate Trend? – p. 4

Practice Innovators –the Views of Two Directors of Law Firm Professional Development Programs – p. 6

Document Lifecycle Nirvana – p. 8

Going Wireless in the Law Firm – p. 10

Practice Statistics of Note – p. 13

MARCH 2004 – VOLUME 5, NUMBER 1 IN THIS ISSUE

Managing in a ChangingLegal Environment

Three editions of Practice Innovations are published each year.

March 2004

Communicating best practices and innovations in law firminformation and knowledge management to legalprofessionals.

Editors in Chief

Austin DohertyDirector, Information Resource CenterHogan & Hartson LLPWashington, D.C.

William ScarbroughExecutive DirectorBaker & McKenzieWashington, D.C.

Editorial Board Members

Janet AccardoDirector of Information ServicesSkadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLPNew York, N.Y.

Sylvia CoulterChief Marketing and Business Development OfficerDorsey & Whitney L.L.P.Minneapolis, Minn.

Cindy DiamondKnowledge Resource CoordinatorHogan & Hartson L.L.P.Washington, D.C.

Lisa KellarPractice Automation ManagerHunton & Williams, LLPWashington, D.C.

Kingsley MartinLegal Technology ConsultantChicago, Ill.

Nina PlattDirector of Library ServicesFaegre & Benson LLPMinneapolis, Minn.

Al PodboyDirector of LibrariesBaker & Hostetler LLPCleveland, Ohio

Linda WillDirector of Information ResourcesDorsey & Whitney LLPMinneapolis, Minn.

Please direct any comments or questions to either of theeditors in chief:

Editors in ChiefAustin DohertyHogan & Hartson L.L.P.555 13th St. N.W., Rm. 10W100Washington, DC 20004202.637.8701 (voice)e-mail: radoherty@hhlaw.com

William ScarbroughBaker & McKenzie815 Connecticut Avenue N.W.Washington, D.C. 20006202.835.1640 (voice)e-mail: william.p.scarbrough@bakernet.com

Managing EditorWil McClarenWest610 Opperman DriveEagan, MN 55123-1396651.687.1620 (voice)651.687.8722 (fax)

The trademarks used herein are the trademarks of their respective owners. West trademarks are owned by West Publishing Corporation.

© 2004 West, a Thomson business. Printed 4/04. Material #40284342L-107884

1

AT A GLANCE: This article focuses on specificways in which Information Resources andMarketing and Sales groups within law firmscan work together to bring strong results thatpay off in increased revenue.

By Silvia Coulter, Chief Marketing and Business DevelopmentOfficer, Dorsey & Whitney LLP, Minneapolis, MN

Silvia is a past president of The Legal Marketing Association (legalmarketing.org) and a co-founding member of The Legal Sales andService Organization (legalsales.org).

It’s old news now. A law firm must operatelike a business. To be effective as a business, a firm needs a strong and tightmanagement team. Gone are the dayswhen fiefdoms of information technology,marketing (if it even existed), finance,human resources, legal recruiting, profes-sional development (if it even existed),information resources (more comprehen-sive than its predecessor, the library) andadministration operated independentlywithin the firm. Today, law firm leadersmust make room at the table for the non-lawyer professional team. And in lawfirms, just as in business, two of the mostimportant teams are InformationResources (IR) and Marketing and Sales(M&S).

Information Resources, essentially, helpsto manage and produce the firm’s product—some of the firm’s production and someof its intellectual property, so-to-speak.Without investment in IR, and strong

management of IR, a firm has a strategicdisadvantage in today’s competitive legalworld.

Marketing and Sales is the machine thatdrives the firm into the marketplace. Eventhe best company with a great product isnothing without a strong sales team. Lawfirms are no different.

When the IR team and the M&S teamwork together, the results can be (and havebeen, for those firms that are paving theway) nothing short of amazing. Getting tothis point of working together is critical.By working together, outward-lookingteams help drive the strategic marketinggoals of the firm and have a significantimpact on firm revenue.

The balance of this article focuses on specific ways in which these two importantfirm groups can work together to bringstrong results that pay off in increased revenue in the long run.

continued on page 2

Buildingthe Perfect

Team

Driving FirmRevenue by

2

Today, it is critically important to be forward

thinking, and to forecast sources of firm

revenue. To simply react to clients is to lose

control of the destiny of your firm.

Driving Firm Revenue by Building the Perfect Team continued from page 1

Industry PlanningDeveloping a focused plan to capture market share helps everyone in the firm betterunderstand the goals of the organization. But exactly how is such a plan developed? In the old days (not so very long ago), lawyers reacted and got to work when a clientcalled. Today, it is critically important to be forward thinking, and to forecast sources offirm revenue. To simply react to clients is to lose control of the destiny of your firm.

Let’s use an industry example to illustrate the point. If we were to develop a strong focuson targeting software companies in specific geographic regions, here are the steps wewould take to develop an industry-targeted plan. The description of each step indicatesthe team (e.g., IR, M&S) that would be involved.

1. Identify predominant geographic regions in which software companies have a strongpresence. (IR)

2. Select specific geographic regions where the firm has representation and/or is interested in expansion. (IR, M&S, and firm leadership)

3. Identify prospective companies in targeted geographic markets. (The use of externaldatabases and online resources to which the firm subscribes will need to be includedin both the IR and M&S budgets.)

4. Develop a marketing database with prospective client information. (M&S)

5. Assign specific lawyers across the firm’s offices (if applicable) the responsibility forspecific contact development. (M&S and firm leadership)

6. Begin to track competitive initiatives within the industry and regions. (IR)

7. Identify significant resources such as referral sources (accounting firms,banks, etc.), industry associations, and industry publications. (IR)

8. Establish regular monthly meetings with all individuals focused on theindustry market. (IR, M&S, and industry chairs)

9. Develop monthly revenue forecasts to track potential new business. (M&Sand Finance)

10. Develop appropriate marketing materials andbegin to canvas the market. (IR and M&S)

11. Track all contacts with the market throughthe database. (M&S)

3

Key Client and Major Account MarketingAnother significant area where Information Resources andMarketing and Sales have an opportunity to work closely togeth-er and drive revenue is in developing major clients. Again, Financealso becomes involved with this initiative and helps by providinginvaluable financial detail about the historical relationship the firmhas had with top clients.

By focusing on major accounts and key clients, a firm is muchmore likely to retain these important revenue sources. The lessfocused the firm, the more likely it becomes that a competitor will reap the rewards of increased revenue from a client whose loyalty has been taken for granted. No firm today can be relaxedabout driving its revenue through the top clients of the firm. Hereis a list of critical steps in this area and the firm team associatedwith each step.

1. Identify the top 50 to 100 clients of the firm. (M&S)

2. Identify the primary business focus of corporate clients (e.g.,health care, hospitality, etc.). By identifying this importantinformation, a firm can begin to identify industries in whichit has market share and strength, which will then help drivestrategic marketing decisions for the future. (IR and M&S)

3. Create a tracking mechanism that will allow the firm to staycurrent with published information about its clients, includingthe activities of key executives. In some instances, it alsomakes sense to track the activities of your clients’ competitorsand send updates of those activities to your clients. They really appreciate the information and the firm’s initiative insending it. (IR and some M&S)

4. Develop client interview forms to learn about important clientgoals that may impact the firm. Develop a means by which tostore this information in the firm’s database. (M&S)

5. Create targeted financial goals for building the firm’s businesswith each company. (M&S and firm leadership)

6. Manage information on an ongoing basis about the boardmembers and executive leadership for dissemination toappropriate law firm team members. (IR)

To summarize, working on a key client strategy is a solid teameffort that takes thoughtful preparation and execution. Without agood working relationship between the Information Resourcesteam and the Marketing and Sales team, key client marketing andsales is much more difficult.

The description of steps to follow in the areas of industry planningand key client and major account marketing provides a referencefor ways in which functional teams within the firm can work

together to develop goals that affect firm revenue. Next, this article will touch on ways in which to strengthen and build on therelationships between IR and M&S.

Information Resources has many valuable resources that theMarketing and Sales folks know little about. An IR presentationshould provide M&S personnel with an overview of informationresources functions at the firm, and document key areas in whichIR can assist with marketing and sales projects. Such a presenta-tion can create a strong forum for open dialog, and will often notonly raise awareness about IR, but also drive the message through-out the firm during marketing strategy meetings with key practicegroups. In fact, it is wise to let M&S know that the IR team isready, willing, and able to participate in these strategy sessions.

Likewise, Marketing is wise to keep Information Resourcesapprised of M&S initiatives. Often, simply creating an opportuni-ty for dialog creates a substantial benefit to the firm overall. Thereis truly strength in numbers.

The Marketing and Information Resources teams should seekopportunities to co-present at meetings of key practice areas of thefirm. By presenting a unified front, the teams will help the firm’slegal professionals better understand the resources that are avail-able and how those resources best support the partners’ goals.

For example, at Dorsey & Whitney the IR team members areassigned to specific industry groups. They work directly withMarketing to help achieve overall firm success with industry initiatives. This structure allows the members of both IR andM&S to build strong working relationships and respond to thearray of needs of law firm partners. Working together enables usto learn from each other, making for broader awareness of whatthe overall team has to offer. We can better respond to requestsduring meetings where we might not have representation fromboth teams. Attorneys also respond well to the evidence of strongworking relationships. The positive nature of this experience leads to greater respect for the value of the IR and M&S supportstructure to the partnership.

Without Information Resources, M&S forfeits access to signifi-cant external resources that amplify its function and drive thevalue it brings to the firm; without a strong tie to Marketing, IR isseen as “the library,” and not as a viable source for competitiveand corporate intelligence. Working together, InformationResources and Marketing are hard to beat!

In conclusion, a cohesive team of non-legal professionals adds tothe competitive strength of the firm, enhances opportunities forgenerating revenue, and helps foster a more business-mindedfocus. Win-win, as they say. •

4

During the past several years, many corporations—particularly those with multiplemanufacturing and service locations—have achieved significant cost savings andenhanced efficiency by consolidating basic support functions into a single location.Such a location is sometimes referred to as a Shared Services Center (SSC). The ideahas been to move support functions such as customer call centers, billing, account-ing, payroll, human resources, information technology, and other “back office”services into shared centers, leaving only essential manufacturing or professionalservice personnel and infrastructure in relatively higher cost locations. The logicbehind this trend has been: (1) to place shared support services in a lower cost laborand rental market; (2) to create economies of scale by consolidating disparate support staff and functions into a single location thereby reducing headcount; (3) tostreamline business processes; and (4) to increase service consistency and quality.

Shared Services Centers can be—but are not necessarily—fully or partially out-sourced. Some companies prefer to retain some or all consolidated support functionsand personnel within the company to preserve institutional knowledge, to maintainconfidentiality, and to achieve certain competitive advantages. Outsourcing remainspopular in many corporations, especially in particular service areas such as IT andHR. In the Shared Services Center context, outsourced services are handled from asingle location in an inexpensive labor and rental market.

AT A GLANCE: The potential costsavings of Shared Services Centersare significant for a mature industry.The cultural impact can also beimportant for traditionally conserva-tive and close-knit law firms.

By William Scarbrough, Executive Director, Baker &McKenzie, Washington, D.C.

LatestCorporateTrend?

Shared Services Centers – Are Law Firms Ready for the

“Perhaps the most con-troversial aspect of theShared Services Centertrend has been themovement of white-collar jobs outside theUnited States.”

Consequences of Implementing a Shared Services CenterAs with outsourcing, the most likely negative result of establishinga Shared Services Center for employees directly affected by theconsolidation is the loss of their jobs. Even when key personnel areoffered the opportunity to relocate to the SSC (which is often thecase), consultants indicate that relatively few opt to move, citingpersonal or family reasons. Morale may also suffer among theemployees who remain. Changes in service delivery and processcan also be difficult for company employees who use the services.

The movement toward Shared Services Centers and call centershas also had positive results for many “second tier” cities in theUnited States, particularly those in the South and the Great Plains.In addition to enjoying lower labor and space costs, companiesoften receive tax and other incentives to relocate operations to par-ticular cities and states. This has been especially true during therecent economic downturn. The economies of Tampa, SanAntonio, Oklahoma City, Little Rock, Albuquerque, Birminghamand other cities have benefited significantly from the SSC trend.Some cities even now market themselves as shared services havens.

Offshore ServicesPerhaps the most controversial aspect of the Shared ServicesCenter trend has been the movement of white-collar jobs outsidethe United States. Recently, this issue has received significantmedia coverage. The offshore SSC trend has been so profoundduring the past few years that consulting firms with expertise inthis area have embraced the SSC as a growth opportunity forthemselves, while other sources of consulting revenue haveremained flat or declined. (For an interesting article on this topic,refer to “Offshore Services Grow in Lean Times: Consultants HelpCompanies Shift Their Operations” by Jonathan D. Glater, whichappeared on the first page of the business section of The New YorkTimes on January 3, 2004.)

Proctor & Gamble, IBM and many other large multinational corporations have moved thousands of jobs to lower cost jurisdic-tions abroad. Consulting firms such as TPI, A.T. Kearney, Bain &Company, Everest Group, Accenture, and—interestingly—IBMhave developed significant expertise in helping corporations evaluate and implement the SSC approach.

Shared Services Centers at Law FirmsSo what does the Shared Services Center trend mean for law firms?As with certain other recent business innovations, law firms in theUnited Kingdom have embraced the concept more readily thanU.S. firms. India has been the location of choice for U.K. firms,probably as a result of cost considerations as well as the historicalbackground and Commonwealth relationship of the two nations.Allen & Overy has outsourced half of its document production

department to Madras in southern India. Hammonds Direct set upback office systems support in Delhi. Halliwell Landau outsourcessome of its secretarial work to India. Clifford Chance has also moved some support work offshore. Eversheds is looking intosetting up a processing office in India, South Africa, or Singapore.

A few U.S. firms have also embraced the SSC concept. Orrick,Herrington & Sutcliffe was a trailblazer in moving many of itssupport services to Wheeling, West Virginia. Holland & Knightand Akin, Gump have also implemented Shared Services Centersin lower-cost U.S. locations outside their headquarter cities.

The Baker & McKenzie ExperienceBaker & McKenzie, a global firm with more than 3,200 lawyersin 66 offices spread across 36 countries, has established several IT-oriented Shared Services Centers within the firm during the pastfew years.

A Network Operations Centre (NOC) was established in the firm’sManila office in 2002 to increase the reliability and effectiveness ofthe firm’s technology by centralizing information about the firm’ssystems, proactively identifying potential problems, and assistinglocal, regional and global IT teams with remote operational tasks.The NOC delivered immediate and significant first-year savings by“insourcing” global Internet firewall monitoring.

A Global Systems Development Centre was established and co-located in the Jakarta and Manila offices in 2002. The Centreprovides high quality software and application development, andfinancial reporting services for the global firm.

In 2003, the Asia-Pacific Document Centre in the Manila office,which had been providing word processing support for the firm’sAsia-Pacific Region, expanded and became the Document SupportCentre (DSC), which provides support for the entire firm. TheDSC is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by high-caliberlocal resources. Use of the Centre has grown quickly and dramat-ically in all regions and most offices of the firm. Dictation from attorneys around the world can be turned around quickly,regardless of the time of day and without the need for expensivelocal overtime coverage. The Centre also provides global desktoppublishing and data processing services.

FutureIs the Shared Services Center the latest management fad? Or willthe concept take hold and grow, not just for large multinationalcorporations, but also for professional service organizations suchas law firms? The cost savings are significant for a mature indus-try that has gained efficiencies and cost savings in many otherways already. The cultural impact can also be important for tradi-tionally conservative and close-knit law firms. Only time will tell. •

5

6

AT A GLANCE: A behind-the-curtains look at how law firm professional development programsare managed.

By Cindy Diamond, Knowledge Resource Coordinator,Hogan & Hartson L.L.P., Washington, D.C.

Professional Development (PD) initiatives are receiving a great deal of attention in law firms because an effective PD

program can enhance a firm’s profile and provide a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Comprehensive PD

programs also allow firms to have total control over the quality of an attorney’s education. Firms have realized these

advantages and are committing resources to implement extensive in-house curricula. In most firms, expanded PD

programs are managed by full-time professional directors. I spoke with Chris Boyd (Director of Professional

Development and Knowledge Management at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati) and Valerie Fitch (Director of

Attorney Development at Pillsbury Winthrop) about the mission of the Professional Development Director.

What role do you play at your firm and what are the objectives of your position?

Chris Boyd: I lead the Professional Development and Knowledge Management (KM) pro-grams at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. My mission is to help attorneys, paralegals,secretaries, and other personnel build skills and access knowledge so they can performstrongly and serve clients well. In the area of PD, we offer three categories of training. First,we orient new employees and teach them about the firm’s resources, people, and businessstrategy. Second, we offer an extensive curriculum of substantive law classes in our threelargest practice groups. The third category of training covers professional skills, includingcommunication, management, business development, financial, and accounting skills.

Valerie Fitch: I oversee an extensive firm-wide professional development program reaching800 attorneys located in 17 offices. At Pillsbury Winthrop, we offer courses ranging frombasic legal skills to improving client services. We also offer sessions on management andleadership skills, as well as programs on business development skills that we provide in part-nership with the firm’s Marketing department. Classes are taught by Pillsbury Winthroplawyers because they can best convey the firm’s business objectives and practices.Occasionally we’ll use outside consultants for specialized programs; the consultants meetwith our lawyers to gather intelligence so they can tailor programs to the firm’s specific needs.

My main objective is to support the firm’s commitment to develop, educate, and energize its outstandingprofessionals.

PracticeInnovators

VALERIE FITCHDirector of Attorney

Development atPillsbury Winthrop LLP

CHRIS BOYDDirector of Professional

Development andKnowledge Manage-

ment at Wilson SonsiniGoodrich & Rosati

7

How long has your position existed at thefirm?

C.Boyd: Wilson Sonsini Goodrich &Rosati has offered formal training formore than a decade. My role was createdin late 2001, when I approached the firmabout leading its KM program and thefirm was looking for a director of PD. Thefirm combined leadership of both pro-grams into a single position because theyare closely related: PD teaches attorneysand staff what they need to know ahead oftime, while KM enables them to get whatthey need at the moment of performance.Both programs focus on developing greatservice professionals, so having both pro-grams led by one person makes sense.

V.Fitch: In January 2001, the firm ofWinthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Robertsand the firm of Pillsbury, Madison, &Sutro merged to form Pillsbury WinthropLLP. After practicing in the Winthrop liti-gation group since 1988, I becameWinthrop’s director of associate develop-ment in 1997. That was a newly-createdposition. I had been active for several yearsin the litigation department’s training pro-gram. I had also taught legal writing anddrafting in law school since 1991. Uponthe merger of the two firms, I becamePillsbury Winthrop’s firm-wide director ofattorney development.

What are the core competencies requiredto be a successful Director of AttorneyProfessional Development?

C.Boyd: There are three key requirementsto be successful at PD. One is a strong lawor firm background; if a person doesn’thave one before joining a firm, then he orshe needs to learn the ropes quickly.Another requirement is a strong back-ground in adult learning skills, or at least astrong appreciation for them and the will-ingness to hire professionals who havethem. Effective adult learning techniquesenable instructors to convey informationand skills in a way people understand andretain. The third essential skill is a passionto help people get better at what they do

and deliver better service to clients. I neverlose sight of the underlying theme—allprograms should further the firm’s goal ofhelping clients with legal matters.

V.Fitch: I have seen a broad range of back-grounds in the profession. I have metpeople with prior experience in recruitingand education. I have also met lawyers,like myself, who previously practiced law.While many are not lawyers, most profes-sional development directors have workedin a law firm environment. I have foundmy experience practicing law and myknowledge of the law to be very usefulwhen creating curriculums for trainingprograms, especially in the various prac-tice areas. Although the skill set for aprofessional development director encom-passes many traits, at a minimum I think asuccessful professional development direc-tor needs strong management skills,mediation skills, a good sense of humor,infinite patience, and a keen sense of theareas of professional development that thelawyers at their firm or organization need.

Why has professional developmentbecome such an important issue in lawfirms?

C.Boyd: Wilson Sonsini Goodrich &Rosati decided to invest in PD becausecompetition among law firms for greatlawyers and clients continues to rise.Senior management realizes a compellingoffering of PD is key to attracting greatlawyers and growing relationships withclients. People want to get better at whatthey do and strive for excellence.

V.Fitch: The area of PD in law firms isgrowing tremendously, even in a downturneconomy. New York adopted mandatoryCLE for the first time in 1999, which esca-lated the growth of PD in New York lawfirms. Another reason for the expansion ofPD initiatives is that training is now a pri-ority for associates. Attorneys have takenmore control of their own career growthand now demand training in the skills theyneed in order to progress and succeed.

What are some trends in the field of lawfirm professional development?

C.Boyd: I have seen three trends in the fieldof PD. One trend is the increase in pro-grams for partners focused on how toformulate and deliver feedback. Associatesare eager for as much useful feedback aspossible and partners frequently aren’tsure how best to gather and deliver it.Another trend I have seen relates to men-toring programs to ensure that associatescontinuously receive guidance from seniorlawyers. Finally, the idea of “just-in-timetraining” seems to be catching on.Typically, PD programs are conducted wellin advance of when they are applied.However, just-in-time training consists ofsmall, quick refresher training modulesthat provide a quick hit of knowledge justbefore an attorney begins a specific task.These modules are delivered to the desk-top and are available for use any time. Wehaven’t done these yet, but we are lookingat starting them this year.

V.Fitch: One trend is to bring learning tothe desktop. In 2004, we will work to con-vert our in-house videotapes to an onlineformat through the firm’s intranet.Another trend, especially for large firmswith many offices, is to bring training intothe local offices, regionally, and firm-wide.We have worked to develop several pro-gram “packages” that can be sent out tomany offices and be taught live by ourlawyers in those offices. That way, at leastfor some programs, our lawyers world-wide can share the same experience. Wethink this is much more effective thanvideoconferencing, in most instances.

What are some new features of your pro-fessional development program?

C.Boyd: We have recently started offeringCLE sessions for clients to help their in-house counsel satisfy CLE require-ments. This has worked out well becauseour clients usually do not have dedicatedlegal training resources in-house, and they

continued on page 12

8

DocumentLife

Remember the ’80s, when the IT topic du jour was “Moving from ‘Islands of Information’to Local Area Networks (LANs)”? Good-bye, stand-alone computers. Using a floppy diskto share files? Forget about it! To automate software installation, we just copied the CD to the network and used login scripts. With the adoption of LANs, great strides weremade in the ease of storing, sharing, and accessing information, documents, and softwareapplications. Undoubtedly, this was a big step forward.

Networks gave users the ability to share data across an application, but did not offer muchcapability for data sharing between applications. For example, everyone in Accountingused the same system to track information. Everyone in Records shared a common data-base. But it was not particularly common for these two applications to share informationwith each other.

Eventually this began to change. Today we can store not only word processing files in ourdocument management systems (DMS), but also e-mails and numerous other file types, aswell. We can now mark a file as a “record” within our DMS. Even for those applicationsthat can’t talk directly to each other, nightly transfers of data between them can be estab-lished. Data warehouses containing information from multiple systems can provide uswith holistic views of the firm’s performance that were previously simply not possible.

So, have we reached Document Lifecycle Nirvana, a place in time where a documentmoves seamlessly from one application to the next, depending on the phase of its lifecycle? Yes! Well, maybe…. Let’s start by examining the typical document lifecycle.

“The road to success may be paved with an overabundance

of integration and interface options, overlapping func-

tionality, and multiple methods for retrieving the same

information.”

AT A GLANCE: Document Lifecycle Nirvana is a place intime where a document moves seamlessly from oneapplication to the next, depending on the phase of itslifecycle. The capabilities to create a digital documentlifecycle process exist today. However…

By Lisa Kellar, Practice Automation Manager, Hunton & Williams, LLP,Washington, D.C.

9

Phase 1: Document ProductionSuppose that an attorney creates a document for a client usingWord or WordPerfect. The document is stored in a DMS (such asDOCs or iManage). Numerous versions of the document aremade. Multiple authors may work on it. Eventually a final versionis created and sent to the client.

Phase 2: Active Document StorageA hard copy of the final document is printed and stored in achronological file or other filing cabinet that may be maintained byseveral persons. Many firms have instituted a procedure for mark-ing final work product within the DMS. If so, the exemplardocuments are so marked and become part of a precedents libraryor other KM collection.

Phase 3: Filing the RecordSome attorneys remember to send their files to the Records depart-ment; many attorneys, however, do not. To combat this problem,some firms have a procedure to initiate file clean up. For example,when a matter is officially closed some firms remind their attor-neys to purge their files and send the appropriate documents toRecords. Other firms have an annual clean-up campaign in whichthe staff is urged to review older files. However accomplished, afile should eventually wind up in the Records department and beentered into the Records Management System (RMS).

Phase 4: Inactive Document StorageOnce a document is filed with the Records department, it may bestored on-site or shipped to an off-site storage provider.Procedures are established to request access to files that are instorage.

Phase 5: Document DestructionThe Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 has made firms take risk man-agement more seriously, and to consider records managementissues. If your firm doesn’t have a document retention policy yet,surely it is actively working on one. Such a policy dictates howlong the firm will retain the documents and e-mails that constitutethe official Records file, and when that information will bedestroyed.

A Wealth of OptionsWith some amount of variance, this cycle describes the way thingswork at most firms. Now let’s discuss how the wealth of optionsfor integrating the most important law firm applications helps usreach Document Lifecycle Nirvana. Note that most of the steps in

the phases described above are manual. Attorneys manuallyreview paper documents in their office and send the documents tothe Records department. The Records department maintains adatabase that tracks the physical location of the stored file. Atsome point, boxes of paper records are sent to off-site storage.

Even though most documents are created on a computer, most ofthe phases in the document’s lifecycle still center on the physicalcopy. Most firms have the capability of replacing some, if not all,of these manual processes with an electronic equivalent. Theyprobably already have the main components in place. Each of thefollowing common legal applications integrates with at least sev-eral others listed, making an almost-entirely-digital documentlifecycle possible.

• Document Management Systems: Hummingbird’s DOCs Open,iManage/Interwoven DeskSite and MailSite, and DocumentumDMS

• E-mail: MS Outlook, Novell GroupWise, and Lotus Notes

• Records Management Systems: LegalKey’s RMS, MDY’sFileSurf RMS, and Accutrack (note: Hummingbird andDocumentum also offer their own RMS products.)

• Portals: Plumtree, SharePoint, Hummingbird EIP, iManage, andWorkSite

Here’s an example of a digital document lifecycle usingHummingbird’s DOCs Open, Microsoft Outlook, and LegalKey’s RMS:

A document is created and stored in DOCs Open. The attorney,using a field on the DOCs profile, marks a specific version of thedocument as a Record. This automatically changes the security ofthe document so that it cannot be altered in the future. An e-mailrelated to the same case is sent, and is profiled and stored in DOCsOpen from within Outlook. The e-mail is also marked as aRecord. Because the document and the e-mail have been flagged asa Record, each is now available to the Records department staffthrough LegalKey. Additional fields of information about the doc-ument are recorded in LegalKey. A link is created in LegalKey sothat the document can be opened from the RMS, although it stillphysically resides within the DMS. This means that users can stillopen the document from DOCs without going through Records.(Because the firm will always need to store some hard copy files, amanual process needs to be available to handle them.)

continued on page 12

cycle Nirvana

10

There is a revolution happening in the world today, and it is occurring faster than anyoneexpected. This revolution is not in technology, but in the way we interact with information.It is both compelling and confusing, and it’s not perfect. This new revolution in how wework and live is wireless.

There are some very fundamental reasons why this change is taking place:

• Wireless allows us to work anytime, anywhere.

• With wireless your information is always with you.

• Wireless technology is more personal and tailored specifically to you. Cell phones and PDAs are both good examples.

• Wireless allows us all to move more freely, without the tether of wires.

Adoption of wireless has been a phenomenon in itself. At a time of declining computer sales, wireless technologies are selling briskly, and rapidly becoming integrat-

ed into everyday life. Examples of the changing ways in which we interact with informationare everywhere: home and business networks, cell phones, cordless phones, PDAs, and toll-booths.

The pace of adoption of wireless technologies far exceeds that set by other technologies. For example:

• 50 million people adopted radio in 38 years.

• 50 million people adopted TV in 13 years.

• 50 million people adopted the Internet in 4 years.

• Over 50 million users have adopted wireless devices of various types in less than 2 years.

AT A GLANCE: Despite the compellingnature of wireless technology, many lawfirms do not need to go wireless today.

By Don Philmlee, Certified Information Systems SecurityProfessional (CISSP), Potomac Consulting Group

Don specializes in the introduction and development of new andemerging technology for law firms. He routinely works with lawfirms nationwide on security audits, technology assessments, andsystems implementation issues. Don can be reached via e-mail atdon@potomac.com

GoingWirelessin the Law Firm

11

Understanding WirelessTalk about wireless can be confusing,because wireless technologies and relateddevices are changing so rapidly. The bestway to start the discussion on wireless is to first ask: “Where do you want to be wireless?”

The various wireless technologies can bebroken down into four areas or spheres ofinfluence:

Personal – The personal wireless area typically covers a wingspan of about 30 feetand can be private or public. Personal wireless technologies include infrared,Bluetooth and other broadcast technolo-gies. Examples include TV remotes, printerswith infrared connections, credit cards (gas pump wands) and electronic tollboothpasses.

Local – This area is typically technologythat makes a computer wireless at home, atwork, or at a public hotspot (a hotspot istypically a for-hire wireless service offeredby a consumer-oriented business such as coffee shop, bookstore, or airport). Ittypically ranges about 300 feet in distanceand can be private or public. Technologiesinclude a sometimes-confusing array ofstandards that look like alphabet soup:802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11g, and the newer802.11i.

Regional/National – This area has nodefined name. Examples of national/region-al wireless include cell phones, Blackberrydevices, and pagers. Coverage tends todepend upon the carrier involved.Technologies used vary from CMDA,CDPD, GSM, and others; performance isusually expressed in terms of 1G, 2G, 3G,or 4G. The “G” stands for “generation.”

Global – The global area is simply satellitecommunications. It is typically worldwidein range. Performance is usually slowbecause bandwidth is limited.

Should Your Firm Go Wireless?Despite the compelling nature of wirelesstechnology, many law firms do not need togo wireless today. It is a question of func-

tionality and demand. In some firms whereattorneys do not travel, wireless may notprovide an effective advantage. In someareas of the country, wireless coverage orimplementation is light or nonexistent.

From a firm management or IT perspective,there are several important concerns regard-ing wireless technologies:

Security – Security is the number one prob-lem with wireless. Wireless needs to besecure—particularly with the level of con-fidentiality required in the legal industry—but not so secure that it becomesoverly cumbersome for end users. (The wire-less technology with the biggest securityproblem is Local Wireless, often referred toas Wi-Fi. It has caught on like wildfire withusers, but Wi-Fi technology has only basicsecurity features that are easily defeated. Thenew standard that is supposed to addressthese problems is 802.11i.) Providing wire-less security for your network is amulti-faceted problem. It is a critical areawhere you will need to focus much attentionif you choose to implement ANY wirelesssolution.

Spiraling Costs – Going wireless costs mon-ey. Make sure you understand both annualand monthly per-user costs and how theywill be billed. Further, expect to expandyour network infrastructure to accommo-date wireless.

Bandwidth – No technology is ever fastenough. Wireless LANs are still faster thanmost Internet connections, but far slowerthan any office network. Don’t expect highbandwidth in the public wireless network. Many devices are designed to perform at lower speeds to match the available bandwidth (e.g., cell phoneshave a “dumbed down” Web browser, and PDA devices send and receive data in small transactions). The good news,however, is that bandwidth—like perform-ance and power consumption—is alwayson the increase.

Support – Expect support costs to rise.Even a simple wireless device requires acomplex backdrop of technology to make it

work. Users may not require additionaltraining, but your network and supportinfrastructure may have to grow.

Coverage – In North America, coverage isless of an issue now than it was two or threeyears ago. Although wireless is alwaysprone to some dead spots, coverage keepsimproving because antennas today can behidden easily. Coverage at the office isdetermined by how well your local wirelessnetwork was planned.

Limited Management – Not all devices canbe managed (e.g., Blackberry can, but a cellphone typically cannot). Wireless deviceshave not quite made it into the realm of cen-tralized management. As they find theirplace in firms, this issue will becomeincreasingly important.

Hotspots – Hotspots are great for travelingattorneys, but make sure that laptops aresecure with a personal firewall and anti-virus software.

Home Users – Don’t forget that home userswill need help setting up their wirelessLANs. Fortunately, once set up, wirelessLANs don’t need much ongoing support.

Best Practices – Develop a descriptive list ofbest practices for your firm’s wireless users.

Planning – Firms that have implementedwireless technologies know that wirelessfunctionality quickly becomes critical tothose who use it. Make sure you have doneyour planning before you implement. Focuson the specific functionality that is impor-tant to your firm and don’t get caught uplooking at gadgets. A good plan to startnow is to become familiar with LocalWireless either at home or in a small test set-ting at work. Local Wireless is not terriblyexpensive and is fairly easy to implement.By the time the tidal wave of wireless hitsyour firm, you will have the experience nec-essary to implement the technology on awider basis.

In summary, few new technologies havebeen as overwhelmingly compelling anduseful as wireless. Wireless is here to stay,and has real promise in all its forms.•

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Once a document or e-mail is filed in the RMS, attorneys can usea LegalKey module that allows them to look up any Record,whether digitally or physically stored. For those documents thatare physically stored, attorneys can use the software to request acopy that is automatically routed to a Records clerk. Attorneys canself-serve and retrieve digital records directly through LegalKey.Most DMS products are also capable of storing scanned images.

Although the abundance of integration offers great flexibility, italso introduces some issues to contend with. First, the wealth ofintegration complicates product selection. No longer can a firmreview the available DMS products and make a selection basedsimply on its own needs. Now the firm has to consider the prod-ucts with which the DMS integrates. What if the DMS that seemsideal for your firm only integrates with an RMS that the firm is notusing? Worse yet, if you are also considering switching RMS, youcan easily get stuck in a “chicken and egg” situation. Add in athird factor—such as changing e-mail clients, or the extent towhich these products work well in your portal platform—anddecision making can grind to a halt. Even if you’re not switchingvendors, changing product versions can be complicated due tointegration. And how do all of these applications work withAccounting? Conflicts? Client intake? It really can get quite ugly!

Second, some vendors offer more than one way to integrate.Reducing the number of interfaces that attorneys need to use is a

common goal, but the number of interfaces to choose from isincreasing. Furthermore, enhanced integration between DMS,RMS, e-mail systems, portals, matter management interfaces andknow-how systems has resulted in an overlap in functionality.

For instance, in the lifecycle example above, a user can locate arecord in either DMS or in LegalKey but can only read particulartypes of information about the document (e.g., meta data or pro-file fields) in the DMS and only other types of information in theRMS (such as physical location). Similarly, a precedent documentcould be located in the DMS but also found through a portal orKM system, each with different methods for searching and brows-ing. Most vendors also offer developer tools that allow a firm tocreate its own mechanism for controlling access to data. The inter-face options are seemingly endless, all of which can confuse usersif training and education are not adequately addressed.

I hope you now understand why I use the word “maybe” when Idescribe whether or not we have achieved Document LifecycleNirvana. The capabilities exist to create a truly digital documentlifecycle, but the road to success may be paved with an overabun-dance of integration and interface options, overlappingfunctionality, and multiple methods for retrieving the same infor-mation. A firm can be faced with tough decisions about whichturns to make.•

Document Lifecycle Nirvana continued from page 9

Practice Innovators continued from page 7

really appreciate the firm’s offerings. TheCLE sessions help build stronger relation-ships with clients. The sessions areconducted by attorneys at the firm and area great way to showcase attorney skills anddemonstrate the firm’s capabilities.

V.Fitch: We are trying to come up withinteresting, attention-riveting ways to com-municate information. For instance, weteach ethics and professional responsibilityby utilizing DVDs of “scenarios” so thatattendees can see how issues come up in aday-to-day context. The video scenariosare fun to watch and promote great discus-sions. We have also added a class on how

to deliver effective feedback and reviews toassociates. The goal of the Feedback andReview Skills session is to help those whogive reviews and provide feedback thetools to do so, ensuring that associates getquality, constructive feedback, so that theylearn and ultimately provide an even high-er quality work product.

Do you have any useful advice or goodresources to recommend for professionaldevelopment initiatives?

C.Boyd: My advice to any firm gettingstarted is to start small, achieve some early wins and build on them.

V.Fitch: Your own peers are always greatsources of information, so I recommendlocating organizations for PD professionalsand networking with people in your city orgeographic area who do what you do. Ihave found that information-sharing withcolleagues is an incredible resource. It is also useful to attend conferences, orbetter yet, to speak on panels or at confer-ences. That being said, your own lawyersare your greatest resource. I encourage youto find out what they want, what theyneed, how they work, and involve them inthe process of brainstorming and creatingnew PD programs. •

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Practice Statistics of NoteA recent Pew Foundation study highlighted the rapid growth in Americans’ use of theInternet to find information.1

• More than 8 out of 10 Internet users have searched the Internet to answer specificquestions.

• Spurred by an increase in content and the momentum of important news events inrecent years, the online news population grew by 50%.

• The number of those who have used government Web sites grew by 56% between2000 and 2002.

• Those who have searched for political news and information online grew by 57%between 2000 and 2002.

• The population of those who have done work or research for their job online (notincluding e-mail) grew by 45% between March 2000 and November 2002. About 42million had used the Web for work in 2000, and 61 million had done so in 2002.

A second study, sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the University of Florida LawSchool, looked at the state of knowledge management in law firms.2

• Almost half (49%) of law firm respondents reported having initiated a KM program.(p.57)

• Over 40% of law firm respondents believe the absence of a strategy is a barrier thatprevents their respective organization from launching a KM initiative. (p.63)

• Law firm respondents indicated that “Searching across differing internal work prod-uct repositories” was the most immediate and compelling concern regarding KM.(p.84)

• More than 40% of law firm respondents indicated that contributions to the KMInitiative are considered as part of the evaluation process. (p.99)

• Over three-fourths of law firm respondents reported that “standard legal forms” and“research memoranda” are the most likely candidates for KM repositories. (p.164)

• Almost 70% of law firm respondents indicated documents in the knowledge reposito-ries are between one and five years old. (p.168)

1 From America’s Online Pursuits: The Changing Picture of Who’s Online and What They Do (Mary Madden, Pew Internet &American Life Project, Washington, D.C., 22 December 2003), available from (http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/pdfs/PIP_Online_Pursuits_Final.PDF). All quotations are from page iv (emphasis in the original).

2 From “PricewaterhouseCoopers–Legal Research Center, Inc., Knowledge Management: An In-Depth Look into KM’s Current Use &Future Trends in the Legal Profession,” Law Firm Edition, published by the Legal Technology Institute at the University of Florida LevinCollege of Law, Spring 2003.

Online news populationgrew by 50%

2000

2002

Government Web site usersgrew by 56%

2000

2002

Political news and information Web site usersgrew by 57%

2000

2002

Users who have done job-related work or researchgrew by 45%

2000

2002

Online information-seeking activitieshave grown across the board since2000—most by 50% or more.

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