Enabling law firms to put business at 
 the heart of delivery

Project Change in Challenging Times

For those of us that have big projects underway the challenging and rapidly changing environment emerging from the Covid-19 will present real issues. 
You will all be addressing these issues right now in the context of your own project and your firm.
Many of us will have past experience of big projects and some of us will have been through previous business crises but none of us have careers long enough to have experienced anything like this current crisis. 

If it helps, this is how we see things:
• Think of your people first. They will have practical issues to contend with, fears about themselves and their families, uncertainty about how they will work and, if they are contract staff, if they will be stood down. Being transparent about the challenges and showing that you and the business understand they are people will go far to help them through. Building a community of support within your team for the issues that arise at work and to help them share their out of work issues in a safe way if they want to will pay rich business and human returns.
• Revise communication streams. You will already be used to agile working across your offices, jurisdictions and with your suppliers as well as with your core team. As we move to more substantive remote working your team dynamics will inevitably change. Making this work successfully will be paramount. You will undoubtedly lose some of the unscheduled creativity and problem solving that simply comes from being at the same coffee machine during the day. Facilitate this with regular discussions, good virtual meetings and good diary management. Individual catch ups on video will be important both to work through issues and to ensure your team are coping with the challenges of being isolated, in a medical sense, or feeling isolated as they are missing human contact.
• Consider others. Speak to your suppliers and make sure you understand their issues, their views and that they have your back.
• Critical Path Planning. Think about your timelines and deliverables and the interconnectedness and dependencies of different parts of your project. You will lose capacity to deliver as people are ill, through some efficiency loss, through some distraction in your team as they manage their families and because your software suppliers and service providers face the same issues. Your will have people in your teams whose experience or knowledge is hard to substitute for. They will be single points of failure for your program delivery. Doing what you can to share their knowledge across your team will help. Nevertheless, you can expect some disruption as people’s normal working habits (including robustly struggling through their seasonal ailments) need to be replaced with the reality of our new ways of working.
• Changing Priorities. Your business and its leaders will also be very distracted as the firm focuses on its clients and on what it needs to do to manage its own resources. Your access to management may be slower and your usual champions in the partnership more unavailable. Engaging with key business leaders will inevitably be harder and make obtaining key decisions or authorisations harder to come. Your project may not be the most important thing on their radar right now.
• Be realistic. Do not base your planning on the most optimistic view of the future. Test it robustly with your project team and make sure they air their views genuinely and openly. 
• Understand the options, and implications. Consider the context of where you are in your project. If you are at an early stage it may be sensible to pause many of the critical elements and simply work on foundational activity to ensure you can start up again swiftly when you can be clearer on the timelines. If you are close to go live, what risks are you knowingly accepting for the business in going ahead in the light of the other challenges your firm faces. Has the business risk appetite for your project changed because of the changed business environment. Will the chance of an interruption to client take on, billing, collection or paying suppliers be as acceptable to the business as it was when your project planning was originally agreed.
• Assess risks. Be transparent with your business leaders about what is achievable and realistic about the risks. If an adjustment to project scope, budget or timelines is part of the answer, engage appropriately with the firm on this. This should be seen as a sensible and pragmatic adjustment in response to an unprecedented change to our business environment.

Finally, don’t forget yourself. Keep well and don’t believe you are superhuman (unless you really are from Krypton). Reach out to your support network regularly and talk a lot. If it helps to speak to one of us simply to bounce ideas off, just call. 

  • Program Support

    Ensuring the business is ready for the project, and the project is ready for the business


    We have Magic Circle firm experience in Practice Management, Business Intake & Conflicts, Time Recording, Ethical Walls, Expenses, Pricing & Lawyer BI tools.


    Establishing Governance & Structure

    For our large programme we created and ran a hierarchy of steering groups and business design authorities. 

    These are integral to removing firm-wide obstacles, gaining senior support, and making key business decisions


    Business Eyes & Ears

    Business Design 

    - Ensuring the design is fit for purpose, complete and progressive

    - Structuring a decision tree and providing costs, impacts and dependencies of different options

    - Ensuring businesses understand the early data decisions that need to be made regarding planning the migration and cleansing work.

    Smooth Delivery 

    - Designing user testing to meet project needs while also building stakeholder confidence and testing the change management approach

    - Readying users for the system switch off, the downtime, the switch on, the first transactions, the first month end, and beyond.


    Ensuring the programme team, the vendors, the technology, the data, the users, the stakeholders are informed and in line with each other at every stage


    Supporting Project Teams

    With our wide project/program experience we can progress areas of the project that have slipped behind or are awaiting resources, e.g. creation of a detailed project plan (with supported budget and resource plan), creation of a change management approach and materials, creation of the cutover plan, with options etc. 

  • Change Management

    Engaging with the right people at the right time in the right format


    It’s important to be positive and sell the benefits of your project, but user’s expectations must be grounded and realistic.


    We take the textbook approach of stakeholder engagement, communication, user acceptance testing & training, and then we go one step further …


    Our model takes the benefits right at the start and the key stakeholder perspectives and weaves in checkpoints for them throughout the project – at the end of design, at the end of build and user testing, connecting them into data conversations to facilitate reporting, always keeping the stakeholders informed/engaged to the right extent.


    Our approach appreciates that change is personal and accepts the reality that some people will only engage at the last possible minute, whatever you do.   


    We can set up your change management strategy and then give you flexibility as you need more bandwidth at key points such as UAT, training & hypercare


    Remember your success will not be rated on the actual delivery, but on what people think of the delivery – change management is everything! 


  • Time Review

    You can have the best time-recording system in the world but to understand your total effort and maximise profitability you need to adopt new policies, processes and behaviours.


    Time recording - current state review

    Following a structured and tested approach we blend feedback from clients, billers, relationship managers and partners with underlying data to give an accurate picture of captured versus actual effort, and the hidden cost of untimely and poor quality submissions.


    Technical solution change?

    We believe that significant benefits can be realised via policy and behavioural change, without the expense of changing technology. 

    However, we also understand the benefits and costs of changing technology, and can advise accordingly.

    Time solutions now offer broad solutions that fully support the lawyer e.g. capturing time on all devices, providing an aide-memoire of activities performed, and fulfil an important role in managing ethical walls and client terms. Most firms do not make use of these capabilities


    Time recording is a client service

    Our approach of adopting policies, with supporting metrics, processes and promoting behavioural change rebrands good time recording not only as a fundamental client service (more important now that clients are demanding ever more real-time views of WIP) but as a key internal factor in being able to price and allocate work accurately.


    Change management  

    Based around four elements;

    - Importance of good time recording to clients and the firm

    - Awareness campaign regarding the under-used capture methods and the benefits of use

    - What good time behaviour looks like – championing good models

    - Awareness of the new measures, how they are calculated and used, and how lawyers can monitor them


  • Pricing Strategy & Setup

    Providing clear pricing and financial management to meet client demands and deliver internal control and enhanced profitability.


    Pricing Strategy Formation 

    - Identifying business realities and objectives across jurisdictions, practices and sectors to formulate the business strategy. 

    - Client and practice strategies formulated and aligned to minimise conflicting patterns of pricing behaviour and clarify to the market and internally where they exist. 

    - Client messaging agreed, aligned and communicated. Market facing position settled and broadcast if a broader positioning in the market is required or justified.


    Pricing Readiness

    - Creation of policies and processes to support the pricing initiative.

    - Detailing of new tasks per roles to be undertaken.

    - Data preparation, including creation/updating of key taxonomies and data quality check against existing client/matter details. 


    Selection & Implementation

    - Vendor/tool selection 

    - Business implementation, including  designing and agreeing workflow processes, agreeing on success criteria and how these are to be measured and reported.


    Change Management

    - Spreading awareness regarding the business change and its goals. Create wide understanding of why this initiative is important to the firm and the behavioural changes needed to make it a success.

  • Client/Matter Lifecycle Review

    Holistic review of the client matter lifecycle with senior stakeholders & the partner leadership team to focus on benefits & prioritise initiatives.


    Broad initiatives

    We enhance a starting list of 46 key trend areas , and their touchpoints across the client/matter lifecycle, with other initiatives that support the vision and business plan of the firm.

    Often these initiatives are turned into specific projects, but this does not reflect the inter-connectedness of modern businesses and systems. Solutions, business, technology and data, need to take into account the whole of the lifecycle and have an appreciation for the constraints, dependencies and impacts across the whole. 


    Bedrocks for decisions

    Our methodology works with senior business stakeholders to get a common consensus regarding the priorities of the business. 

    The outputs provide a framework by which to set priorities and review ongoing initiatives.

    It details the business case(s) for new projects and highlights dependencies on or between existing projects.

  • Business Intelligence / Management Information

    Providing business data to drive supporting actions


    Providing Data to the Business

    Lawyers don't think in terms of data sets, they just want immediate answers to their business questions;

    - How are my matters progressing against estimate?

    - Am I overbudget?

    - Will I meet my appraisal benchmarks? etc. 


    We can help firms design the next level of management information to lawyers and senior management that answers the above and more.


    Based on your business requirements and your KPIs, we can design a solution that is;

    - a one stop shop for client, matter and performance management informatiuon

    - role based for responsibilities and desired actions

    - security conscious (takes account of ethical walls and client sensitivities)

    - 'real-time' simple graphs and grids that provide drill downs into the detailed data 

    - progress against generic measures/performance indicators 

    - a self-service reporting suite, both stand-alone & embedded within dashboard pages.


    Strategic Business Intelligence Technical Layer

    Creation of a strategic BI Layer that;

    - includes the correct business data in the correct structured format 

    - provides a timely consistent view of data aligned to all source systems

    - contains an architectural model (business, technology and data) flexible enough to cater for the requirements of different presentation solutions 

    - is easily scalable to allow for added data domains. 


  • Tool & Vendor Selection

    Choosing the right solution for the current/future business and technology landscape, that best aligns with the firms' aspirations.


    Proven Methodology

    Using a proven methodology, supported by a full suite of tools and templates, with it's roots in the financial sector, we take firms through the multiple stages of choosing the right vendor, applcation and implementation consultants.


    Our approach does not just encompass the business stakeholders but addresses the needs of technology, InfoSec, Procurement and marketing teams. 


    We guide and manage our clients transparently through the process, making decisions easier by presenting clear concise options alongsode their strengths and weaknesses.


    Experience

    We have led multiple selection initiatives covering a broad spectrum of legal applications (everything from CRM to PMS), totalling several hundred million pounds. 

Our Ethos

Client Side

Product agnostic, our focus is on ensuring the best business solution enabling professionals to work with technology in a practical, achievable way.

Business Driven Systems 

Typically the business initiates a project but then the outcome is too often driven by either delivery date and budget focussed project teams, or technical constraints. This greatly effects what the business can ultimately achieve through the change.
We believe a healthy tension between business requirements and realistic project delivery produces the best solution for the business.
This requires continuous focus throughout the lifecycle.

Keep it Simple

Decision makers need simple options, however project life is complicated.
We remove jargon, technical and project language, and offer simple explanations and clear, practical advice to support good decision making in the project and better, more productive, outcomes.

Experience

With many Magic Circle years experience of delivering legal systems we have just finished a major programme that consolidated and  implemented practice management, client/matter opening, risk checking, time recording, ethical wall, expenses and lawyer BI solutions.

Strategy & Detail

While operating at the senior management level we believe that many of the obstacles are in the detail. 
We 'drop down the vertical' to analyse the detail to understand options and risks allowing clear decision making.

Business & Tech

With our strong technical and financial backgrounds in project delivery we are able to identify, assess and convey the dependencies between project and technical decisions and business capabilities and benefits.

The Value For You

Lower Overall Cost

Lower cost delivery overall, planned around the business so that the hidden business disruption cost (normally excluded from project costings) is minimised.

Better User Understanding

Business users understanding the business outcome and client side benefit and engaging with the change.

Management Informed

Management informed and equipped for the change so they know where to support for a more successful change.

Success

Ultimately, more successful project outcomes to support long term business objectives.

Client Side

Product agnostic, our focus is on ensuring the best business solution enabling professionals to work with technology in a practical, achievable way. 

Business Driven Systems 

Typically the business initiates a project but then the outcome is determined by delivery date and budget focussed project teams.
We believe a healthy tension between business requirements and realistic project delivery produces the best solution for the business.
This requires continuous focus.

Keep it Simple

Decision makers need simple options, however project life is complicated.
We remove jargon, technical and project language, and offer simple explanations and clear, practical advice to support good decision making in the project and better, more productive, outcomes.

Our Services

Ensuring the business is ready for the project, and the project is ready for the business


We have Magic Circle firm experience in Practice Management, Business Intake & Conflicts, Time Recording, Ethical Walls, Expenses, Pricing & Lawyer BI tools.


Business Eyes & Ears


- Business Design - Ensuring the design is fit and
  ready

  • guiding & reviewing design
  • ensuring business expectations are met
  • progressing key decisions and related policy
  • connecting the data migration and cleansing work to business purpose

- Smooth Delivery - planning & managing
  change to ensure the people are ready

  • guiding user testing to meet project needs but also making business sense to users and building confidence
  • stakeholder and end user readiness, inviting and addressing concerns
  • readying users for the system switch off, the downtime, the switch on, the first transactions, the first month end, and beyond

Ensuring the programme team, the vendors, the technology, the data, the users, the stakeholders are informed and in line with each other at every stage


Supporting Project Teams

With our wide project/program experience we can progress areas of the project that have slipped behind or are awaiting resources.

Thinkers & doers


Strategic & operational reviews

Based on our delivery experience & coming from the business perspective, LSC have framework approaches that can align your senior stakeholder strategy with policy, process, metrics and data analysis.  


     Time recording strategy review

  • You can deliver the best system in the world but to capture hours promptly with quality information it's all about lawyer adoption and behavioural change
  • We follow a proven approach based on profiling your lawyers, setting clear expectations, and using data analytics to give lawyers all the possible support and take away any excuses

      Client/Matter lIfecycle review

  • We think in terms of the holistic client matter lifecycle
  • Don't address individual issues with unrelated solutions. Bring them together so that processes make sense for how lawyers actually perform their work
  • Makes sense for busy lawyers (or professionals) where client service is the key focus of their day job.

       Central project management support review

  • Putting in place core frameworks and processes that reduce ongoing effort and provide the core blocks for delivery
  • We can support firms in managing their project portfolios by really focussing on the dependencies and benefit maps between the projects, aligning this to firm strategy and ensure that resources are prioiritised accordingly.
  • We can also help clients set up a central project management office to support project managers and give senior managers & stakeholders clarity and assurance.
  • We can implement our project methodology, processes and templates to align and enhance the client's approach.

Engaging with the right people at the right time in the right format


It’s important to be positive and sell the benefits of your project, but user’s expectations must be grounded and realistic.


We take the textbook approach of stakeholder engagement, communication, user acceptance testing & training, and then we go one step further …


Our model takes the benefits right at the start and the key stakeholder perspectives and weaves in checkpoints for them throughout the project – at the end of design, at the end of build and user testing, connecting them into data conversations to facilitate reporting, always keeping the stakeholders informed/engaged to the right extent.


Our approach appreciates that change is personal and accepts the reality that some people will only engage at the last possible minute, whatever you do.   


We can set up your change management strategy and then give you flexibility as you need more bandwidth at key points such as UAT, training & hypercare


Remember your success will not be rated on the actual delivery, but on what people think of the delivery – change management is everything! 


Providing business data to drive supporting actions


Providing Data to the Business


Lawyers don't think in terms of data sets, they just want immediate answers to their business questions;

How are my matters progressing?

Am I overbudget?

Will I meet my appraisal benchmarks? etc. 


We can help firms design the next level of management information to lawyers and senior management that answers the above and more.


Based on your business requirements and your KPIs, we can design a solution that is;

  • one stop shop for MI & access to reports
  • role based for responsibilities and desired action
  • security conscious
  • 'real-time' 
  • simple graphs and grids that provide drill downs into the detailed data
  • generic measures/performance indicators 
  • allows users to take actions on the dashboard
  • self-service reporting suite, both stand-alone & embedded within dashboard pages

Strategic Business Intelligence Technical Layer


Creation of a strategic BI Layer that;

  • includes the correct business data in the correct structured format
  • provides a timely consistent view of data aligned to all source systems
  • architected in a model flexible enough to cater for the requirements of different presentation solutions
  • is easily scalable to allow for added data domains

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