Long-term remote working practices have come as a refreshing change for many industries. Several firms across the globe have reported similar trends and several studies say that around 85% of employers worldwide agree that this kind of setting has resulted in greater flexibility. This has also improved the productivity of their employees and associates resulting in savings of millions of dollars per year in office space. A prominent London based law firm has been able to increase its annual turnover by 16.1% by introducing flexible working hours and user-friendly technologies. Having to master new technologies and managing your regular workflow from your home should not be frustrating if your technology partner is experienced and understands the pain points of your lawyers, partners and associates. The result is a solution that helps you manage, store, edit, disseminate and retrieve all your data, participate in group video calls, and stay connected with your clients and do a lot more all at once. But this transition from extensive paperwork to digitized platforms is not going to be easy.
Let’s Talk About The Most Common Technological Changes That Every Law Firm Has To Go Through To Adapt To The New Normal
Giving Time To Spread Technological Awareness
How many legal professionals or lawyers do you know who are extremely tech-savvy? The answer for most people might be “very few.” This is because their work does not require them to be essentially aware of the latest technologies. This is why the introduction to legal technology practices has become the need of the hour. We need to prepare not just our present lawyers but future generations of lawyers in the most appropriate legal technology and software.
Struggles With Document Assembly And Coding Now Done Away With
We have seen big fat law books. We have also seen piles of references and similar case files in a typical lawyer’s office. But all of this has changed or at least has begun to change. The paper documentation which can be recalled as a mountain of files and documents has given way to a digital dashboard. Centralization of documentation was a huge challenge up until a few years ago but document automation, assembly, and sharing has made retrieval and management of legal literature extremely fast and seamless.
End To End Security
Any law firm or legal entity that is looking to become more adaptive of the current situation and aims to acquire advanced remote capabilities will always have a major security concern regarding their data. This is where watertight security controls should be implemented. You are making your workplace and workforce mobile which means you will have to invest in a cloud-based work from home application that is able to present the same security controls that would be present in actual office premises.
Automation Of Processes
Manual tasks and processes have been almost eliminated with the advent of automated work processes. However, there was once a time when work automation did not receive as much support and appreciation as it has now. Process automation was perceived to be a technological evil that would diminish client privacy, take away employment opportunities and would be extremely costly at the same time. This is not the case as we all have begun to readily accept these changes and implement them in our daily work from home routine to simplify our lives.
Understanding Of Remote Conferencing Tools
In many cases, you will suddenly realize that you need to connect with your teammates and associates right away. Each video conferencing tool has its own advantages and disadvantages. You will need a bit of personal equipment and related peripherals for seamless videoconferencing but this is a change that everyone is willing to make in their routine work life. Video conferencing tools can be integrated into your own legal software. All your video meetings can be linked to relevant cases and if required also recorded and documented for future reference.
Prevent Installation Of Unauthorized Software
The problem of unwanted and unapproved software seeping into your authorized work environment has been done away with. There are several endpoint security blocks that you can choose from that will prevent any unauthorized or non approved software from being installed from any external window or node. By opting for completely customized and feature-rich legal software you can ensure that there is no need for any third-party conferencing software, additional printer drivers, dictation software, and similar apparatuses.
The Rising Popularity Of Cloud Platforms
Cloud adoption is gaining more and more popularity in the legal sector as well because of its overall enhanced features. The legal industry has gradually grown fond of cloud platforms and has been more than forthcoming off late when adopting this technology. Here’s what you should look for in a cloud-based legal application for your organization –
- Customized and easy billing systems.
- Customer relationship management feature which integrates with your in-house contacts database.
- Easy document management feature within the legal cloud platform.
- Watertight and completely secure remote access to every team member for seamless operations.
- Easy replacement of your already existing/obsolete legacy system.
- Ability to stay mobile which lets lawyers manage their practise from anywhere.
- No extensive computer knowledge needed to make use of online legal software.
- For large legal organizations, automatic backups to geographically separated data centres ensure uninterrupted access and flow of data among legal bodies, associates, clients and assistants.
- Scalability that comes with cloud-based solutions gives your practice the ability to grow.
Solutions And Integrations You Should Expect, How The Right Technology Can Revolutionize Your Legal Entity
Rising Investment In Video Conferencing
Several firms have already started investing large sums of money in customized video conferencing tools. Updating their legacy / proprietary video conferencing solutions to more modernized versions of the same is also a rising trend.
More Importance To Training
New technologies are always going to keep challenging your workplace. Therefore, training your workforce and minimizing any teething problems should be among the top priorities in your list.
Better Communication And Collaboration
There is a growing need for easy, personalized, prompt and faster communication and collaboration. Working remotely from different locations has necessitated the adoption of seamless and easy to use communication tools.
Compliance With Client Security Requirements
As more and more law firms switch from traditional workplaces to work from home setups, there has been a rise in the number of requests with regards to formal security audits. It is quite obvious at the moment that these challenges are more like opportunities that one needs to make the most of in order to stand apart from their competition.
Final Thoughts
Adopting new technologies whether it is a home based set-up or your workplace does come with some hiccups but the right software solutions can help you out a lot. Whether you are working remotely or in your office as a part of your customary team, the new normal for every industry is now laced with heavy reliance on online software and cloud-based applications. What matters in the end is that your productivity and turnover are not being compromised with. The technology partner you choose to develop your application should prove to be a reliable ally in your growth in the coming years. For more such insights and help in discovering how your legal business can flourish with the right software applications, get in touch with Zapbuild today.
(Co-Founder and Director at Zapbuild)
Are you looking for a technology partner to turn your business idea into a successful solution? Get free consultation from top IT experts – write to us at connect@zapbuild.com or call us at +1 (779) 256-7779 or +91-80471-16600.
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