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Donna Seyle is an attorney and consultant who helps small firms and solo  lawyers with innovative law practice strategies. She has established herself as a thought leader in the field and was kind enough to discuss these topics this week for the NetDocuments blog.
Q: Thanks for joining me Donna. First off, can you tell me a little bit about what you do?
A: My business, Law Practice Strategy, is all about the evolution of the legal profession resulting from technology and the recession. Given the nature of the job market for lawyers, I developed a strategy that enables solos and small boutique firms build successful practices based on the principles of cost-containment and project management, and the integrated use of content marketing, technology and fixed pricing. I work with lawyers, individually and in groups, helping them to develop a proactive mindset, understand the principles of the strategy and use the tools to start or redesign their practice.
Q: You mentioned that you help lawyers with technology, so how are new technologies changing the way lawyers are working?
A: Technology is revolutionizing the profession. The use of virtual law practice platforms has significant advantages that enable lawyers to offer their services to consumers who otherwise could not afford to hire an attorney or take time off from work to meet with lawyers in person. Because they are so cost-effective, they also allow lawyers to be more comfortable offering fixed pricing, which essentially shifts the risk of cost from the client to the lawyer. Using technology creates efficiency and extends the reach of availability of legal services to so many people that would otherwise be unreachable. But it also creates security concerns and ethical considerations that need to be addressed. Currently, several state bars have issued opinions, and the ABA’s Law Practice Management Section is trying to deal with these issues, largely through the eLawyering Task Force. The use of technology is so significant that it has forced us to redefine what it means to practice law, perhaps creating divisions between what Jordan Furlong calls “legal services” and “lawyer services.”
Very insightful information. At NetDocuments, we have built integrations with other legal SaaS solutions such as AdvologixPM to offer lawyers an integrated, fully featured law practice platform.
Q: In talking about cloud computing and SaaS, how has it leveled the technology playing field between large and small law firms?
A: Saas/cloud platforms have been designed for solos and small firms to provide a cost-effective way to offer the capabilities and convenience of technology that previously could only be afforded by big law with large IT departments. For example, the recession has forced business, large and small, to contain their costs, and legal departments are no exception. To do so, in-house counsel has been demanding that outside counsel reduce their hourly rates or institute fixed pricing or other terms. If outside counsel refuses to do so, there have been instances where a few lawyers from those firms leave and open their own boutique firm, take the unhappy clients with them and agree to different billing arrangements. Because of the cloud platforms that now exist, they can offer the same level of service.
I have definitely worked with a number of lawyers who have broken off from large firms and use SaaS technology to efficiently manage their practice.
Q: What are the most critical technologies needed to start a new law firm?
A: The most critical technologies needed are communication, case management and document storage, although I personally prefer comprehensive packages that do it all in one place. But maybe a more important question is not what the technology does, but how it works. [Traditional] Software is a huge waste of time and money and, in my mind, raises more security issues than cloud applications. It also does not address the communication issue, since everyone communicates through email (or some version of it). And if you’re talking about Saas, then the most critical questions relate to security and privacy. No matter what kind of program or application you decide on, you must do vendor due diligence to be sure they provide the highest level security available, both technological and physical.
Q: You seem to be pretty active in the social media scene. What advice would you give to a lawyer debating the merits of social media?
A: I think it depends on your playing field. I live in a small California beach town where more than half the lawyers don’t use social media of any kind and they’re enormously successful. And that’s because they’ve established themselves in a very small community where they’ve been able to get their foot in the door before it slammed shut a few years ago, and they like playing in a small arena. For them, social media is unnecessary and probably not worth their time. On the other hand, if you’re just getting started, or if you like being on the cutting-edge of the profession, participating in social media is absolutely necessary. You just have to do it. It simply is the state of interaction of our times, it’s where everything’s happening and where you find out about it. But you need to use your head. Pretend you’re a little kid and your mom’s hearing or reading everything you say or write online. And not only you, but everything your friends say and do. Before I became professionally active in social media, I was on Facebook with the standard profile. Then I wanted to add a business page, and I realized you could not separate your business page from your profile. Since I didn’t want my professional connections to have access to my personal page, I closed that account and opened a brand new one with only professional connections. Some people were offended, but I did what I thought was necessary to insure against anything popping up that might not be appropriate or helpful.
Q: What is your favorite social network and why?
A: Twitter, hands down. But it’s a personal choice. Twitter is where I started interacting online, where I’ve met (online and off) some of the greatest people I know, where I do lots of research & get almost all of my information, where I get involved in terrific conversations (or arrange a time to take it offline). Sometimes I stay off Twitter because I need to get just focus on getting work done. After a few days, I feel totally deprived and need to jump back on just to catch up and participate.
I can personally vouch for that as I met Donna via Twitter where she can be found at @DonnaSeyle.
I’d like to thank Donna for the informative and valuable information. For more information on what she does or to continue the discussion, you can reach her on Twitter or visit her website at www.lawpracticestrategy.com.
If you’d like to be featured on a NetDocuments Q&A, send an email to myself at djohnson[@]NetDocuments.com or send a tweet to @NetDocuments.
Post written by Danny Johnson of the NetDocuments marketing team.
September 8th, 2010 | Tags: ABA, Alternative Billing, elawyering, Legal SaaS, legal technology, SaaS, social media| Category: Advologix, Cloud Computing, SaaS, collaboration, document management, legal, legal technology | No Comments »
Do your friends call you a “techno nomad” or a “21st century minimalist”? If all you need to run your legal practice is any web enabled device, than you’ve probably been labeled by one of these terms.
You see, in the 90s, the prevailing trend was bigger is better: bigger cars, bigger hamburgers, bigger houses and bigger technology. But with a downturn in the economy, more fuel conscience consumers and the rise cloud computing, consumers and businesses alike are learning how to do more with less, including their technology needs.
20 years ago, ok, probably only 5 years ago, if I were to have gotten with a group of 5 lawyers to start a firm, I would have bought servers, PCs, network stuff, probably some IT people to manage it all and a large investment in some large software package. Now compare that with what new firm Lumpkins Spiers PLC did when two attorneys broke off from a large practice to start their own earlier this year. All they needed was a scanner, laptops and an internet connection.
[Read the entire case study on how Lumpkins Spiers PLC uses web based technology to manage and run their law practice]
John Lumpkins, one of the partners, had been overseeing and managing technology for over twenty years when he joined with Sarah Spiers to form a new firm, and he knew that there was a more efficient way to run a practice. He envisioned a “legal practice 2.0” or a “law firm in the cloud.”
“Cloud Computing is a way to allow us to focus on what we do best instead of having to invest in or maintain a whole server system ourselves,” John said after deciding to employ an integrated solution of NetDocuments and AdvologixPM.
Though they are still a relatively new firm, John and Sarah have enjoyed the simplicity and ease of implementation that moving to the cloud has provided them.
To learn more about how Lumpkins Spiers has created a cloud based legal practice, read the entire case study here.
To continue the legal SaaS discussion, send a tweet to @NetDocuments and we’ll be sure to keep the conversation going.
August 19th, 2010 | Tags: Advologix, Attorney, integration, law firm, legal technology, practice management| Category: Advologix, SaaS, Technology, business continuity, collaboration, document, document management, legal technology, paperless | No Comments »
The Applied ICT A2-level Project Management class at Haslingden High School, located in Manchester, England, needed a better way to collaborate on projects in order to fulfill a requirement to learn project management techniques and work together from school and from home.
Wise Systems and Solutions put them in contact with Matt Duncan of NetDocuments who granted the class a NetDocuments basic account to enable them to complete their project.
After completion of their semester, they sent us the following report:
Objective 1: To meet the requirements of the specification for students to use project management tools and techniques appropriate to team working.
- “We were able to utilise and report the use of standard ways of working.”
- “The majority of students worked really well with the principle of copying their team’s inbox folder in on all project related emails.”
Objective 2: To provide a practical solution for storing files to allow collaboration between team members at school and from home.
- The students entered their final year of ICT studies knowing that there are a number of issues associated with working on the school network that hamper productivity. Such as only having limited user rights; down time because of viruses; USB sticks banned; and no connection of own laptops.
- As a group we were very appreciative of a better solution than emailing attachments backwards and forwards between home and school.
- A few students were a bit alarmed when the files they uploaded to NetDocuments were “moved” not “copied”. They obviously didn’t read the dialogue box when it appeared! The higher achieving students quickly came to trust that the file in the NetDocuments repository was the only version required.
- I had initially informed students that we would not have full functionality because we were working on Office 2000, but in practice we did not seem to experience any restrictions.
- The following quote is from student KF at the end of the unit: “NetDocuments is a good system, as it has the vast amount of facilities that make it ideal for uploading work from anywhere. However, I think the downside is what we found in unit 8. Firstly the [confusion about] lack of compatibility with older versions of office namely 2000 and also the [delay surrounding] integration with networks such as the one at school. If this worked fine within school, it would be a big asset”
Conclusion: I am extremely pleased with my students’ development using NetDocuments. I am proud that they will go on to university or employment with this experience and understanding of the principles of online document management.
NetDocuments would like to thank Haslingden High School for their innovative approach to teaching and project building.
August 16th, 2010 | Tags: collaboration, England, High School, Manchester, Technology, UK| Category: SaaS, Technology, broadband, collaboration, document management, paperless | No Comments »
It’s that time of year again, kids are getting ready to go back to school, the snow cone stand outside NetDocuments HQ is packed with sales and support staff and the annual ILTA technology conference is about to begin.
This year, the ILTA Conference is being held in Las Vegas and will get underway on August 22nd and run until August 26th. We’ll be there all week at booth #809/811. The theme for this year is Strategic Unity and should cover a number of relevant topics such as mobility, cloud computing and more.
NetDocuments will have a large constituency at the show including members of the sales team, marketing group and management, and as always, we are excited to meet with our customers and old friends as well as build new relationships. We’ve also got some new surprises for this year’s show…
Cloud Lounge
This year our booth is a bit different than usual…as always our sales team will be doing what they do on one side, while on the other side we’ve built our very own Cloud Lounge. I’m not at liberty to reveal exactly what will be going on at the Cloud Lounge so be sure to check it out at the show.
What happens in Vegas…
What happens in Vegas…shows up on Twitter. The social media buzz surrounding ILTA has already started and we’ll definitely be involved, so make sure you follow the @NetDocuments Twitter feed during the show as well as the #ILTA10 hashtag to possibly win prizes and stay current on all things ILTA 2010.
Executive Briefing Room
Other than our booth and Cloud Lounge, we are going to have an executive briefing room to meet with potential customers as well as show previews and roadmap material to existing customers. If you’d like to schedule a time to meet with a sales rep during ILTA, drop an email to sales@netdocuments.com
Notable Sessions
There will be a number of informative sessions during the show but there were a few that really got us here at NetDocuments excited.
- Email Management Success Stories – Aug. 24th at 9:00am with Chris Romano of Ward and Smith PA
- Cloud Nine or in a Fog? – Aug. 24th at 11:00am with Mark Manoukian of Kegler Brown and Lawrence Gianneschi of Colgate-Palmolive Legal Department
- Cost Effective Solutions for Web Filtering and Monitoring – Aug. 24th at 3:30 with Mark Manoukian of Kegler Brown
Post written by Danny Johnson of the NetDocuments marketing team.
August 2nd, 2010 | Tags: Elvis Presley, ILTA, Las Vegas, legal tech, Lounge, Technology| Category: Cloud Computing, Email Management, SaaS, Technology, Trade Show, document management, legal, legal technology | No Comments »
This week I discussed the current trends in UK legal technology with Jason Plant, who is an IT manager at a large UK law firm and also writes a popular legal technology blog titled No Option for Law Firm!.
Q: Thanks for your time and sharing your knowledge with us Jason. First off, what do you see as the most important current trends in legal technology in the UK?
A: I posted on my blog what I thought were the top 5 legal technologies in 2010 at the start of the year. I stand by them although I probably would reorder them a little to give the following as the top three.
I think Office 2010 and Windows 7 will be big in that a lot of UK firms stuck with Windows XP and Office 2003. Not the most important trend in terms of changing the face of legal IT, but a crucial change.
The biggest new trends I would say are mobile and instant messaging rather than any specific legal IT application, I think Legal is finally joining the mainstream in technology and I think these two areas are ideally suited to lawyers.
It will be fun to watch how the three items you mentioned work together, specifically with Office 2010 web apps enabling more mobility for lawyers.
Q: Do UK law firms have different technology needs than American firms? If so, in what ways?
A: I don’t think so, I think the needs are pretty much the same, the US does seem to have more lawyers interested in technology (perhaps more comfortable with it too?) and so perhaps adopts it faster. There are also some technologies that maybe get wider use in the US due to legal requirements, nature of work or culture (e.g. eDiscovery I suspect is more widely used in the US).
Q: How does the Patriot Act affect UK law firms adoption of SaaS? What can US SaaS providers do to gain acceptance in the UK?
A: US providers are going to have to understand the legal requirements of UK firms and their clients more, then help meet these requirements.
We at NetDocuments agree that UK firms should have UK-based hosting, which is why we are planning to implement a UK-based data center later this year.
Q: I like to tell people that SaaS has leveled the technology playing field between small and large firms. Working in large law, would you agree with this statement?
A: Difficult one this. In a business sense I don’t see it making too much of a difference. Certainly for a small firm it reduces the cost of implementing services, but then economies of scale probably help the large firms keep the costs low too.
However for small firms it probably gives them access to technology they wouldn’t have previously had access to. So in that sense it levels the playing field of technology availability to the lawyers. Whether they can then use that technology to get more clients, bill more or reduce costs through business process change is another matter!
Very good analysis.
Q: If you were to start a law firm from scratch, which technologies would you start with?
A: I’d be boring and look at the basics and ensure that was as easy as possible, Apple App Store easy! So that would be document production, finance apps and communications. Ensuring lawyers can produce and receive documents easily then store them in an organized electronic file with ease. Communicate from anywhere with ease and be contacted easily with the most appropriate tool (i.e. try to cut down on the volume of email!). Then underpin the whole organization with a finance system that can do the operational and provide information for the strategic.
Get these basics right and you’ve more time for the lawyers to spend bringing the money in and understand where to focus to get that money! Oh and no I don’t think there is any vendor (legal or not) that has all the above spot on yet!
Q: On a lighter note, what is your favorite (British) football team?
A: I’m a Manchester United fan and was a season ticket holder for many years at Old Trafford until 2005. Since then I have joined 2000+ other Manchester United fans and formed our own football club, FC United of Manchester who currently play their football in the Northern Premier League Premier division.
Wow! Very cool. I lived in England for three years and I’m all in for Chelsea!
Q: Have you forgiven the English goalie for blowing that save against the US in the world cup?
A: Yes of course. I thought the game against the US was going to be tight as a lot of the US squad play in England and so understand how English teams play, so I wasn’t too surprised with the result. Now forgiving the referee for the goal that never was against Germany is a different matter…….
That’s why I’m a proponent for instant replay.
I’d like to thank Jason Plant for his time and sharing with us the knowledge he has gained from his vast experience dealing with legal technology.
If you’d like to be featured in a technology Q&A, send a tweet to either myself at @dannymjohnson, or to@NetDocuments.
Post written by Danny Johnson of the NetDocuments sales and marketing team.
July 14th, 2010 | Tags: England, legal technology, Mobile Technology, No Option for Law Firm, SaaS, twitter, UK, World Cup| Category: Cloud Computing, SaaS, Technology, document management, legal, legal technology | No Comments »
Has the world been rid of its cloud computing security concerns?
Probably not…but that day is getting closer. According to a few recent studies in a few technology conservative industries, people and businesses are becoming much more comfortable with storing and managing their data in the cloud.
Even the most technology risk-averse markets such as health care, finance and government are rapidly adopting, and even advocating, disruptive cloud technologies at an ever increasing rate.
SaaS virgins generally raise two initial fears when they consider moving to the cloud: who is in control of my data? And is it safe to store my data somewhere other than the office? Though these concerns are real and very important to understand, the immaculate perception that all my data must be stored under my roof is being changed.
In a recent article on InformationWeek.com, an expert from Accenture was quoted as saying, “Healthcare firms are beginning to realize that cloud providers actually may offer more robust security than is available in house.” That same story cited a recent study that stated that about a third of the health care industry already uses cloud apps and that over 70% of respondents plan to shift more and more to SaaS and cloud applications. These are very intriguing estimates in any field, but especially in health care where the regulatory and HIPAA compliance rules are so strict.
Similar shifts are being seen in the finance world. A recent study done by SIFMA stated how cloud computing is enabling the financial industry to push forward with technology even amidst budget restraints: “The [finance] industry is showing a larger appetite for disruptive technologies such as cloud computing to force business model change.”
Similar sentiments are being echoed even in the federal government where federal CIO Vivek Kundra has been touting cloud computing so adamantly that he almost makes Marc Benioff seem like cloud skeptic. “For far too long we’ve been thinking very much vertically and making sure things are separated,” he said.”Now we have an opportunity to lead with solutions that by nature encourage collaboration both horizontally and vertically.”
While cloud security is still a critical issue and something that must be taken extremely serious by all vendors, the mood is shifting towards general acceptance of security in the cloud.
John Soat summed things up nicely in his blog post on this very topic. “It’s not that security in the cloud isn’t still a concern for both [health care and finance] industries, but it’s a known, and perhaps better understood factor…So while security is still a legitimate concern, it doesn’t seem to be the show stopper it used to be…” So with your SaaS vendor taking care of you security concerns, you can now worry about where Lebron James will be playing basketball next year.
If you want to learn more about security in the cloud, check out our security fact sheet or hit NetDocuments or myself with a tweet at either @netdocuments or @dannymjohnson.
Post written by Danny Johnson of the NetDocuments sales and marketing team.
July 1st, 2010 | Tags: Cloud Computing, Federal Government, Health Care, HIPAA, SaaS, SEC| Category: Cloud Computing, SaaS, Technology, business continuity, document management | 2 Comments »
Part I: SaaS for Lawyers; Part II: SaaS for Financial Advisors; Part III: SaaS for Accountants
JFK’s goal was to send a man to the moon; Bill Gates wanted to put ‘information at your fingertips’; and Sun Microsystems claimed that the computer was the network. JFK’s dream was realized by Neil Armstrong, Bill Gates’s dream has been realized by the iPhone and Blackberry, and Sun Microsystems dream is now truly being realized by anyone with a Facebook, Pandora, or Google account through cloud computing and SaaS.
Web hosted applications allow users to transform their computer into a global network. In the past, users were required to buy high performance powerful computers in order to efficiently run powerful software and store high volumes of data. Today, users can store can store 1000s of pictures, songs, or documents on the web and access them from anywhere on any browser enabled device. The enabling power of the internet exists; the responsibility to utilize that power now rests with us.
Though SaaS and cloud computing have gained significantly in popularity, many still get confused by how these two forms of computing differ.
Cloud Computing and SaaS
- Cloud computing is computing services delivered via the internet. SaaS is a form of cloud computing that allows users to access software through a web browser rather than install it locally on a PC. Facebook, Gmail, or any other Web 2.0 tool are common examples of consumer SaaS.
- There is a similarity in what cloud computing is doing for businesses today to what the national electricity grid did for businesses a century ago. Before a national energy grid, businesses had to produce their own power to run the company. Similarly, before cloud computing, businesses had to store all their data and manage their own hardware and software themselves.
- SaaS providers act similar to a landlord who rents out space in an apartment complex. The SaaS provider hosts the software at a data center and rents usage to its users. This is referred to as multi-tenancy. This allows the SaaS provider to leverage economies of scale which usually results in lower costs for the end user. It also means that the software provider can push out product upgrades and maintenance to all users automatically.
With cloud computing on the horizon, why do lawyers, advisors, accountants and other professionals still wring their hands over managing independent, locally installed applications on end-user PCs?
Today, desktop computing and applications are virtual, accessible from anywhere, and on any device. Furthermore, the SaaS market for industry specific tools has matured and developed into a viable option for firms of all sizes. In part I of this series, we’ll discuss Legal SaaS, in part II, we’ll discuss SaaS for financial advisors, and for part III, we’ll talk about SaaS for accountants.
Legal SaaS
SaaS has been available in the legal field for nearly a decade, but it took some time for mainstream lawyers to accept the SaaS model as a viable way to store confidential client data. As SaaS vendors have matured and established a proven track record, the legal SaaS market has grown in product diversity and usage at a rapidly increasing rate. There are reasons why lawyers are weary of SaaS, and these should be addressed on a case by case basis, but in most circumstances, the benefits of legal SaaS outweigh any concern that might be raised, especially for small and solo practices.
- Ease of Use – Technology is a necessity in today’s environment; however, it can cause many headaches for lawyers, especially those without a technical background. In the past, it may have been easier to manage a practice without the cost and burden of using legal specific software such as practice management, document management, etc. SaaS technology has changed this; today, all a lawyer needs is a computer and an internet connection and he or she can subscribe to a legal specific SaaS solution and be live within days or even hours.
- Reduced Costs – Furthermore, for lawyers that have left the big firm for the small firm, SaaS applications are able to provide you with the same technology as the big boys. Small firm…Big Technology. And it allows big firms to reallocate IT persons and reduce IT budgets by eliminating servers and hardware. Legal SaaS applications are leveling the playing field by bringing together centralized resources that are managed and serviced by the SaaS provider; thus, allowing lawyers to focus on solving cases, rather than solving IT problems.
- Anywhere Access – Access all of your data from anywhere without having to use numerous 3rd party solutions such as a file syncing tool, or remote access software. This allows access to data with a single login and from any computer or device.
- Collaboration – Web based solutions not only allow members of the firm to access documents and data but can also provide access to clients, co-counsel and third parties.
- Service – One attorney who recently left a large international law firm to start a solo practice found her technology solution through SaaS. She wanted to access the same technology she was using at her big firm but without the IT infrastructure and human support. She found a SaaS solution that met her needs, received free training and support, and with just a laptop and a printer is managing her practice in an efficient way.
- Number of Options – In the past, law firms were limited in the number of SaaS options available, today, there are numerous options for SaaS email, practice management, time and billing, document assembly, document management, etc.
To learn more about lawyers who have moved to the cloud, see these case studies: Solo Attorney James Linehan, Mid-Sized Firm Ward and Smith P.A., and Large Law Firm Kutak Rock.
The PC has evolved from a personal device into a global network where users can access powerful software and store high volumes of information directly from the clouds. This has allowed attorneys at small firms to operate virtual practices and easily manage a modern law practice without becoming an IT expert.
Post Written by Danny Johnson of the NetDocuments Sales and Marketing Team
June 8th, 2010 | Category: Cloud Computing, Email Management, SaaS, Technology, collaboration, document management, legal, legal technology | No Comments »
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