Practice Management

1. Law Technology News reports that law firm associates suffer from low morale because firms are spending less on technology upgrades and gadgets.  For some, it is a matter of high expectations, for others it is a matter of loss of productivity.  Some firms recognize that technology improvements are not just a function of hardware and software, but of cultural change,

"Michael Chung, Boies, Schiller's director of information technology, says that the firm is in the midst of a document management testing phase in two of its 12 offices and is trying to determine the best vendor for the rest of the firm's offices. But he says that revamping a document management system is easier said than done. "Installing the software is probably the easiest part," he says, noting that teaching work flow changes to attorneys swamped with casework takes time. "It's like asking them to change the way they practice law," he says."

As firms consider how to keep and engage attorneys - not just associates - they need to consider a wide range of technology and productivity factors.  Attorneys increasingly ask, "Can I be more productive, efficient, effective and happy at another firm?"  Their answers are reflected in the increased migration of laterals.

2.  Luis Suarez, blogger of www.elsua.net, gives advice on how to reduce the time we waste on email in this article.  To summarize, he recommends:

1.  Don't reply to everything.  Break the chain. 

2.  Analyze your in-box.  Find ways to reduce redundancy.  For example, if you are replying to inquiries with the same response 40 times a week, set up a blog and post a single complete answer, and refer people to the blog in the future.

3.  Tackle one area a week. Identify time-wasters like e-mail newsletters and alerts that you don't read, and unsubscribe, or send them to an Outlook folder to read when you have downtime.  Or, set up a RSS Feed reader to that type of information.

What are you doing to reduce your inbox?