WHAT IS QUALITY OF SERVICE and WHY IS IT SO DAMNED HARD
Posted on January 7, 2020 by Bill Lipner
Readers of The LAD know that “quality of service” is a hot button topic for me – because the quality-of-service (QOS or SERVQUAL ) a firm delivers is essential to its success – whether it’s a real estate practice that repeats the same process over and over, or a bespoke litigation firm that is confronted with a new set of variables with every matter.
QOS is a subset of a “Service Delivery System” (SDS) – the term I suggest using if you’re embarking on a study of the topic. This article discusses a useful service delivery framework which divides service into Service Culture, Employee Engagement, Service Quality, and Customer Experience. I am focusing on Service Quality which seeks to define how quality is defined, delivered, and measured. This is an interesting article on The Impact of Service Delivery System Effectiveness on Service Quality. If you want the real research on the topic – start with this Wiki article on ServQual. The wiki mentions 3 researchers in the area of Quality of Service whose teachings are worth exploring if you wish to become an expert on the topic.
The Roaring 20s
Posted on December 24, 2019 by Bill Lipner
We’re on the eve of a new decade – and I’m truly excited to welcome it to our world. I am excited about the changes we can expect to see in the next 10 years that will touch every aspect of our lives. The impact on business – and in particular – the business of law – will be far ranging. Old practice areas will die while new practice areas will be birthed to grow into essential practices in the firm of the future.
Humans will harness information as a tool like never before – the importance of which can be compared to the first stone hammer fashioned by early man. The distance between us – client and attorney, parent and child, partners or spouse – will shrink to zero as new technologies make new kinds of connections possible – transforming “social media” into “human media”.
I am not a professional prognosticator although I have been known to procrastinate. However, I am an observer of trends and see several which are evolving to form a new horizon for us all. Without further ado – these trends are discussed below.
Welcome to PinHawk's Legal Administrator Microsite
Posted on November 21, 2019 by Bill Lipner
The responsibilities of my first job as legal administrator was that of Human Resources. Creating an employee handbooks, looking after insurance benefits and claims, time and attendance and similar tasks were the bread and butter of the position. Along the way, I moved this 12-attorney firm from Lanier stand-along word processors to Kaypro Computers running WordPerfect. All very tactical work. My second job as an administrator was similar in nature, although I was elevated to preparing bi-monthly meeting books for the partners meetings. And I organized the food and drink for the Friday afternoon client-social-hour. Those were the days.
Welcome to the Legal Administrator Micro-site. This site is less news, and more opinion or discussion. You are invited to send in articles or suggestions for articles. The site is here to spur discussion and perhaps – if we’re doing our jobs – new insights.
But I digress.
I marvel at how the arc of time has transformed the job of legal administrator – no matter what size firm. I am firmly convinced that the “business of law” is in a transition: we’re in the “industrialization’ of the business of law, moving from guild to business process and business practice. And along the way these things are happening: