I read two completely unrelated things yesterday that made me think of how, in our efforts to become efficient, we have lost something very important along the way — relationships.  

First, I was reading Jenn Steele’s “Leading Geeks” blog where she was commenting on the lack of communication between Geeks and Users.  Then, on the way home, there was a sentence in the book I’m reading (Geraldine McCaughrean’s The White Darkness) that spoke of how one of the characters and Death were on a “nodding relationship.”  
The issues that Jenn mention in her post between end-user and “Geek” seem to result from a general lack of communication between the two parties.  That made me realize that in our quest to centralize, compartmentalize, and to get more from less, we’ve somehow lost our “nodding relationships” with those that help us.
Here’s a quick example:
  • Quick – say the name of the person that answered the IT Help Desk phone the last time you had a problem.
  • Now – say the name of the IT person that used to drop by your office to install hardware, or upgrade software, or check to see if things were running properly.

Having experience working both as the IT guy (aka “Geek”) and the End-User (aka – “loose nut between the chair and keyboard”), I understand the reasons of why we are where we are today.  In the same respect, I also have a keen understanding of what the savings in time and money have also cost in the ability to better understand what are the real problems that the end user is experiencing.   

Over the years, we have worked very hard at creating a situation where tasks are “automated,” “performed in the background,” “seamless” and “invisible” to the end user.  We’ve done this to minimize the amount of time the technology is unavailable to the end user, in order to keep the end user as efficient as possible, too.  However, this has had a side-effect of also causing the people performing these tasks to also become “automated,” “in the background,” and “invisible” to the end user (and vise-versa in a limit way.)   
Don’t get me wrong, there are lots and lots of things that should be invisible to the end-user.  My complaint is that the pendulum has swung so far to the “automated” and “invisible” side, that we have taken the human portion with it.  In my view this results in  two major flaws:
1.  The Columbo Effect –  There have been many times, both as a techie and as a user, where in the process of solving one problem, another problem is unearthed.  You know… you’re about to walk out of the room when the other person says, “Oh, just one more question.”  Granted, most of the time, this means more work, but there were many occasions where that “one more question” lead to proactively solving major issues before they became major issues.
2.  The Chilling Effect – Because we’ve so separated the user from the techie, we’ve created a situation where most users find it too difficult to ask for help on what they consider “minor issues.”  Or, we’ve created a situation where we’ve inadvertently promoted “work-arounds” that the end user is taking to solve the problem on their own.  Granted, a lot of the time, these work-arounds cause little to no harm, but every once in a while, you have some creative user that finds a way to shut down a shared resource because their work around had unintended effects.
I had a professor in college that used to say that “Computers are the dumbest thing on campus, because they only do exactly what you tell them to do.”  In a way, we are using this same approach with those that support our technology.  We call in, we say what our problem is, we are asked a few questions, a “ticket” is created, someone works on the problem from an undisclosed bunker somewhere, and then we are emailed that the problem is solved or sent to a higher-level of support.  Somewhere down the line we are issued an email that says the problem is solved unless we email them back and say it isn’t.  All automated, efficient and clean.  No nodding necessary.
Doug Cornelius commented on Jenn Steele’s blog that web 2.0, and some transparency tools would help bring back in the nodding relationship.  I think he’s onto something there.  Bring back the “Geek” into the process, even if it is virtually.  I’m pretty sure I can find a nodding emoticon to send a virtual nod to my far away Geek.

Everybody loves to bash BigLaw. Admit it. It’s like making fun of Microsoft and all of the security “features” built into its software. You see it in the growing number of Blogs who love to talk trash about the foibles of the AmLaw 100. Big law firms are easy targets since they are visible and what they do tends to get picked up by the press and the blogosphere.

Enjoying the Washington Post on Monday morning, I noticed this gem about how the smart lawyers are leaving BigLaw. The lawyer noted in the article was smart enough to leave DLA Piper and join Virtual Law Partners, a small telecommuting firm. He cut his hourly rate by 25% and reduced his overhead by a much larger number. The result: he has more time for his family (he even works out of his home) and he makes more money. Wah-laa – he is smart. BigLaw is not so smart.

If you really look at it, he is smart because he took all the benefits of BigLaw and left behind the baggage. He’s what you call a beneficiary. My point is that BigLaw, like another institution, has its good and bad. And BigLaw has been doing pretty well so far. It’s hard to argue the profits and growth BigLaw has seen to-date. Lawyers who work for these firms handle large scale, complex, bet-the-company types of cases and transactions. Lawyers who leave can take that pedigree with them and then profit from it.

Well down into the Post article (buried so-to-speak) I noted this statement: Virtual Law Partners “expects to make a profit once it has 50 lawyers.”

BigLaw is an easy target, but maybe its earned that rank given its success. Whatever happens in this time of change, I don’t expect BigLaw to be going away any time soon. Big companies tend to prefer big providers. It’s more a matter of how BigLaw will transform as a group. Of course, I’m still hoping alternative fees will play a core part in that transition.

Truth-in-advertising: I work at a large firm, which might make me biased. But as a non-lawyer observer who lives more with the frustrating aspects of the model (and less with the financial benefits) I feel I bring an informed perspective.

It is no secret that out of the Three Geeks, I’m viewed as the cheap one (“thrify” my wife calls me.)   It isn’t that I don’t mind spending money, it is just that I hate wasting money.  And, if I find a nice way to save a few bucks here and there, I’d like to share that savings along with you.

If you do research (legal or otherwise), you know that there are resources out there that are directed toward helping you do your research.  Products like Westlaw, Bloomberg, Medline, etc. are premium research tools that allow you to basically do some one-stop shopping within your expertise, and are excellent tools to have.  However, premium also comes at a price, and in these times, cost savings aren’t just for the “thrifty.”
There are many times where I use the local public library resources, without even entering into the library building itself.  I’m pretty lucky that I work one block away from the main Houston Public Library, and can physically be in the public library within 5 minutes (my desk to library door.)  But, within a few seconds, I can access hundreds (if not thousands) of online library resources simply by using my library card.
With access to my public library in Houston, I can take a look at academic, business, cultural, and a long list of other databases from the likes of top-notch vendors like Hoover’s, Lexis, Gale, Morningstar, ReferenceUSA and many, many others.  To see a list of the different databases, you can view the “ALL the Library’s Research Links” page.  In addition to research databases, there are also valuable resources like magazine archives, newspapers (including my favorite of the Houston Chronicle in full Digital Image format), and even a language program like Rosetta Stone.  
You don’t even have necessarily live in a highly populated city to get access to these resources.  A lot of these are negotiated on a state-wide contract so that regardless of the size of your public library, you can still get access to excellent online resources for free.
If you find that your local library doesn’t offer these, you can contact some of the larger libraries to see if they offer “Out-of-State” registrations.  Most will, and from what I have found, at a price of around $40 or so.
Go check out your local library’s website to see what they offer. 

A number of recent posts and articles are talking about the de-leveraging of BigLaw. Many of these predict that the other side of the recession will see BigLaw with less associates per partner.

Say what?

There’s all this talk of alternative billing, leveraging technology and changing the way firms do business and somehow they are going to do this by shrinking the bottom-level of the inverted pyramid they live in … again??? Karl Marx perhaps said it best when he noted that Capitalists (a.k.a. business owners) make money off the sweat of another’s brow and not their own.

Just like the de-leveraging cycle in the 80’s, when hours go soft – Partners hoard. And they do this to their own detriment as the least profitable billable hours of the business are their own. They lose the best billable hours (a.k.a. leverage). Of course this behavior is highly motivated by the compensation systems. And we shouldn’t really be surprised by the fact that history is repeating itself, since these compensation systems have not changed much since the 80’s.

“Fool me once – shame on you. Fool me twice – shame on me.”

Still I am dumb-founded. After seeing so much encouraging dialogue about alternative fees and the subsequent changing of the law firm business model, firms fall right back into their old habits. Although leverage is not the be-all and end-all of profitability, its still a core metric to use. It’s a basic business practice to push labor tasks to their lowest cost source.

It is past time for lawyers and firms to turn and look over the bow of the boat. They need to understand that the radical changes in the market will need to be reflected by corresponding changes in the law firm business model.

Change …? I see a theme developing

Well, look what Apple and Amazon dreamed up!
A Kindle app on the iPhone. Geez louise, I thought it would take ’em 5 years to figure this out. Looks like I’m gonna have to put my money where my mouth is . . .
I wonder how the Kindle app works with the other iPhone features. Can you copy/import text? Can you cite sources in other apps?
Its funny, I was just talking to my cousin–who, ironically, works for Microsoft as an engineer–and he was showing off his friend’s iPhone and explaining all the apps to me.
In the course of our conversation, I was oohing and aahing, but, in the end, I told him, “this really doesn’t work for me. I don’t like the keyboard.”
He said, “yeah, you are a writer. Most people are just readers. But you develop content so this doesn’t really meet your needs.”
Exactly.
So my next caveat would be an iPhone with a Kindle app and a better, more tactile keyboard for us writers.
This time, I will give Apple less lead time. How about a year, guys?
By now, you’ve probably seen the new social media experiment that is Skittles.com

Although the site developed by Agency.com is still a little rough around the edges, this experiment is widely viewed as a social media success story because it allows the user to interact with the product, thus producing a way for the end-user to promote (or critique) the product.  At this point, the message has been pretty positive.  

But, enough of Skittles!! I’m a Hot Tamale man myself….
This idea of social media, using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, along with traditional web content is not only a great idea for marketing products, but I think one of the biggest benefits could be experienced by using this type of resource for big conferences.
Imagine that you’re attending a conference (say last month’s LegalTech conference.)  We’ve seen how social media has inspired people to blog and tweet about what they are listening to at the conference, why not take a tool like this and make it really work for the conference??
Here’s a quick breakdown on how I think this type of resource would benefit a conference:
  • Traditional Web Presence: Conferences usually have information posted about the conference posted on a traditional website.  Sticking with the LegalTech, the traditional web site gives the organizer the ability to promote, inform, and distribute information about the conference.  Let’s face it, most conferences end the “official” flow of information at this point.  But, taking the Skittles model, let’s expand.
  • Twitter Feed of the “#” Hash-Tag: They’re going to do it anyway…  so, why not take advantage?  Whenever you have more than 5 people going to the same thing, one of them is going to create a hash-tag about it, so that they can get more people to join in.  Heck, if Congress is going to Twitter while the President is speaking, you can bet your techie attendees will be Tweeting away as well.  So, why not put that information out there along with your traditional web page and make it easy for folks to see what others are talking about?
  • YouTube – “Show ‘Em What You’ve Told ‘Em”: Expand your reach through the simple use of video.  This give the organizer a chance to expand the information being distributed, and if done right, can allow your attendees to add content.  
  • Flickr – “We’re at ‘X’ Conference Having a Ball….  Wish You Were Here!”: As people take pictures at the event, enable them to share them in a central location so that others can see what’s going on.  Make people feel like they are there, even if they’re not! (Maybe next year, they’ll attend!!)
  • Facebook – Allow Your Attendees To Be Your Friends and Promoters: The Facebook angle allows you to build upon the past conferences.  Think of it as the ability to take your attendee list and keep them up-to-date throughout the year.  Allow them to tell you what was good (and bad) about the conference, and suggest what to do for the next one.  Allow others to see the comments, and contribute as well.  
I’m sure additional social media tools could also be integrated into a conference to allow the connection of people to people, and people to content.  So, if you have more suggestions, please comment below!
Using social media as a tool for a conference isn’t without its risks.  Even the Skittles site has a potential down side which Stan Schroeder points out in this blog post.   But, I believe that the upside has such potential, that the rewards tremendously outweigh the risks.  

Earlier in February, I sat in on a webinar provided by Altman Weil on Alternative Fee Arrangements (AFA). I had planned on getting a bunch of work done while I listened to the same ideas I’ve heard numerous times before. Fortunately, I didn’t get much work done since the program had some excellent content.

Two Stats

A recent review of large firm web sites (the AmLaw 100 per my notes) noted that only 23% mentioned AFAs. Compare that to 87% of the program attendees reporting that clients have asked about AFA options in the last 6 months. (Personally I was quite surprised this number wasn’t 100%.) The moral of this story is clear: Let clients know you are willing and (hopefully) able to address their requests for alternative fees on your web site.

One of the anecdotal stories shared was of a client asking one of their panel firms to share their AFA options with them. The firm dutifully provided an extensive list of options they would be willing and able to provide. Contrary to what you might predict, the client was not happy. She wanted to know why the firm, if it had all these abilities, had not offered them up sooner. I suppose this takes us back to our prior moral: Don’t wait for clients to ask. Instead proactively offer them AFAs.

The “Painful” Stat

A November 2009 survey shows that in-house counsel were being directed to reduce their budgets by 11.5% – on average. The presenters commented this number is probably higher now. 60% of these budgets go to pay law firms. The impact here is also obvious. However, the smart firms will see the opportunity here.

First – you need to know the pain. Imagine you are the GC and your job is dependent on you cutting the budget. Your choices are, 1) cut law firm fees, or 2) fire someone who has worked with you for 12 years. So this is real pain. The GC can only squeeze so much out of outside counsel and still protect the company. And the GC does not want to look a friend and colleague in the eyes and terminate them. This high level of pain presents an opportunity. The GC needs help and a law firm is in the best position to help them. So become a trusted-advisor in a whole new way. In partnership with the GC, help them respond to the needs and demands of the client – the company. Of course AFAs will play a prominent role in this effort.

The economic downturn presents numerous opportunities. Firms and in-house counsel are now willing to embrace ideas and approaches they would have never considered in the past. Law firms and their clients both want and need AFAs and are apparently ready to embrace them (per our stats above).

So as Ron Baker says, it’s time we “Just do it.”

I know this fellow who is so cheap (everyone: “How Cheap Is He??”) — he is so cheap that he hasn’t had a real home phone (AKA “land line”) for almost 8 years now.  Okay… it’s really me, but, anyone that knows me, knows I’m cheap.

Last week, I went out and bought myself one of those “Magic Jack” devices that I’ve seen on TV, and have seen reviews online.  At $40.00 for the device, and $20.00 for a cheap cordless phone (on clearance, of course), I came away with a new “land line” for my house for an initial annual cost of $5.00 a month (that’s $60 / 12 months).  I’m going to pony up for the 5 year subscription to the phone for another $60 bringing my average monthly cost over the next 6 years to a whopping $1.67 a month.  This makes me want to get up and do my cheapskate happy dance (lucky for you this isn’t a v-blog!!)
This got me thinking of the potential that Magic Jack could have in reducing costs beyond the personal level.  So, here are a few that I thought of off the top of my head:
1.  Corporate Travel – There have been a number of times that I’ve travelled to places where there is spotty cell reception in the hotel or conference center, but I got Internet reception.  Plug in the Magic Jack to my laptop, and viola!!  instant phone service.
2.  International Travel – Got Internet access??  Then you’ve got a US phone number.  Give one of these to someone that is going to be staying overseas for months, and you’ve enabled them to talk with their families back in the States for no additional costs.
3.  International Friends and Family – Got a friend or relative in a foreign country?  Give them a Magic Jack as a gift, and now you have a way for them to call you, or you to call them with no phone cards or high long-distance charges.  This would have been a great idea to do when the Au Pair we had with us last year went back to Germany.  My kids would love to call her at 2:00 AM German time to tell her about their day.
4.  Extreme Business Phones –  If you’re just starting a business and you spent all your money on computers and Internet service, try using Magic Jack phones for your business lines.  There are some drawbacks, to be sure, but it would be a great money saver until you get enough to pay those huge monthly phone bills.
5.  Connect via 3G Internet Card – I haven’t “Googled” it yet, but I’m pretty sure that some smart guy figured out a way to hook a laptop w/3G Internet card + Magic Jack up to a regular phone, and make calls.  I’m just surprised that it – (a) wasn’t me and (b) I haven’t seen this geek on my bus ride home!
Of course, some of this is Pie-in-the-Sky, Polliannish thinking on my part.  But, there does seem to be a lot of potential in using a product like this to save some hard earned cash.  There are some drawbacks to Magic Jack, such as – you have to have your computer on and connected to the Internet.  But, even then, your calls roll over to voice mail (free voice mail!!), or you can have it automatically forward to another phone using call forwarding (free call forwarding!!)
Let me know if you also use Magic Jack and have some additional ideas on how to use Magic Jack to save some serious money!!  Also, if you see the guy with the laptop, 3G card, and a regular home phone making calls on a bus…  email me the pictures!!!
NOTE:  It came to me in an epiphany!!  – I’m going to buy a 1968 Dodge Dart convertible, and install my wireless Internet connection, Magic Jack, and the classic rotary phone! Then I’m going to pretend I’m Mannix from the old TV Show!!

The past few weeks have been pretty hectic with all of the BigLaw layoff news.  We thought we’d graph out some of the changes that have occurred.  
Using IBM’s Many Eyes project (which we reviewed a couple weeks ago) – We put together a few different views of which firms were moving attorneys in and out.   Whether or not this actually tells you anything about the trends in law firm layoffs is our secondary purpose.  Mainly we just wanted to remind you that even during times of mass layoffs, we still find a way to geek it up around here.   

Bubble Graph:

C1e69328-ff6c-11dd-98dc-000255111976 Blog_this_caption

Block View:
Word Cloud:
Pie Chart:
Network Diagram:
Stack Graph:

A web site is not to be read. It is to be scanned.

Studies show that visitors spend less than 4 seconds on a web page.

With that in mind, search engine optimization is vital. Putting your most important words at the front and at the top of pages, paragraphs, sentences, and lines should be a part of any good web design.

Because, in the end, what is your site’s purpose: attract the right visitors and generate business.

SEO is a combination of art and science, images and text, algorithms and keywords. SEO relies upon word usage, word placement and formatting.

And, as an SEO expert, if you are really good at your craft, no one should be able to tell what your doing.

In other words, if you are an SEO craftsman, your work should be invisible.

So. Here I am: an invisible artist at the mercy of verbose lawyers intent upon displaying their masterful grasp of the English language.

I face a daunting task.