No pain, no gain

I’m one of those people who quite likes new technology. People at my office would laugh at that statement, but it’s true. I just have trouble getting from one way of working to a new way of working.

Part of the problem for me, and I suspect for many people like me, is that the day job is all consuming. We are busy, and our way of working to date works for us. We view changes to that way of working with suspicion and a vague sense that any change is going to be too painful, and may not deliver the promised improvements.

I’m from the generation which used to do everything by landline and letter, so obviously I’ve experienced huge amounts of change over the last 30 years. The latest change within our business relates to our desire to remove as much as possible email communication from our toolkit. We have developed a secure client portal to communicate with our clients, this new technology is also a wonderful task management tool.

I’ve watched in awe and with no small amount of pride as our growing business developed and implemented these changes, helping our client firms to use much safer and more secure processes to manage their own and, crucially, their client’s money.

And I loved it even more because, as Business Development Director, I didn’t need to use it myself! By the time I finished communication with a client prospect, all via phone and email and meetings, I then passed the client into our transition process, and they put in place the portal for the new client.

Our guys are well versed these days in training clients to use the portal as part of their process. Clients love it. It saves them time. They can monitor activity via the dashboard we give them. And they know that communication is much more secure. All good. Wonderful.

And then….it was decided the portal was such a great task manager and communication tool that we would use it for all our own internal communication. Horror! Suddenly it was on me, and a few others.

I’ll skip ahead to the fact that I’m now using the portal happily. It’s part of my daily routine and I love it. It gives me a clear sight of what I have to do, and is fantastic for allowing people to share information (documents and comments).

The bit in between was the pain. It was like one of those psychology papers- stages of acceptance. Starts with anger and disbelief. Denial. “It won’t work for me!” Then there’s the training, and fitting that training in amongst an otherwise busy work schedule. Then finally there’s an acceptance that there is no use trying to avoid new technology- it’s going to happen.

At that point, you enter a zen-like state where you just want the pain over, and you hungrily consume the training to get back fully operational.

And now here we are. I’ll be sharing a draft of this in the office via the portal. Easily, and I will tick off the task as complete.

But there are lessons to learn, not just by me as the luddite who needed dragging into line, but also within organisations imposing new technology, systems and ways of working.

• Understand that change is feared, often without foundation, but appreciate that concern, and focus time on an internal ‘sell’ of the benefits of the new way of working
• Have a project team (or individual) in place who can provide ready support and guidance
• Listen to those being trained. If there are recurring issues of a similar nature, maybe there is in fact a small problem which needs ironing out?
• When training has been done, don’t leave it several months before fully implementing, because by then the knowledge may well have gone and it will be very costly to bring system consultants back in to do the training again.

It’s a cliché, but the only certain thing is that we will face increasing change and uncertainty. Businesses that learn how to implement change in a way which is smooth and speedy will reap the benefits. Those that don’t will, I fear, go the way of the dodo.

Alex Holt

I recently attended an interesting presentation by an accountant about the valuation of businesses, which got me thinking about something relevant to all of us. He talked about how anybody with a little bit of training could do the number crunching with relative ease, and that where they add real value is in the interpretation of what those numbers mean, the experience of doing it for many businesses day in, day out, and their unique perspective on the particular sector or industry. They provide their ‘value add’ in the strategic advice and providing information beyond the actual accounting calculations. This got me thinking about the value add of what we do as a business.

Of course, we provide Cashiering, Payroll and Management Accounting services to law firms, but the provision of day-to-day postings, bank reconciliations, setting up payments, running the payroll, or providing a set of monthly accounts doesn’t add real value – there may be a cost saving in using us, but you could get the tasks done by employing somebody inhouse. The added value comes elsewhere.

It is, to some extent, the benefit of our clients not having to worry about holiday or sickness cover again, or the time drain of recruiting, training and managing members of staff, or being able to scale up or down without worrying about the workload implications for employees. But it is more than that. We have taken on the cashroom or ‘finance’ function of 170 law firms, of all shapes and sizes, across the length and breadth of the country. That has allowed us to review how those firms have previously done things, and pick and choose the best and most efficient processes, implementing them into our standard process from which all of our clients will benefit. That, I believe, is where some of the real added value comes – it couldn’t be obtained by recruiting in-house.

In addition, the other real value add is the cyber and fraud risk mitigation. Due to the scale of our business, and our processes, payment requests go through a process that couldn’t be replicated inhouse, and avoid any ‘single point of failure’ concerns. If you have one single cashier who sets up and authorises payments, a fraudster need only obtain a single set of bank login details. Even if you have multiple cashiers to check payment details, they are all likely to be on one single network, so if a hacker ‘gets in’, they may well have all the information and access rights they need! Our processes, and the simple fact that part of the procedure is done on our network (with stringent checks and balances in place) and part on your network (for authorisation), it means that fraud risk is hugely reduced. Law firms are constantly being targeted by fraudsters, by virtue of the fact they hold significant sums of money, and the risks (and tactics of fraudsters) are ever evolving, so minimising that risk wherever possible is crucial.  Somebody recently said to me that law firms are like mini banks, but without the resources required to securely protect the money they hold. That is exactly where the added value of an outsourced providers such as The Cashroom comes in to play.

So, I think that’s where we can add value to a law firms business – giving them industry ‘best practice’ processes, without any break in that service at holiday/sickness/busy times, and mitigating their fraud risk. Have a think about your business, and where you really add value to your clients. Doing so is an interesting exercise in itself, and will allow you to strategically review your marketing activities. Let’s face it, no client wants to know you are a ‘long established firm, dating back to….’!! They want you to tell them what sets you apart from the firm across the road, and why they should place their business with you. In other words, what is your value add?

Gregor Angus

Whilst only in England and Wales for now, The Law Society of Scotland are currently consulting on price transparency and so this is relevant to solicitors UK wide.

Why and what is the change?

In 2016 the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) found that there was not enough information available on price transparency, quality and service to help those who needed legal support to choose the best option. Since December 2018, practices in England and Wales are now required to publish the true cost of services (or average costs or range of costs), the basis of charges, key stages of the process and probable timeframes, any likely disbursements (and if they include VAT) and the experience and qualifications of anyone carrying out the work.

Under the new rules, costs information must include the total or average cost, the “basis for your charges, including hourly rates or fixed fees”, and the “experience and qualifications of anyone carrying out the work, and of their supervisors”.

Disbursements must be included, including whether they were subject to VAT, details of the services, such as “key stages of the matter and likely timescales for each stage”, and, where conditional fees or damages-based agreements were offered, the “circumstances in which clients may have to make any payments themselves for your services”.

All costs information must be “clear and accessible” and featured in a “prominent place” on websites.

Firms must also publish details of their complaints handling procedures, including how to complain to the Legal Ombudsman and the SRA, and display the firm’s SRA number and digital badge in a “prominent place”.

How will it be monitored?

The SRA had stated that they will give firms time to acquaint themselves with new price transparency rules- but it will be proactive about those still refusing to comply. The regulator has stated that they will not be relying on reports of on-compliance and instead will perform thematic reviews to check for itself if firms are publishing the right information.

Today however a statement has been released that The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is to carry out randomised “web sweeps” of around 500 law firms over the next few months to check they are publishing fees for common consumer transactions.

Paul Philip, chief executive of the SRA, said the regulator would take a “proportionate approach” to enforcement.

“It’s a bit like people who don’t fill in requests for information. We’re saying this is not a hugely important thing, but you’re obliged to do it, so you’re forcing us into taking disproportionate action when you should just comply and move forward.

“We come up against this type of thing time and time again. I have no doubt we will end up with a rump of people who end up in the corner saying they are just not doing it.

“At that point in time we will decide what to do. We will address it in a proportionate way but in an increasingly forceful way to ensure compliance.”

What do firms think?

The SRA say that this is not about giving firms a hard time or adding more regulatory hoops to jump through. The aim is that by providing clear pricing details, any misunderstandings later in a transaction will be avoided as a result of transparent information being provided from the onset. They believe these regulations will give more people access to the legal system.

The other side of the story is that these are in-fact adding a burden onto already stretched firms. Some even say that this will add more confusion than clarity for clients.

Many firms have spoken out about the changes. Statements include some saying that the profession is facing an unprecedented level of price pressure. Some think fee information on a website will confuse clients further, saying it is much better to call and clarify what charges apply to their circumstances and find an advisor that they like. Researches have found that nearly a third of solicitors in England and Wales are prepared to defy regulations by refusing to publish clear fee information to prospective clients.

Is the regulated solicitor now constantly having to add heavily to their overheads, time away from fee earning and can they act in the best way they want to for their own clients?

Do you wonder what is coming next?

Emma O’Day, Marketing and Communications Manager at The Cashroom Ltd.

It’s that time of year again where the spring flowers are blooming, the spring lambs are being born and (for some) the spring clean is being negotiated. You may not have considered a spring clean of your IT security knowledge or corporate network security, so we have put together a few quick tips to help you remain safe online and tidy up your corporate accesses.

Leavers Process

It’s easy to get lost in a checklist when someone leaves your organisation. So much of our day to day lives are now online and individuals will have accounts and sign in credentials for numerous websites, portals and systems.

• Are you certain that all the credentials relating to your previous employees have been disabled?
• Is their email address still active?
• If you use The Cashroom can the leaver still access the Cashroom Portal?
• Can they still access your CMS/Bank accounts/other software remotely?

Cyber Attacks

Cyber-attacks are getting increasingly complex and fraudsters are always developing new strategies to try and separate you from your sensitive information. It is important that you don’t succumb to paranoia, but everyone should always try to remain vigilant when it comes to IT security.

• Be wary of spam and suspicious emails – this includes emails that look like they are from someone you normally communicate with, but the content may be asking for something out of the ordinary.
• Only open an email attachment or click on a link if you’re 100% certain of its source & you were expecting it. If you’re unsure, don’t open it.
• Look out for changes to phone numbers, email addresses and bank account/payment numbers etc. Don’t be afraid to double check any changes with the email sender but call them at a number you know exists or begin a new email chain from scratch. Don’t click reply or use the details in the suspicious email – you may end up “verifying” the change of details with the fraudster!
• When accessing the internet, check the web address has “https” in front of the address (sometimes shown with a padlock icon). The “s” means that the site is secure. Also check that the address is spelt correctly and is the usual web address that you use for that site.
• We are always told never to reuse or write down our passwords. Have you considered investing in a password management software, which can securely store and remember your passwords so that you can always have a unique and complex password every time you need one? There may also be times where you can use double authentication instead of one single password, for example a password and a fingerprint.

Social Engineering

Social engineering is an increasingly common type of confidence trick for information gathering, fraud, or system access. Fraudsters know we are savvier when it comes to dodgy looking email attachments, so they are now playing on our personalities and common human foibles. They will rely on humans wanting to help each other out or taking advantage of our natural intrigue.

• Examples of social engineering tricks can include a fraudster sending an official-looking announcement to the company that says the number for the help desk has changed – when employees call for help the individual asks them for their passwords and IDs thereby gaining the ability to access the company’s private information.
• Another example of social engineering would be a hacker leaving a USB stick on the floor in or around your office, possibly titled “cute puppy pictures”, “2019 promotions” or “payroll data”, hoping someone will pick it up to see what is stored on it. Malware would often then be automatically downloaded to the computer and the wider network.

We hope that this “spring clean” list is of some use. Obviously this isn’t intended just for springtime, you should use these tips throughout the year to ensure that your systems are constantly reviewed and your IT security is working well for you and your business.

For more information on cyber-attacks and social engineering, please contact your IT Support provider.

For all Cashroom clients with leavers please contact your Cashroom representative if you have any staff that need removing from the portal. If you would like more information on how to do this yourselves, please refer to the portal help icon and look for Adding / Deleting Client Users in the “How-to articles” section.

Rachel Faris, IT and Data Protection Administrator at The Cashroom Ltd

You need several key attributes to get the most out of a networking event like the Legal Sector Advisors and Suppliers conference. I spent a happy and very productive two days in September with the UK’s leading legal sector suppliers in the gorgeous setting of Ardencote Manor. The days were happy and productive because I was ready with networking powers primed and ready. There’s the obvious requirement for a cast iron constitution. The ability to remain coherent and to retain information after being plied with intoxicating slides and copious quantities of strong information.

There’s a need for a fast recovery…from the brain pain induced by constant intelligent discussion and from the dryness of mouth associated with ceaseless intellectual chatter.

On a more physically demanding note, there’s an essential element of grace and movement when negotiating the pulsating groups and knots of experts, clustered and cloistered. A swerve here. A nod and a smile there. Noting key contacts and performing a polite gentlemen’s excuse me, insinuating yourself into a group and immediately finding their rhythm.

The thing is, networking events of any sort involve perseverance, mobility, information retention and crucially action. Be prepared to politely move on from a conversation that is less relevant, but also remember at such events it is often when you stop talking shop and start just chatting that the conversation develops and relationships are formed based on far more than simply “what’s in it for me to talk with you”?

Following up on the discussions after an event is also key…it’s amazing how easy it is to just leave the event and the exciting discussions behind you, as you move onto the next gathering, or get embroiled in the day job as you emerge from the conference bubble to the mound of emails and daily grind. Try to be a little picky about follow up meetings, after all not everyone with whom you meet and share laughter and wine is a priority for action. But remember that even a meeting which is simply fun and a sharing of sector gossip can have value.

You can go to the best networking event or conference on the planet and if you don’t fully engage and follow up you’ve wasted your money and your time. Oh, and be sure to take paracetamol and Lucozade to deal with the hangovers.

Alex Holt, The Cashroom

You have been asked to do a piece of work, diligently send out your standard letter of engagement, when the client calls uttering the dreaded words…‘the fee is a bit higher than I was expecting – if you can get that down a bit, I’d be happy for you to proceed with the work’. If this situation fills you with dread, fear not! With a little thought and a proper ‘toolkit’, you can confidently go into a conversation with your client on the pricing topic in the future.

Believe it or not, armed with the right knowledge and skills, you don’t need to default to discounting your pricing when a client queries them. A number of surveys on legal and professional services fees have found that the most important factor for clients is usually not lowest price. Obviously this may vary slightly depending on work type, but other factors have consistently been found more influential. The key influences are that the prices are transparent, guaranteed and value based. So, how do you move your firm towards a better pricing model, and ensure it is consistently applied? Well, I recently attended a seminar by Nigel Haddon, a Pricing Consultant at Burcher Jennings, who had some very useful tips on this.

First and foremost, get a feeling for the clients‘ objectives – for example, how urgently does the work need done, how important is it to them, what is their risk appetite. Next, you may also want to factor in whether it is a one-off piece of work, or if there is an opportunity for repeat or volume work in the future. This, along with a clear understanding of what the work involves, allows you to consider the appropriate fee.

On the initial enquiry call, make it standard practice to buy yourself fifteen or twenty minutes to “run it past a colleague”. Next, make sure you do just that! Simply having a chat with a colleague will provoke greater challenge around your initial perception of the work involved, how long it is likely to take etc. You will probably find that eight or nine times out of ten, it is necessary to increase the price you were originally thinking of quoting.

Next, clearly set out to the client what the fees are, giving them at least two options. This part may be an entirely new concept, but hearing Nigel explain it, it actually makes a lot of sense. Most importantly, all of the options must work for you, but for sometimes inexplicable reasons, one will probably appear more appealing or better value to the client.

As an example, for a piece of work which needs to be done by the end of the week, and is of extremely high importance to the client, you could offer the following options: (1) an hourly rate of X, being a 25% premium on your standard hourly rate; (2) a fixed fee of £4500; or (3) a fixed fee of £4000 if paid upfront.

Rarely will the client walk away, or even shop around, when presented with such a choice. More likely, they will like one of your options, depending on the particular circumstances in which they find themselves.

I hope these tips are useful to you – I know they certainly make a lot of sense to me, thinking back to my days in legal practice. In addition to ensuring there is clear consensus with your client on their objectives, by taking some time to think about why you are seeking to charge certain rates, and clearly explaining them, with various options, you are less likely to get push back from the client later down the line, and even if you do, you can be far more prepared for that discussion, and confident in your justification.

Gregor Angus, Head of Business Development Scotland at The Cashroom Ltd

I don’t want to bring down the mood…I’m no Buzz Killington….but late last year my dad died. It was sudden, and shocking and awful. For a month he was in intensive care before he passed away and so in total there were about two months of uncertainty and scheduling visits and fear and worry and support for mum and then grief and horror and emptiness.

 I promised I wouldn’t bring down the mood, so “why are you writing this Al?” I hear you ask.
Well it’s simple really. All those trite sayings. All those tropes. Those clichés. You know the ones- life is too short; seize the day; life is not a rehearsal.

They’re all true.

 My dad was a great businessman and a wonderful dad and gramps. What happened to him came out of the blue. And when he was in hospital there was a fella aged about 30 in the next bed who had also had a massive stroke. It really can happen to any of us.

So my heartfelt message in this brief blog is that we should all treat every day as precious. Do those things you’ve been putting off. Be kind to people rather than dismissive or ignorant. Try to make your world and the lives of those around you better.

I’ll end with a quote from Gladiator (not “On my mark unleash hell”…that’d be weird!). No the quote is “What we do in life echoes in eternity”.

From a business perspective if nothing else, maybe we can all work in a more collegiate, helpful and positive way. I’m going to try to do that, and to live life to the full. Dad taught me that before he died, and the full truth of his lessons only now fully hits home.

Alex Holt, Director of Business Development