Give and take: getting more out of your software.

• Author: Correia, Jared
• Position: Special Issue: Technology & the Practice of Law

It has been asserted across various modes of popular culture that humans use only 10 percent of their brains. While that is not true, it is definitely true that the average attorney probably uses less than 10 percent of the total software features to which he or she has access.

It is not necessarily a bad thing, on balance. Using 100 percent of a product's features would be completely overwhelming; every feature is not workable across every business use. Broad software applications are not purchased with 100 percent usability in mind. Most users will live in the major features they need, ignoring the rest. Even so, there is a wide gap between 10 percent and 100 percent, and that is a yawning sweet spot in which lawyers and law firms can operate, one that begs the question: How can you get more out of your software?

Customization

Most retail software applications are default systems by nature; they are pre-built. That, of course, does not mean that you have to stick with the software you have purchased in its out-of-the-box incarnation. In fact, most modern software programs are meant to be customized. If it is true that every business use case is different, then there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all program. The software you use should reflect the needs of your law firm. This does not mean that you should be hunkering down and rewriting code or scrapping your connection to the grid and building an access database. Customization need not be earth-shattering to be effective. Maybe there is a report you want for your practice that is not available in the default architecture of the program. Do not shrug your shoulders--build it. You might also customize the use of your software by making choices relating to program defaults (e.g., applying access control to individual users).

Tasks in Aggregation

Most of the time, lawyers use software to manage projects, (1) which are just collections of tasks. To that end, you can probably get better results if you focus on using software applications to drive workflows and complete projects. Workflows (2) are undiscovered country for most small law firms, but these batched collections of tasks for processes and case types can save time and errors. (3) If you proceed through the same seven checklist items for every single personal injury case, then build out that list and apply it with one click to each such claim. If you want to set a series of follow-up tasks related to staying in touch with a...