Are You Setup To Keep Your Law Firm Thriving From Home?
As Social Distancing and Shelter-in-Place Requirements Take Effect Around the World, Law Firms Must Prepare to Keep Serving Their Clients During This Difficult Time. Here’s How to Work Remotely.
Law firms are facing an influx of coronavirus-related concerns from their clients – from responding when employees test positive to the legal nuances of providing appropriate accommodations for those in quarantine to updated laws and regulations resulting from the pandemic.
Right now, it’s more important than ever before to be prepared to keep serving your clients from the comfort of your own home. Your clients are navigating through uncertain legal waters and it’s critical that you are prepared to offer responsive guidance and support during this difficult time.
Important Considerations Before Working From Home
Before you start enabling your attorneys to work from home, here is a list of important considerations to keep in mind:
Do you have adequate bandwidth with your home internet connection?
Switching to remote work will likely require more bandwidth than the average attorney has with their home internet connection. At a minimum, 1.5 Mbps up/down will be required to keep up with your workload. Keep in mind, you will likely be sharing your bandwidth with other residents of your home.
Do you have an appropriate workspace to work in?
Naturally, you’re bound to end up on some video calls during your time working from home. We’ll go into more detail on that later, but for now, assess your workspace and make sure it’s professional in terms of:
- Lighting
- Background
- Webcam quality
- Microphone quality
You can use divider walls to create a more private space if you don’t have a dedicated office to work from.
Do you have collaboration and/or video conferencing software?
When you’re working with clients who are dealing with tough times, it’s important to offer a more personal level of service. Video meetings will be essential to giving you the ability to meet face-to-face on a virtual level. Microsoft Office 365 includes Microsoft Teams, a chat-based workspace that’s a great option for:
- Hosting group chats or video conferences with multiple people at a time
- Collaborating on documents and files in real-time with colleagues
- Keeping sensitive data safe with advanced security controls
Do you have a secure client file storage solution in place?
If you hadn’t already gone paperless prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, now is a good time to start. If you’re working remotely, you will need a single source for all of your important information and files pertaining to clients. Microsoft Office 365 includes OneDrive, a leading cloud storage service that gives you the ability to store, access, and find files with ease.
How To Create A Culture Of Productive Remote Work
Most attorneys are used to working from home now and then, but working from home full-time can be tricky as work/life balance gets thrown off, other obligations get in the way, and social interaction becomes minimal. Here are a few tips to help you create a culture of productive remote work:
Keep Talking About Your Firm’s Core Values
If you don’t have core values in place, it’s a perfect time to work together with your team to create some. If you do, keep talking about them and reinforce the idea that you’re all in this together.
Coordinate Weekly Virtual Lunch or Coffee Meet-Ups
Take advantage of the ability to video chat and coordinate lunch or coffee meet-ups on a regular basis. Encourage your team to talk about something positive in their life during the past week – both personally and professionally.
Set Aside Time for Personal Chat
Don’t forget that while your team is in the office, they tend to have extra time during the day to chat on a personal level. Encourage them to take 5 or 10 minutes a day to chat with one another via text or phone calls.
One Thing Is Certain: Your Clients Need Legal Guidance During This Difficult Time…
Nobody knows exactly how long social distancing and shelter-in-place requirements will remain in effect, but we do know one thing is certain: right now, your clients need legal guidance more than ever to navigate this complex time.
Need Help Getting Setup To Work Remotely? Contact Vision Computer Solutions Now.
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