The quarterly publication of the International Legal Technology Association
Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/1065281
20 firm leaders. Software constantly needs upgrades, or it quickly becomes obsolete. Servers need to be replaced. But with a cloud-based approach, costs and budgeting become much more predictable. Many cloud providers even offer flat fees. Since cloud providers should constantly be upgrading their software, servers and systems, those costs won't hit your bottom line unexpectedly. 8 . U N S T O P P A B L E S E R V I C E , N O M AT T E R W H AT H A P P E N S A water pipe breaks in the Albuquerque office? An earthquake shakes things up in California? Disasters like these can cause long-term damage to your firm if critical records are unavailable or even lost. At a minimum, these types of disasters can cause significant disruptions in service and impede how effectively a leader can bring a team through challenges. Clients may question the firm's reliability and whether it can manage their cases. If the delays are bad enough, clients may even start talking to your competition. With the cloud, these worries are eliminated. Since files and systems aren't stored on-site, firms won't lose access to any data if an office is damaged or smartphone or tablet. This provides a competitive edge, saves money for the firm and allows attorneys to have a life away from their office. 6 . F R E E U P T I M E T O P R A C T I C E L A W, N O T I T Too often, the heads of firms and practices spend less time managing cases and clients and more time handling IT issues. At smaller firms, leadership may find themselves playing significant roles troubleshooting tech problems and trying to figure out new software options. Even at large firms, routine upgrades and maintenance can take an aggravating amount of time—time that could be better spent on the practice of law. With the cloud, they can hand off those IT upgrades and troubleshooting to highly trained professionals. A cloud provider can also offer round-the-clock IT assistance. When leaders have IT issues, they don't need to wait until the office opens or spend time on hold. The cloud provider should have someone available 24/7/365 who can resolve issues immediately. 7. P R E D I C TA B L E B U D G E T I N G Budgeting for IT is an ongoing headache for law agility Get to the point faster with 4362_167_Agility_ITLA_HP_Spread_01jc.indd 1