New Research from BigHand, BRYTER, and SurePoint Technologies Highlights the Value of Financial Intelligence for Law Firms

USA - English

• USA - English

NEW YORK, Dec.13, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Ari Kaplan Advisors released a new report - Implementing Financial Intelligence to Give Law Firms a Competitive Advantage in 2022 and Beyond – about the pandemic's impact on the business of law, shifts in the application of data to decision-making in law firms, the perception of profitability, and the pace of innovation. A consortium of companies that includes BigHand, BRYTER, and SurePoint Technologies supported the research, which is based on interviews conducted by Ari Kaplan, principal of Ari Kaplan Advisors, with 20 chief financial officers, seven finance directors (three of which serve as the CFO since they are the department leader), and three accounting managers at law firms of various sizes, though with a median size of 103 lawyers, throughout the United States.

The results reveal that finance leaders have expanded responsibilities, are helping firms quickly adapt to new challenges, and wield higher levels of influence to positively impact decisions at their organizations. "If you're able to foster a culture of business and financial intelligence within your firm, you can communicate those details to your clients and provide greater value to them," said Rob Stote, the managing director of profitability products at BigHand.

In addition, when asked to gauge their influence on the decision-making of other departments at their firms, almost half of the respondents reported that they have significant sway, with 47% rating their level of influence at a four or five out of five. "The report shows that not only do law firm financial leaders have significant visibility into an array of firm data and dynamically leverage technology, but they are also routinely driving innovation," added Michael Grupp, the CEO of BRYTER.

The key findings include:

• 17% of the respondents work for firms that do not measure profitability.
• 27% are exploring other service delivery models to increase profitability.
• 43% indicated that their jobs have changed beyond the traditional remit of a law firm financial leader
• 60% are involved in the procurement and buying decisions for technology.
• 67% reported that the skills required for financial leaders have changed.
• 90% have access to the data they need to make informed business decisions.
• 90% indicated that data can help finance teams become these trusted advisors.
• 93% reported that reliable, timely data can help law firms gain a competitive edge.

"Many finance professionals spoke of the need to build consensus and collaborate with individuals throughout their firms to simplify complex concepts and leverage advanced business intelligence to improve outcomes and opportunities," said legal industry analyst, Ari Kaplan.

Finance practitioners are also increasingly being asked to assess tools, as well as gather, interpret, and distribute data on which practice groups, managing partners, and executive teams can rely to drive change. "To remain successful, law firms need to embrace technology and data to both meet client demands and to enhance their ability to predict outcomes more effectively," said Tom Obermaier, the CEO of SurePoint.

Download a copy of Implementing Financial Intelligence to Give Law Firms a Competitive Advantage in 2022 and Beyond here: https://bit.ly/3DpFssk.

About Ari Kaplan Advisors

Ari Kaplan Advisors is a leading legal industry advisory company that publishes benchmarking reports on legal technology trends, delivers networking, public speaking, and business development training for law firms and other providers of professional services, and offers personal coaching and access to its proprietary coaching software platform, Lawcountability. Company principal, Ari Kaplan, is an inaugural Fastcase 50 honoree, a fellow of the College of Law Practice Management, and a finalist for the International Legal Technology Association's Thought Leader of the Year award. Learn more about Ari Kaplan Advisors at https://www.AriKaplanAdvisors.com.

About BigHand

BigHand delivers success for the future by helping law firms achieve professional productivity and profitability. The leading software technology company has developed a range of solutions
that help busy people achieve more in less time and organizations become more efficient and profitable. BigHand has over 3,500 clients and 600,000 users worldwide, supporting 68% of Am Law 200 firms. The leading technology provider actively listens and responds to client needs, demonstrated in its outstanding customer satisfaction score of 98%. BigHand Business Intelligence is an advanced financial BI solution for law firms with role-based reporting that delivers the right financial data to the right person in real-time intuitive dashboards. The flexible data warehouse replaces manual reporting with real-time data visibility from firm level to individual clients and matters. Self-service analytics provide controlled access to relevant metrics in any visualization tool of choice. The solution empowers users to improve cash flow and profitability with immediate financial insight. Visit http://www.bighand.com to learn more.

About BRYTER

BRYTER is the no-code automation platform that enables legal and regulatory professionals to build digital applications. The truly no-code platform gives enterprise teams the tools to build self-service applications to provide faster, more accurate services to their clients, without programming. BRYTER is especially geared to professionals in law, compliance, accounting and finance, who use the software to automate complex, recurring decisions and workflows. Global law firms like Paul Hastings and Reed Smith, and professional service firms like Deloitte, PwC and KPMG, through to in-house legal teams from companies like McDonalds, Telefonica and Tech Data use BRYTER to deliver services digitally. BRYTER is a remote-first company with offices in New York, Boston, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Berlin and Dublin.
Visit http://www.bryter.com to learn more.

About SurePoint® Technologies

SurePoint® Technologies is a leading provider of financial and practice management software to law firms nationwide. For more than 40 years, law firms have relied on SurePoint's tailored enterprise software to drastically improve workflow and maximize financial performance. With a community of nearly 50,000 members, SurePoint continues to transform the legal industry by enabling law firms to unlock higher performance by freeing lawyers of administrative burdens so they can spend far more time focusing on their clients and their practice.
Visit http://www.surepoint.com to learn more.

Media Contact

Ari Kaplan, Ari Kaplan Advisors LLC, +1 646-641-0600, [email protected]

SOURCE Ari Kaplan Advisors LLC